How to Craft Query Letters & Other Submission Materials That Get Noticed

May 20 - 23

When your submission materials – a query letter, synopsis, manuscript, or book proposal – arrive in an agent's inbox, they land among hundreds of others. At that point, one of two things will happen. Either the agent (or the agent’s assistant) will like the submission and request more materials, or they will reply with a rejection. Authors who get rejected tend to fall in one of two categories when submitting materials: they try too hard, or not enough. This Writer’s Digest Boot Camp is designed to help you streamline your submission materials to stand out in a good way.

Anatomy of a Mystery: Crafting Better Crime Fiction

May 22

What makes for a best-selling suspense? What elements go into a top box office thriller? How do you craft a crowd-pleasing TV crime drama? In this live webinar you’ll learn foundational principles of crime and mystery writing that will help you ramp up the intrigue, suspense, and thrill of your next project – whether short story, novel, film, or other media! This webinar focuses primarily structure, creating better tension, deeper character development, and building successful and suspenseful evidence trails. Suggested prerequisite viewing: Prisoners & Stranger Things.

Will Your Nonfiction Book Sell? How to Evaluate the Strength of Your Project

May 29

If you want to publish a nonfiction book that lands you a literary agent or a contract from a sizable publisher (with a decent advance in the four or five figures), then current market conditions—and your position in that market—will affect your ability to secure a deal.

The good news: More nonfiction books are published and sold around the world than fiction. And typically nonfiction is an easier market to excel in compared to fiction. But you’ll need sharp clarity about your idea or story, why it should be expressed in book form, and how it is relevant and unique in today’s market.

Advanced Read Like a Writer: Classic Modern Novels

May 22 - June 19: The Great Gatsby

Reading well has very little to do with speed. What’s far more important is comprehension, and for the writer-reader, that means discerning nuances and subtexts, understanding the unstated, the merely implied, and being able to infer the significance of each detail—how it is part of an integral whole. In this course, you'll join instructor Mark Spencer as he guides you through a close reading of a classic modern novel. Each session will focus on a different novel, with selections rotating over time. Take inspiration and instruction from some of the best writers of the modern age!

Write Great Dialogue

May 22 - July 3

Dialogue can be one of the most interesting parts of a book to read, but only if it is done right. Sharpen your writing skills and challenge yourself to craft engaging, yet believable dialogue that will keep your readers interested. When you take this online writing workshop you’ll discover how to write dialogue that advances your story’s plot. Plus, examine examples, formats, and tips for writing dialogue. Build your creative skills through weekly lectures, reading and writing assignments, and group critiques. By the end of this workshop, you will have all the tools and resources you need to create convincing dialogue.

Write Your Drama Pilot in Six Weeks

May 22 - July 3

Television pilot writing was once a carefully guarded inner sanctum limited almost exclusively to showbiz insiders. With the recent explosion of successful cable dramas and Internet viewing, it’s now possible for writers without a strong track record or network connections to get producers and executives to read and sometimes even buy their pilot scripts. In this course, you will learn the tools professional screenwriters use to finish high-quality scripts under deadlines. By the end of this course, you will have completed and received professional feedback on a script for your drama pilot.