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The Stress-Free Guide to Nailing Your Agent Submission
The Stress-Free Guide to Nailing Your Agent Submission is designed to take the stress out of submitting your manuscript to agents and help you avoid the most common mistakes writers make when querying.
The Stress-Free Guide to Nailing Your Agent Submission was developed by Jennie Nash, Author Accelerator’s founder and CEO. She’s trained and certified more than 260 book coaches and her own coaching clients have earned six-figure book deals, spots on The New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists, and hundreds of indie publishing awards.
The guide and the special offers that are part of it (including one of Jennie’s books and a 5-day mini-course) are available for Write Anyway Summit VIPs until December 10th, 2024
Note that this guide is focused on what to do once you are ready to pitch
If you need help crafting your PitchFest pitch, scroll down to the Bonus Content at the bottom of this webpage to help you with your face-to-face pitch.
The Stress-Free Guide to Nailing Your Agent Submission
Part 1:
The Chapter One Good-to-Great Checklist
Start by making sure your first chapter does everything it needs to do. You want these pages to be not just good, but great; they are often the one-and-only chance you have to hook an agent.
Part 2:
The 5 Elements of an Effective Synopsis
Many agents request a synopsis of the whole story so they can tell at a glance how it unfolds. This section shows you how to write a compelling synopsis.
Part 3:
The One-Hour Big-Picture Manuscript Review
The One-Hour Big-Picture Manuscript Review gives you a fast and effective way to make sure your entire manuscript is holding together. This exercise will help you avoid the most common editorial problems that agents see.
Part 4:
Make Your Pitch!
Send your submission materials to the agents who invited you to submit.
Part 5:
Download a free copy of Jennie Nash’s Blueprint for a Book
Download a free digital copy of Jennie Nash’s book, Blueprint For A Book: How To Write A Novel From The Inside Out. The book walks writers through a 14-step process for starting, rescuing, or revising a book. Some of the lessons might be helpful as you prepare your submission.
Part 6:
Connect with Certified Book Coaches Who Specialize in Thrillers
Author Accelerator Certified Book Coaches have undertaken more than 100 hours of coursework and training, and have passed the high bar for certification that we set. If you need help at any step of the pitch process, one of them may be the right coach to guide you.
Some of our coaches have special low-priced offers especially for ThrillerFest attendees. See the full list in the guide.
Bonus Lesson:
How to Write a Query Letter
Author Accelerator Certified Book Coach Julie Artz shares tips for how to prepare a query letter if you are pitching agents cold.
We’re in the business of helping writers accomplish their writing goals. We do that by training and certifying book coaches.
What is Author Accelerator?
Four Author Accelerator coaches at a book signing
What Writers Are Saying About Our Book Coaches
“I can’t tell you how invaluable this has been for me during the first six weeks of this six-month commitment. I am so energized and excited to write the novel I’ve always wanted to write, the one I always knew I could write.”
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“I’m loving Author Accelerator. It’s given me the creative steer that I needed and the working direction to get the book written — I can’t tell you how energized I feel about it!”
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“My book coach has given me honest feedback that has given me the confidence to explore my options, knowing that she’ll tell me the hard truth if need be.”
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“I’m really impressed with the Author Accelerator community, and it’s a great source of support.”
Bonus Material:
Nailing Your Face-to-Face PitchFest Pitch
A quick guide to impressing agents at PitchFest.
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Pitching to agents at a conference is a fantastic opportunity to get your work in front of the people who can bring it to life — but being stressed and nervous during the pitch won’t help your chances. Prepare your materials, but also prepare your mind. Visualize yourself pitching with energy and poise, and remember that the agents are hoping for a good match as much as you are.
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A compelling pitch is like book jacket copy—a summary designed to entice the reader. You want to SELL your story. Study the book jackets of books you love and use them as a model. Make sure your pitch has a hook — a question or a scenario — that will get the agent’s attention and give enough detail and description about the story to make the agent want more.
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Rambling on and on about subplots or plot points won’t serve you during the pitch. Time your pitch so you can get through it and leave enough time for the agent to ask questions or share their reaction.
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Practice speaking your pitch out loud. Break it up using bullet points and color (if that helps you remember it) and memorize the pitch so you can SPEAK it and don’t have to rely on reading from a piece of paper. You want to be able to OWN this pitch.
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When you sit down with the agent to pitch, don’t say you are nervous or that this is your first pitch. Don’t explain that this is your first book. Don’t ask if you should start your pitch now. Sit down, look them in the eye, say, “Hi, I’m [NAME],” and then launch right into the hook of your well-rehearsed pitch.
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You wrote an amazing story. You worked hard to revise it. You traveled to the conference to take the next step. Know that you belong in that room and own your power!
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Once you receive an invitation to submit your manuscript, use The Stress-Free Guide to Nailing Your Agent Submission to make sure your materials are pitch-perfect.