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Pitch Wars Mentor Wishlist Blog Hop!

Sunday, 3 August 2014  |  Posted by Brenda Drake

BADGE 2Artwork by S.P. McConnell

 

Welcome to the mentors’ wishlist blog hop! From today until submission day, hop to all the mentors’ websites/blogs to read their bios, wishlists, and what categories and genres they want to mentor. At the end of this post, you will find the rules and submission guidelines for August 18.

For those unfamiliar with Pitch Wars, it’s a contest where published/agented authors, editors, or interns choose one writer each, read their entire manuscript, and offer suggestions on how to make the manuscript shine. The mentor also critiques his/her writer’s pitch to get it ready for the agent round. To do this, the mentors read all their applications and choose the writer they want to mentor for two months to get them ready for the agent round (agent list here) on November 4-5. Writers can pick up to four mentors to submit to.

You will notice the mentors are not separated in categories, so you will have to do your homework, much like with an agent search, to find the right mentors for you. Use this opportunity to get to know fellow writers, some a little further in the publishing journey than you, because making connections can bring new friendships, new favorite authors, or new advocates for your work. Happy hunting!

Marieke Nijkamp has put together #AskMentor for #PitchWars on Twitter. There will be two mentor chats on August 11 at 2PM and at 6PM. Stop by at either time spot and ask any questions you have or just get to know our talented Pitch Wars mentors.

 

And here are your mentors…

Please be respectful to our mentors. Ask brief questions, but do not ask for feedback or for them to go to links to read stuff.

 

Mister Linky’s Magical Widgets — Easy-Linky widget will appear right here!
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Girls wanna have fun

Submission Guidelines …

Submission day is August 18 for 24 hours starting at 12:01AM EDT (NY time)  and ending at 11:59PM EDT (basically, mid-night to mid-night).

In addition to their top pick, mentors will pick one alternate each in case their writer drops out of the contest. The mentors will critique the alternates’ pitches & first chapters only. We may or may not have an alternate showcase on a day other than the agent round for the top picks. Stay tuned for more information about that later.

This year, we’ll have an easy submission form courtesy of Dan Koboldt. The form will go live at midnight (EDT – New York time) August 18 and remain open for 24 hours. What will you need to enter in the form? Your top four (max – you don’t have to pick 4, but you are limited to 4) mentors, your email address, title of the manuscript, category and genre, your query letter (sorry no personalized queries this year), and the first chapter of your completed manuscript (Word .doc or .docx format).  The sample chapter should be manuscript formatted pages (12pt, double-spaced). All of this will be fill-in-the-blank on the form.

Submission Guidelines:

  • Only Middle Grade, Young Adult, New Adult, or Adult manuscripts will be accepted.
  • This is open to completed, full-length, fiction manuscripts only.
  • You may only enter one manuscript.
  • Only the genres requested by each mentor will be considered for the contest.
  • Writers can apply to 4 mentors max.
  • Mentors can only consider the categories they’ve signed up for. (The mentors’ categories – MG, YA, NA, or Adult – are set.)
  • Writers cannot apply for a mentor that is not in their category or the application will be deleted.
  • No nonfiction, picture books, chapter books, or previously published works. (If you’re an unagented author and have self-published before, you may enter the contest with a never-before-published manuscript.)

WARNING: Just like an agent, mentors may request more pages or a synopsis of your manuscript to help them make their final decision, so get them ready!

If you make it into Pitch Wars, you may not enter any contests during the mentoring period and until after the agent round, which is November 4 -5.

For those who do not make it into Pitch Wars (and those who want to join in), we’ll hold a Twitter Pitch Party on #PitMad September 9 from 8AM to 8PM EST. If you make it into Pitch Wars, you may not pitch in #PitMad.

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IMPORTANT!
We're thrilled at the different ways those in our Pitch Wars community are giving back—and we encourage them to do so. However, please keep in mind that Pitch Wars is not affiliated with any of these various contests, promotions, etc., including those of our mentors and mentees. Promoting any such opportunities via our social media channels doesn't imply endorsement or affiliation. We encourage you to do your research before participating.

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