Industry Engagement Day

Take the waiting and guessing out of querying. 

When you sign up for Industry Engagement Day, you get your YES or NO, plus pitch feedback, from three industry pros all at once.

Live pitch panels are available for picture books, novels, and long-form nonfiction.

Your ticket also includes: 
  • the Write Match Method Bundle, a 3-step training to get your pitch submission-ready (a $99 value)
  • post-event submission opportunities with all agents and editors on faculty.


Online event - OCTOBER

Live Pitches. Real-time Feedback. Join us Saturday, October 24th.

cost

$185 for CTC MEMBERS
$270 General PUBLIC

How It Works:

All pitches are due no later than September 25th at noon CT. If you’ve purchased add-on critiques, those pages are due by September 30th at noon CT.  
Choose based on your project’s genre and age category. Add-on written critiques are also available in limited quanities. 

Pick a Pitch Panel

On October 24, we’ll read your pitch live on Zoom. Agents & editors will respond in real-time & provide additional feedback.

Get Your Yes or No

Post-event, receive submission opportunities with ALL event faculty. Writers who got requests will also get special submission instructions.

Query & Connect

Submit
Your Pitch

We hosted our first-ever Pitch and Play: Industry Engagement Day in 2023 to bring writers, agents, and editors together in real time.



Over the years, requests from this event have lead to multiple book deals and agent offers. Our July 2026 event resulted in a 35% request rate, more than 15 times the industry average.

Learn which projects got the most interest in July when you download our free State of Kidlit Report. You'll also get tips on how to sharpen your pitch in time for October's IED.



Pitch panels fill up fast. Reserve your spot today.
Panels: 
📆  October 24, 2026
⏰  9:00 AM – 4:00 PM CENTRAL

Overview of Industry Engagement Schedule:

Can't make it on October 24th?
Industry Engagement Day is fully asynchronous. WB team members read all pitches live, and you receive replays following the event for a limited time.





**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

  • Editor Ruqayyah Daud at LBYR/Requited
  • Agent Lynette Novak at Seymour Agency
  • Moderator: Author Bethany Hegedus








Industry Faculty attending this panel include:


3:15-4:00pm CT

Finally, we end the day with our fourth panel which is a Market Analysis and Take Away Panel (3:15-4:00pm 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. 





Please note that faculty is subject to change. TWB makes every attempt to keep changes to a minimum, but faculty are contractor humans and sometimes the unexpected happens. Thanks for your understanding.





Event 1: Picture Book Palooza I

  • Agent Anjanette Barr at Dunham Literary
  • Agent Miranda Paul at Aevitas Creative Management
  • Editor Katherine Easter at ZonderKidz & DaySpring Kids






Industry Faculty attending this panel include:


9:30am - 11am ct

We begin the event with our first panel, Picture Book Palooza I (9:30-11:00AM 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

  • Agent Jackie Garcia - Morales at Storm Literary Agency
  • Agent Renée Jarvis at Triangle House
  • Editor Alexandra Hightower at LBYR / HBG






Industry Faculty attending this panel include:


11:15 – 1:00pm CT

We’ll continue the day with our second panel, Novels and Longform Nonfiction (11:15 – 1:00pm 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 Syrone Harvey at Belcastro Agency
  • Agent Emily Keyes at Keyes Agency
  • Senior Editor Catherine Laudone at Beach Lane Books






Industry Faculty attending this panel include:


1:30-3:00pm 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.







Participating Event Faculty:

Picture Book I
  • Agent Anjanette Barr at Dunham Literary
  • Agent Miranda Paul at Aevitas Creative Management
  • Editor Katherine Easter at ZonderKidz & DaySpring Kids

Novels & Longform
  • Agent Jackie Garcia-Morales at Storm Literary Agency
  • Agent Renée Jarvis at Triangle House
  • Editor Alexandra Hightower at LBYR

Picture Book II
  • Agent Syrone Harvey at Belcastro Agency
  • Agent Emily Keyes at Keyes Agency
  • Senior Editor Catherine Laudone at Beach Lane Books

Market Insights
  • Editor Ruqayyah Daud at LBYR/Requited
  • Agent Lynette Novak at Seymour Agency

Critique-Only Guests:
  • Agent Amy Stern at Sheldon Fogelman Agency
  • Editor Angelica Busanet at Abrams Books
  • Agent Hunter Strickland at Focused Artists
  • Senior Executive Editor Andrew Karre at Dutton Books for Young Readers
  • Associate Editor Carina Licon at Macmillan

Frequently Asked Questions

Ready to send your pitch?