Susie Bright Spring Master Class 3: Writing the Perfect Pitch Letter – How to Make Sure Your Book Proposal is Read

MARCH 21, 10 am Pacific/1 pm Eastern via Zoom

Master Class 3 

$175 – a $35 deposit saves your spot:





Hands-on workshop to learn the basics of what belongs in a convincing pitch letter to a publisher or agent— and just as important, what to leave out.

Susie will send you a pitch template and five questions to answer before our Zoom meeting.  

Do you have a book proposal that needs editing before you’re confident to send out? This is the class to bring it to.

This will require an hour or two of YOUR prep time, due 48 hours before the Zoom meet.

A goddamn brilliant Fuck-You-Pay-Me lesson on how to say Fuck-You-Pay-Me. A master class on how to pitch a master class.

—Gabriel Liston

Susie Bright’s Book Publishing Master Classes

Book Publishing Masters Class—Susie’s Spring 2024 Schedule 

For Authors and Editors Who Want to Be Read – Who Want to Make an Impact – Who Want to Make a Livelihood

(8) Thursdays

March 7 – May 9

Susie Bright is offering a series of (8) classes this spring in the acumen, ingenuity, comprehension of why books get picked, published, beloved, and why not?—legendary

And more than that, how to repeat the trick. 

If  one has a chance to work with Susie Bright, do not hesitate!

— Jen Joseph, publisher, Manic D Press

Each class uses real-life examples from our students’ writing lives and current publishing news — Susie interviews the students & changes the names for confidentiality— so we can deal with exactly what is on the table. 

To Register for Classes, scroll down and pay your deposit.

Register for All (8) Classes Now! A $240 deposit saves your spot in all eight classesin the series.

Classe sizes are limited and pre-registration allows discount.

Susie Bright changed the landscape of American publishing.

— MaryAnne Mohanraj,  The Stars Change

• Each master class session takes place in a ZOOM classroom, 2 hours in length

• Each class is limited to 10 students.

• For each class, Bright will invite students to share confidential preliminary materials before the workshop, so she can address— with anonymity— your specific questions, goals, hopes.

Susie Bright’s decades-long record and extensive portfolio provide a definitive answer to anyone who wonders if they should engage in business with her, if for no other reason than her perspectives and insight have withstood the test of time.

— Edward Morrisette

TUITIONReserve Your Seat With a Deposit

Any (1) Class         $175.00           

Register above with a $35 deposit and let us know which class you’re signing up for.

Any (4) Classes (DUE BY APRIL 1):                              $650.00                    (Saves $100)

Register above with a $130 depost and let us know which 4 classes you’re signing up for.

All (8) Classes (DUE BY MARCH 5):                          $1,200.00                   (Saves $200)

Register above with a $240 depost.

  

“Susie Bright got her publisher to produce the majority of my backlist. She’s full of straight-talk and kindness—a  unique combination. 

— Chris McKinney, editor, Honolulu Noir

MARCH 7

Master Class 1 

How to Ask for Kind & Essential  Favors in Publishing: 

Blurbs, Introductions, Read-Throughs, Recommendations

Every Writer in publishing seeks valuable advice and favors:

  • Blurbs
  • Influential Introductions
  • Read-Throughs and feedback
  • InterviewsEditorial Reviews
  • Referrals

And . . . when writers and book people are successful, they will find themselves on the other end of the ask.

How do you ask someone to lend their reputation, status, research, talent and time, to your cause? 

What makes them say yes, instead of no, and glad to be of help? 

You will learn in this class how to ask for support with grace and confidence, without alienating yourself from the very people whose favor you hope to curry.

Are you ghosted on occasion, without knowing why? Declined on something you were sure would be welcomed? Find the whole processing of “asking” too humiliating to pursue? This class is about the industry reality of these dilemmas, and how to break through, with satisfaction on both sides.

Susie doesn’t just publish your writing, she adopts you into her tribe. Her interest and care for my writing over nearly 30 years inspired me to be a better author.

— Michael McComas, The Mechanics Writing Workshop

MARCH 14

Master Class 2 

Agent Necessities — & When You’d Be Better Off Without One

  • Do I need an agent? 
  • Do I need an agent for ONE specific project? 
  • How do I get an agent?What is the full spectrum of agent’s work?Do agents need to know how to write and edit beautifully themselves? What if I want to change or leave an agency?Specialized agents – all about them, why it’s importantHow to write a proposal to an agent and gain their consideration
  • How to know which agency would be right for you

“Who is America’s best living editor? And why is it Susie Bright?”

