July 2026 INdustry engagement Day replays available until september 20!

00D 00H 00M 00S

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Industry Engagement Day

On July 18, nine publishing industry professionals responded in real-time to 75 pitches for picture books, novels, and long-form nonfiction, giving writers valuable insights into what's working in the current market, and how they can sharpen their pitch. The results? A 35% request rate—more than 15 times the QueryTracker range of 2% - 5%.

Get your Watch & Learn replay ticket to access the full day of conversations, plus submission opportunities with 14 agents and editors.






Online event - July

Writers submitted a book pitch and got live feedback from top literary agents and editors.


cost

$175 for Watch & Learn Tickets

We hosted our first-ever Pitch and Play: Industry Engagement Day in 2023 to connect writers with agents and editors reviewing pitches in real time.

Through pitch sessions and more, several agents signed folks and offered R&Rs, fulfilling the event mission to get writers their YES or NO, plus direct industry feedback they could use to grow.

At the following years' Engagement Days we saw numerous direct requests to see more from our talented authors, resulting in multiple book deals and agent offers.

Now this popular event is back!

Panels: 
📆 July 18, 2026
⏰ 9:00 AM – 4:30 PM CENTRAL

Overview of Industry Engagement Schedule:

**Throughout the day, agents and editors will say whether they are interested in seeing more based on each pitch. The Writing Barn team will facilitate those requests with writers after the event.


Event 4: Market Analysis and Take Away Panel

  • Agent Alex Land at Mad Woman Literary
  • Agent Lindsey Aduskevich at Martin-Newens Literary Management
  • Agent Kayla Cichello at Upstart Crow
  • Editor Carina Licon at Macmillan Children's Publishing Group
  • Moderator: Author Bethany Hegedus






Industry Faculty attending this panel include:


3:15-4:15pm CT

Finally, we end the day with our fourth panel which is a Market Analysis and Take Away Panel (3:15-4:15pm CT) open to all attendees! This panel will not include pitches but instead will be a moderated Q+A panel with Bethany and panelists on specific takeaways and market insights from the day. There will be time to ask your questions and synthesize the comments and requests made. 





Event 1: Picture Book Palooza I

  • Agent Sam Farkas at Jill Grinberg Literary Management
  • Agent Bonnie Swanson at FinePrint Literary Management
  • Editor Jin Soo Chun at Atheneum Books for Young Readers (Simon & Schuster)






Industry Faculty attending this panel include:


9:30am - 11am ct

We begin the event with our first panel, Picture Book Palooza I (9:00-11:00AM CT), where we will read pre-submitted Picture Book Pitches to the attending panel faculty. Faculty will respond in real time to whether they wish to see a full query. ALL PB GENRES (Fiction, NF, Info-fiction) 25 pitches max.





Event 2: Novels and Longform Nonfiction

  • Editor Carina Licon at Macmillan Children's Publishing Group
  • Agent Jenna Satterthwaite at Storm Literary Agency
  • Agent Jessica Mileo at InkWell Management






Industry Faculty attending this panel include:


11:15 – 12:45pm CT

We’ll continue the day with our second panel, Novels and Longform Nonfiction (11:15 – 12:45pm CT) where we will read pre-submitted pitches for all longform projects (Chapter Book, MG, YA, Adult, NF Longform) to the attending panel faculty. Faculty will respond in real time about whether they wish to see a query and some pages. (This includes fiction and nonfiction MG, YA, and Chapter Books) 25 pitches max.






Event 3: Picture Book Palooza II

  • Agent Shulokhana Khan at Scholastic
  • Agent Amy Stern at Sheldon Fogelman Agency
  • Agent Kelly Thomas at Serendipity Literary Agency






Industry Faculty attending this panel include:


1:30-3pm CT

We will then move into another PB focused panel with our Picture Book Palooza II Panel (1:30-3:00pm CT) where we will read pre-submitted Picture Book Pitches to the attending panel faculty. Faculty will respond in real time about whether they wish to see a full query. ALL PB GENRES (fiction, NF, info-fiction)
25 pitches max.







Signing up for your panel:

When choosing a panel, make sure to choose the genre you most want to submit a pitch for. Detailed pitch instructions will be sent once you register. All submitted pitches will be read during the panel and evaluated by faculty. If an Agent or Editor requests to see more you will be notified of how and when to do so. *If you can’t attend live no worries! Your pitch will still be read and evaluated by faculty. 

How It Works:

  • Register for the event and choose which panel you want to submit your pitch for (specific pitch requirements and submission instructions will be sent upon registering).
  • Attend the event live or catch the replay (your pitch will be read and evaluated by faculty regardless of attendance).
  • Faculty will respond in real time about they want to request a full query based on a specific pitch. WB staff will facilitate these requests with these writers after the event. 
  • Watch replays for insights and submission opportunities. (ALL ATTENDING FACULTY will be opening to submissions from event attendees for a brief window. This is outside of any direct requests.)
  • Check out our Industry Event FAQ at the bottom of this page for any questions about logistics, replays, submission ops, etc.

Participating Event Faculty:

Picture Book I
  • Agent Sam Farkas at Jill Grinberg Literary Management
  • Agent Bonnie Swanson at FinePrint Literary Management
  • Editor Jin Soo Chun at Atheneum Books for Young Readers (Simon & Schuster)

Novels & Longform
  • Editor Carina Licon at Macmillan Children's Publishing Group
  • Agent Jenna Satterthwaite at Storm Literary Agency
  • Jessica Mileo, Literary Agent, InkWell Management

Picture Book II
  • Editor Shulokhana Khan at Scholastic
  • Agent Amy Stern at Sheldon Fogelman Agency
  • Agent Kelly Thomas at Serendipity Literary Agency

Market Insights
  • Agent Alex Land at Mad Woman Literary
  • Agent Lindsey Aduskevich at Martin-Newens Literary Management
  • Agent Kayla Cichello at Upstart Crow
  • Editor Carina Licon at Macmillan Children's Publishing Group

Critique-Only Guests:
  • Agent Assistant Katie Hopkins at Pippin Properties (Sub opp Holly McGhee)
  • Editor Anna Luketic at Sourcebooks Xplore

Frequently Asked Questions