Ready to go from writer
to published
author?
Does this sound like you?
You’ve sent out query letters and have received loads of rejections, either via automated emails or worse…the dreaded silent treatment.
Agents and presses are cryptic about their opinions on a successful book.
After all, how do you write a bildungsroman that’s a social commentary and showcases a sophisticated but accessible style while using sparse, concise prose and full-bodied setting that also embraces a poetic structure and bends genre boundaries while including an adventurous and romantic plot with outspoken heroines and multifaceted sidekicks?
Okay, we exaggerate.
But not by much!
It can feel impossible to know the right answers in the literary world.
How do you finish that manuscript in the first place?
How do you know the right path to success?
How do you get a YES from a publisher, and then if you do you get a YES…what do you do next?
Do you even need an agent or should you self-publish? What is considered a “small press” and is the door small enough to let me through?
Will the Big Five publishers high-five back? Do you even want them to?
I’ve been there.
Once upon a time, I was just a bookish kid with dreams of becoming a published author. But you know what I learned the hard way? It’s not enough to have a good book, to be a strong writer.
It took nine years from ideation to traditionally publishing my debut novel Atomic Family. Even though I have a Master’s in Creative Writing, much of what I learned about publishing was self-taught through experience—now I’m sharing everything I know.
I’ve navigated the slush piles, identified actionable query letter strategies, and have developed an understandable roadmap to breaking out in the literary world. Our upcoming webinar will offer an accessible toolbox for early-career writers at any stage in their publication journey.
Enroll Now
☆
Enroll Now ☆
One-Day Only Live Event
The Power (and Pain) of Self-Promotion
May 26, 2024 — 12:00 CT
$40
Live 2-hour webinar with Ciera McElroy ($300 value)
Access to our viral Query checklist ($250 value)
Query Master E-book PDF Freebie ($15 value)
Replay link from the live webinar
Discounted rate for personalized follow-up coaching session
Can’t join us live? That’s okay! All registrants will receive a replay link.
This webinar is brought to you in partnership with the Trust & Travel Spring Workshop Series.
Leave with actionable next steps.
This masterclass will prepare you to take the next step in your writing career. You’ll leave with the exact strategies I used to hear back from literary agents within 24 hours of querying. (This book. I had queried others to crickets…so I’ve been on both sides!)
This webinar is ideal for you if you’re:
✔ Ready to start querying agents
✔ Wondering what publication paths are available to you
✔ Starting your promotional journey
✔ Marketing your book yourself
✔ A published author who wants to know how to make your industry work better for you
Meet your instructor
Ciera McElroy
Author, CEO, film communications strategist. As a marketing and messaging strategist, her film projects have grossed a collective $173 million at the box office. Ciera’s debut novel ATOMIC FAMILY (Blair) was released in 2023 to critical acclaim. Additional work has appeared in The Washington Post, The Daily Beast, Writer’s Digest, AGNI, Bridge Eight, Iron Horse Literary Review, the Crab Orchard Review, and Saw Palm, among others.
Ciera is passionate about making the publishing industry more transparent and sharing marketing strategies for authors.
What you’ll learn
Testimonials
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The immense knowledge she has of the industry is tremendously helpful as she has the ability to help shape your book, query, and market your project to the demographic you are aiming for.
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As a writer herself, she understands the business and my passion—I felt heard during each step of the process.
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I'm still a bit shy about sharing my work, but Ciera never made me feel like a novice or inexperienced. She was so thoughtful and timely in her communication and editing and gave such helpful feedback. It was only after her help that my short story really found its voice.
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Ciera's work is like magic.
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Never in my life did I imagine I'd be writing a book, but working with this team has not only make it possible, but actually doable.