— Rob Siders, 52 Novels

MARCH 21

Master Class 3

Writing the Perfect Pitch Letter – How to Make Sure Your Book Proposal is Read

Hands-on workshop to learn the basics of what belongs in a convincing pitch letter to a publisher or agent— and just as important, what to leave out.

Susie will send you a pitch template and five questions to answer before our Zoom meeting.  

Do you have a book proposal that needs editing before you’re confident to send out? This is the class to bring it to.

This will require an hour or two of YOUR prep time, due 48 hours before the Zoom meet.

“A goddamn brilliant Fuck-You-Pay-Me lesson on how to say Fuck-You-Pay-Me. A master class on how to pitch a master class.”

—Gabriel Liston

NO CLASS MARCH 28 — SPRING BREAK

“Susie is a ruby.”

— Richard Von Busack, film critic

APRIL 4

Master Class 4 

What Every Author Needs to Know About Contracts—Whether You Have an Agent or Attorney, or NOT

Any author who doesn’t understand the basic tenets of their contract is in for rude awakening.

Mistakes will be made. Surprises will hurt. Frustrations will mount. You will not have the language to express the changes you need.

The basics are not hard. Not at all. You can learn the central issues in a day.

When an uninitiated author first receives a contract, the vernacular and staging of the agreement is likely to look like gobbledegook. You recognize a few words here and there, you note the dates and sums, but whole clauses are impenetrable.

  • What parts really matter?
  • Would the publisher change any of it, if you asked? 
  • Where is the wiggle room? 
  • What are the most significant issues an author is being asked to submit or sacrifice? Should one take an adversarial or diplomatic approach? What would that even look like?
  • Doesn’t your agent do all this?

Most authors gratefully or indifferently push these questions aside, and depend on their agent, attorney, or elder mentor in their life to review. After all, isn’t that “their job,” their duty?

Well, yes. And no. You and your agent may not have developed a relationship yet to find out what your priorities are. The two of you need to speak the same language about the basics. Both your eyes need to be on it. It’s a collaboration. Don’t be infantilized. The best relationships between author and agent are when the author has a basic publishing education.

Let’s demystify it. We’re going to go through a typical contract together and hit all the high points. 

“Susie is a generous publishing savant! She has an extensive resume in publishing from author herself to editor and publisher. You’re guaranteed to learn so much from her!”

— Angelica Lopez-Torres, University of Texas Press

APRIL 11

Master Class 5

The Proving Ground: Testing Your Writing in Public with Blogs, Newsletters, and Short Works

How to test new material with real readers, find out what’s working, get leverage and credibility through small published pieces. Your first readers will determine a great deal. Your blog or newsletter, your short freelance pieces — let’s review how to make the most impact with each of them. 

  • Newsletters/Blogs
  • Social Media
  • Magazines and Journals

“Organized, definitive, well-versed, and comprehensive.” 

— Joanie Shoemaker, Worley Shoemaker Mgmt

APRIL 18

Master Class 6

Inside the Publisher’s Brain: How Publishers and Agents Decide on Your Manuscript

Why do publishers say “yes” or “no”? 

There is an answer to this. 

What are their rejection letters telling you, really?

Learn about the institutional memory of publishing and you’ll KNOW how they think.

We’ll examine the meaning of “comps” in publishing— comparative titles— and how authors can leverage them

We’ll use examples relating to each student’s past and future work.

Best editor I’ve ever had. Tells it like it is, asks all the right questions, has endless patience, and is both profoundly practical and profoundly kind. The rarest of gems.

— Simcha Fisher, author, journalist,  The Catholic Press Association

No Class APRIL 25—Spring Break!

MAY 2

Master Class 7 

Ebooks and Kindle: Expand Your Audience & Avoid the Rut

  • Marketing for Real; What Matters 
  • How to Stay Sane and Make Money
  • Social Media – What Makes a difference any more?Touring or Not?Crossing GenresThe Mingling MediumEbook Marketing for the shy and misanthropic
  • Writing First

Bright is uncanny at seeing what is best in your voice and coming up with ways to develop that voice and push it out to the widest possible audience. I can’t imagine anyone I’d rather work within publishing!

— Josh Kornbluth, playwright, author, Haiku Tunnel,“Red Diaper Baby, Ben Franklin Unplugged

MAY 9

Master Class 8 

Marketing Boot Camp: How to Be Famous Author Before You Die

  • It’s your Title Launch! You need media savvy, stat. 
  • In fact, you needed it six months ago. Get the new year squared up!
  • Press reviewsTips for introverts, cautions for extrovertsInterviewsCustomer reviewsFans you loveFans you don’tTrolls
  • And everyone else you’re going to meet! 

