Winner of the Three Two One Pitch Contest

And we have a winner!

First of all, I'd like to thank literary agent Marie Lamba of the Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency for participating in November's Three Two One Pitch contest. Marie is purely delightful, and it was fun having her involved. I'd also like to thank everyone who participated. It was fun reading all the interesting pitches, and I truly hope some of those stories make it to the book shelves one day.

So without further ado, the winner of the pitch contest is:

Donea Lee Weaver!

Here's Donea's pitch:

The Graves
MG: Paranormal Mystery
60K

Three sentence pitch: 12-year-old, Charlie Graves, stumbles across a dead girl while playing hide and seek with his best friend in the cemetery behind his house. He’s surprised when her ghost appears to him and asks his help in finding her killer – not so surprised when he finds out that his grave-robbing father is the prime suspect. When his dad is convicted of the crime, but the ghost still lingers, Charlie races against time to find the real killer or risks becoming the next victim.

Congratulations, Donea! Please email Marie at marie.jdlit [at] gmail.com and submit your full manuscript as an attachment, along with a brief synopsis and bio. Please mention this contest in the email and put "Requested Material: Pitch Contest Winner" in the subject line. And good luck!

Keep following the blog, everyone. We'll be having another pitch contest early next year. :)

Official Entry Post for the Three Two One Pitch Contest

This contest is now closed. Thank you for all your entries. I will announce the winner as soon as literary agent Marie Lamba makes her decision. Stay tuned!

So you think you can pitch? It's time for aspiring writers everywhere to pitch to awesome literary agent Marie Lamba of the Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency. The contest starts today, November 15th, and closes at midnight on the 16th. Just a reminder to those who haven't participated before, a Three-Two-One pitch contest goes like this:

THREE - Pitch your story in only three sentences. No run-ons!

TWO - Two days to enter: November 15th and 16th.

ONE - One agent, Marie Lamba, will judge and pick a winner.

This contest is open to unagented, completed and polished manuscripts in the genres of:

• YA
• MG
• Contemporary Fiction
• Women's Fiction
• Some memoir

Books that are moving and/or hilarious are especially welcome. NO picture books, science fiction, or high fantasy (though paranormal elements are acceptable), category romance (though romantic elements are welcome), non-fiction, or books that feature graphic violence.

Each contestant is allowed two entries.

To be eligible, you must:

• Follow this blog - go ahead and click "Join this Site" on the right if you haven't already
• Follow me on Twitter
• Spread the word! Tweet, Blog, or mention on Facebook about the contest linking back to this post

Not necessary, but in the spirit of paying it forward:

• Friend me on Goodreads
• Like my Facebook Author Page

Entries should be formulated in the following manner, right here in the comments section:

• Your name
• Your email
• Title of your manuscript
• Genre
• Word count
• Three-sentence pitch

So, don't forget: Three sentences, two days to enter, one agent will judge. Good luck, everyone. Can't wait to read all your pitches. On your mark, get set, GO!

Introducing the Judging Agent for November's Three Two One Pitch Contest

Our Three-Two-One Pitch contest will be taking place next week, and I bet you're all dying to know who the judging agent is. Well, I'm pleased to announce that I've lined up an awesome one for you, one I'm sure you'll be excited about.

Our judging agent is:
Marie Lamba of the Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency!

Marie Lamba joined JDLA as an Associate Agent in 2011. She is the author of the young adult novel WHAT I MEANT . . . (Random House), and her work appears in the short story anthology LIAR LIAR (Mendacity Press) and the anthology CALL ME OKAASAN: ADVENTURES IN MULTICULTURAL MOTHERING (Wyatt-MacKenzie Publishing). Marie's articles appear in more than 100 publications, including national magazines such as Writer's Digest, Garden Design, and RWR. She has worked as an editor, an award-winning public relations writer, and a book publicist, has taught classes on novel writing and author promotion, and is a member of Romance Writers of America and The Liars Club.

Here's what Marie says she's open to for the contest:

Young adult and middle-grade fiction, along with general and women's fiction and some memoir.  Books that are moving and/or hilarious are especially welcome.  I am NOT interested in picture books, science fiction, or high fantasy (though I am open to paranormal elements), category romance (though romantic elements are welcome), non-fiction, or in books that feature graphic violence.


The contest will take place November 15th and 16th. I will make an official entry post, and contestants will leave their three-sentence pitch in the comments section of that post. For more details, click here.

I'm very happy to have Marie judge this round. Be sure to follow the blog, and get those pitches ready, folks!