Twice a year New York Writers Workshop offers three-day Pitch Conferences for writers of fiction. Participants refine pitches for their proposals or manuscripts, then meet with and pitch to three different editors from major New York publishing houses (Bantam Dell, Berkley Publishing Group, Dutton, Random House, Rodale, St. Martin’s Press, and others).

Conference Info

FICTION PITCH CONFERENCE

SCHEDULE

November 9, 10 & 11, 2012

Day 1 – Friday, November 9

9:30 am – 4:00 pm   Participants workshop their pitches with a workshop leader from New York Writers Workshop. Each participant reads his/her synopsis. The NYWW instructor provides guidance in revision for clarity, concision, and impact. The instructor also discusses, as appropriate, the realities of the publishing market. The rest of the group participates, as appropriate, and learns from each example.

Day 2 – Saturday, November 10

10:00 am – 12:00 pm   Literary Agents Panel: Literary agents discuss the current market for fiction: commercial, genre and literary.  Is it possible, in this economic climate, to sell fiction? What are the current trends? How to query an agent? What do agents look for? What are the publishers looking for? How to market oneself? Q&A session follows the panel discussion.

1:30 pm – 5:00 pm  Participants make two pitches to editors. The first pitch is “public,” meaning participants pitch to an editor in the presence of their group. A short Q&A session with the editor follows. The second pitch is private, one-on-one with an editor, with an NYWW instructor present.

Day 3 – Sunday,  November 11

10:00 am – 12:30 pm  Each participant makes one private pitch to an editor, again with an NYWW instructor present. The day wraps with a group conference with an NYWW instructor.

Your Homework Assignment

Before arriving at the conference, your “homework assignment” is to prepare a draft of your pitch. It should include a succinct summary of the major plot line and describe what makes your book distinctive. Be aware of other comparable books—even if you don’t include this information in the initial draft of your pitch, your group leader might suggest you add it or an editor might ask you about this. If your background is relevant to the story, include that. Remember that the purpose of the pitch is to persuade the editors that this is a book they should publish.

The pitches will be made orally, so you might want to practice saying yours out loud. You’ll be able to read your pitch from your computer or a piece of paper when you meet the editors, so you don’t have to worry about memorizing. We suggest aiming for two minutes at the most; the pitches usually end up taking one to two minutes by the end of Friday’s workshop.  There’s no need to send us your pitch in advance—just have it with you when you arrive. If your book is aimed at the adult market, there’s no need to bring any parts of the book that are already written.

When You Arrive

We’ll be meeting at Ripley-Grier Studios, on the 16^th floor of 520 Eighth Avenue, between 36^th and 37^thStreets.

Dress is casual—whatever you’re comfortable wearing.

Many people bring their laptops and use them to revise their pitches during the conference. There’s free wi-fi at Ripley-Grier, and there’s a Staples nearby (and sometimes a working printer at Ripley-Grier) if you want to print out your revisions.

There’s a snack bar right on the 16^th floor at Ripley-Grier and also one in the building lobby where you can purchase snacks, sandwiches, and drinks. There is nothing scheduled after 4:00 on Friday, but many people use some of the time to revise their pitches for Saturday’s presentations.

The Plan

On Friday:  After people sign in, there will be short introductory remarks, and you’ll be assigned to a group and a group leader. From 10:00 till around 4:00, with a break for lunch, you and the other members of your group will work on your pitches. In true workshop fashion, you’ll be able to learn from the leader’s and other participants’ feedback on your pitch as well as everyone else’s.

On Saturday: The Agents Panel will meet from 10:00 until 12:00. Saturday’s session of the conference itself will start at 1:15 and last until around 5:00. There will be two parts. First, everyone in your group will pitch to an editor in front of everyone else so, again, you’ll have the opportunity to learn from others’ experiences as well as your own. Then there will be private, one-on-one pitches with a different editor (not totally private—your group leader will probably attend). You’ll have some free time while others are doing their one-on-one pitches. (Ripley-Grier is a fun place to hang out, as many theater groups and dance companies rehearse there.)

On Sunday: Sunday’s session starts at 10:00 and runs no later than 12:30. The format is similar to the second part of Saturday afternoon, where everyone makes a one-on-one pitch to a third editor. There will be a wrap-up with your group leader at the end of the session.

 Workshop Leaders

Workshop leaders, editors, and members of the Agents Panel will be announced closer to the date of the conference.

How to Apply

If you’d like to attend a conference, send an email following these five steps:

1. Subject: Fiction Conference
2. A brief description of the project (up to 100 words)
3. What you do for a living
4. Contact information (mail address, phone)
5. Send the email to Charles Salzberg charles@ducts.org

We’ll get back to you within ten days to let you know if your application has been accepted and, if so, where you should send your check.

Note: Please do NOT contact the JCC–while they handle registration for our writing classes, they are not involved with the conferences.

The following books were sold

as a result of the conference!