________________________________________________

“A bright guiding light in publishing, her participation is kind, constructive, and a kinetic part of the creative process.”

— Marc Huestis, filmmaker, producer, author, Sex Is . . . 

Classes Meets Thursdays on Zoom for two hours:

10am PST / 12pm CST / 1pm EST

Zoom invites are emailed to all participants, the Tuesday before class.

Susie Bright’s support as an editor and anthologist, her advice and encouragement, helped me develop as a novelist and story writer. Her work continues to be an inspiration to me.

— Corwin Ericson, author, Swell

The Wayward Writer: Summon Your Power to Take Back Your Story, Liberate Yourself from Capitalism, and Publish Like a Superstar by Ariel Gore

Create your liberated literary utopia

When your dream and creative passion is to write, how do you succeed without selling out or selling yourself short? Ariel Gore has spent her life trying to solve this puzzle, writing and organizing her way towards a creative utopian vision, where storytelling is a form of resistance and writing is an outsider art. In The Wayward Writer, the follow-up to her national bestseller How to Become a Famous Writer Before You’re Dead, Gore offers a lyrical call to literary revolution paired with practical exercises. Through her own experiences and interviews with other authors, publishers, and agents, she shows you how to chart your own creative education, vanquish shame and imposter syndrome, cast off oppression, cast a spell on your readers, step into your unique powers, and build your own literary community where respect and honesty reign—and where you can be a writer and survive. Gore presents an alternative narrative structure to the patriarchal hero’s journey, with a focus on tapping into myths and hidden places. She urges us to not be precious about where or when we write, or to apologize for who and what we are, or to stop short of telling the truth about our lives. The result is an impossible to ignore rallying cry for writing dangerously to create a liberated literary utopia—and a helpful guide through the thorny landscape of publishing your work. 

https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/13355

Magical Writing Zines are Here

Limited Edition.

With magical writing assignments & new work by Lori Dewender, Nicole Phoenix, Rebecca Fish Ewan, Steph Patzlaff, Sue Moshofsky, Susie Bright, Jenny Forrester, Alley Hector, Amanda L. Andrei, Amanda Gilby, Carolee Gilligan Wheeler, Debi Knight Kennedy, Finn Jogen, Jenna Powers Fox, JJ Johnson, Laraine Herring, and Leah Harris.

SOLD OUT

Ariel Gore’s book & zine truck

Now you can buy all the things I made this year in one place. My house boys will be shipping every day starting November 30th so you’ll get things in time for whatever holiday makes you happy & not stressed.

Brand new! The Art Life Coloring Book by Ariel Gore

I made this 28-page coloring book while I was on book tour for We Were Witches. Drawing the images made me feel less anxious about talking to people I didn’t know. Coloring the images in has the same effect, so I think you’ll like it.

$7 includes U.S. Shipping




 

 

 

New! We Were Witches: A Novel by Ariel Gore from The Feminist Press

Michelle Tea calls We Were Witches “A new feminist classic penned by one of the culture’s strongest authors at her most experimental and personal.”

$18 includes U.S. Shipping.




 

New! Notes & Spells Scout Book

Keep your We Were Witches Notes & Spells book in your pocket at all times! It’s mostly blank, and includes just enough magical instruction & inspiration to keep you going.

$5 includes U.S. shipping




 

 

New! Hybridity: For Beachcombers Who are Tired of Performing Normal, a magical zine by Ariel Gore with bonus “Surrealism for Beginners” writing assignments in the back.

$4 includes U.S. shipping.


 

 

 

The End of Eve: A Memoir by Ariel Gore from Hawthorne Books

Winner of a New Mexico-Arizona Book Award, winner of a Rainbow Award, named one of the best memoirs of the year by Library Journal . . . Tom Spanbauer says, “The way Ariel puts human emotion on the page is an act of poetry damn close to sublime.”

$16 includes U.S. shipping.




 

Canada! We love you. But we need a little postage support. Please add a $2 Canadian postage booster for all orders shipping to Canada.


 

(If you need overseas shipping, please email arielfiona at gmail dot com.)

 

We Were Witches

“You know that feeling when you crack open a brand new book and just by reading the first paragraph you can tell you’re about to go on a transformative journey? The kind of book that grabs you by the hand and says, hold on, we’ve got important work to do? A story that, at the risk of sounding very cliche because the word “witches” is, after all, in the title — leaves you spellbound? We Were Witches by Ariel Gore is that book. Released in September by Feminist Press, it is everything you didn’t know you were allowed to want in a narrative.”

—Autostraddle

Now you can get signed copies of Ariel Gore’s new novel, We Were Witches, direct from arielgore.com.

$18 includes postage & your own spell book.