One-day masterclass: How to query literary agents
Sunday 24th November, 10am to 5.45pm
Online
1 day
Flexible
£99
You’ve written a book and you’re looking for agent representation. What next?
WriteMentor’s one-day online masterclass will guide you through the process of submitting your manuscript to literary agents – taking you another step closer to being published.
The interactive masterclass will be led by authors who are represented by well-known agencies, and who all have different paths to representation. Across five one-hour sessions held on Zoom, these authors will share their advice on the three main elements of a successful submission package: the opening chapters, the synopsis, and the cover letter.
Alongside practical advice, you’ll gain behind-the-scenes insights into the querying process, including how to manage your wellbeing while on submission. The day will finish with a Q&A with a literary agent to find about their role and gain further advice on your submission package.
Live attendees can ask their own questions, and all sessions will be recorded and available for 30 days after the masterclass for those who want to rewatch the content or catch up on missed sessions.
Our masterclass will teach you…
- How to research the right agents for you, your manuscript, and literary career.
- How to keep track of your submissions and responses.
- How to edit your first three chapters to catch an agent’s attention and make them want to request a full manuscript.
- How to condense your entire story into a short synopsis.
- What you should and shouldn’t include in a cover letter, and how to sell both your idea and yourself in only a few hundred words.
- How to manage the stress of waiting for responses and the disappointment if you receive a rejection.
- What to do if you receive an offer of representation, including questions to ask agents, and both the green and red flags to look out for.
- What the submission process looks like from the point of view of an agent.
Session 1 (10am to 11.00am): Submitting to agents: where to start?
Introducing the submission process – when to know when you’re ready to query, how to find the agents best suited for your manuscript, how to track your submission process, and more.
Session 2 (11.30am to 12.30pm): Writing your synopsis
Turn your synopsis from your worst enemy into your best friend! The dreaded synopsis is a stage that trips up every writer at some point in their career, so let Aunty Melissa take you through how to condense your epic story into one single page, step by step. Use your synopsis to attract agent attention, plot your novel, and support your editing. At any stage of your writing journey, your synopsis doesn’t have to be the enemy – it could be your bestie instead!
Session 3 (1.45pm to 2.45pm): Polishing your opening chapters
Your opening chapters can be make or break in catching an agent’s eye, so they have to be the best they can possibly be. We’ll be looking at how to make them voicey, unique and attention grabbing – and saying goodbye to clichéd openings and exposition dumping!
Session 4 (3.15pm to 4.15pm): Creating your cover letter
Cover letters are all about selling yourself and your book, and who better to guide you through it than a professional marketer. Join author and freelance marketer Florianne Humphrey for a session on creating cover letters – from what you need to include, why you need to include it, and how you go about doing it, all in a few hundred words. We’ll also have a look at example cover letters, and discuss what to include, and what not to include.
Session 5 (4.45pm to 5.45pm): Live Q&A with literary agent
Find out about the Dos and Don’ts of submitting your book to an agency live from the mouth of a literary agent. Gain their advice and insights about creating a successful submission package, how you can stand out from the crowd, current publishing trends and expectations, and what to do if you get an offer of representation. Plus, you’ll get the valuable opportunity to directly ask your own questions.
Meet the masterclass leaders
Melissa Welliver, author
Melissa is a speculative Young Adult author represented by agent Lucy Irvine at Peters, Fraser & Dunlop with three published Young Adult novels – The Undying Tower, My Love Life and the Apocalypse, and Soulmates and Other Ways to Die. Apart from writing, she works as a freelance editor and has several testimonials on her website.
Read more about Melissa.
Emily Randall-Jones, author
Emily is represented by Lucy Irvine at Peters, Fraser & Dunlop and her debut novel, The Witchstone Ghosts, was published in spring 2023. Emily has worked as a touring actor, an historical interpreter at Hampton Court and for the National Trust, creating events, exhibitions and interpretation. Emily has won both the Mslexia Children’s Novel and YA competition and the Times/Chicken House Competition. When she’s not writing, she’s busy raising two young children. On days off she can be found near the sea, at the pub or eating cake. Or all three.
Read more about Emily.
Florianne Humphrey, author
Florianne is a freelance writer, marketer, and travel journalist with published short stories and poems that have been shortlisted for awards. Florianne enjoys developing and leading her own creative writing workshops for adults and children. Born in Paris, raised in London, Florianne now lives and writes on the Norfolk coast, practising yoga, walking her bouncy Golden Retriever, and dreaming up her next travel adventure.
Read more about Florianne.
Deirdre Power, agent
Deirdre Power started her career at Curtis Brown as an assistant, and since then she has worked in children’s editorial at Simon & Schuster and Usborne Publishing. Deirdre joined David Higham Associates in January 2023 to assist Caroline Walsh on her phenomenal list. Prior to working in publishing, Deirdre attended Trinity College Dublin for my BA in English Studies and MPhil in Children’s Literature, and previously worked as a bookseller on Grafton Street in Dublin.