Pitching Your Novel (Zoom)
Start Date
Package
Pitching Your Novel
Nail your one-line pitch and learn how to write a great query letter on this day-long Zoom course.
Tutor
Lauren PearsonLength
1 daysLocation
Online,ZoomWriting Goal
Edit & pitchReady to share your work with literary agents? Hone your pitch on this practical and inspiring one-day online course.
I found the course excellent... Loved the practical suggestions on how we can work and refine our way toward a pitch that really resonates.
Former Pitching Your Novel student
If you’re gearing up to submit your novel to literary agents, this one-day intensive Zoom course will help to make your submission stand out from the pack. The course will run from 10am to 4.45pm on 20 March 2025.
Led by former Curtis Brown agent and author Lauren Pearson, and chaired by CBC's Senior Courses Manager Jack Hadley, this course will guide you through the art of pitching and writing the all-important query letter. It’s ideal for those who want to find a clear, powerful way to talk about their novel and present it and themselves in the best possible light. You’ll learn how to hone your elevator pitch, that all important sentence (or two) that hooks your reader and reveals what’s at the heart of your novel.
You’ll have the opportunity to refine your pitch in the morning, before trying it out on a Curtis Brown literary agent in the afternoon. As well as receiving direct on-the-spot feedback, you will get the chance to ask any questions you have on the submissions process and how to catch an agent’s eye – all in a supportive and welcoming group of aspiring writers.
By the end of the day, you’ll have a clear understanding of what an agent is looking for in a pitch and query letter and be able to move forwards with your submission with confidence.
Tutor
Lauren Pearson
Lauren Pearson has worked in publishing for more than 20 years. She has been an agent for both adult and children’s authors, first in New York and then in the UK, most recently for Curtis Brown. Throughout her career she has worked with a number of acclaimed and bestselling writers, including Audrey Niffenegger, Gregory David Roberts, Babette Cole, Isla Fisher, Aidan Chambers and Emily Barr. She is now a freelance editor and ghostwriter of both children’s and adult fiction and non-fiction and is the author of five books for young readers: The Crabtree School series from Scholastic, and The Sleepover from Orion Children’s Books. She is a graduate of Duke University and the Radcliffe Publishing Course (now the Columbia Publishing Course). Lauren's first adult fiction novel, Very Slowly All at Once will be published in January 2026 with Harper Collins.
Masterclass speaker
Get verbal feedback on your pitch from a Curtis Brown literary agent.
COURSE SCHEDULE & DELIVERY
You will join 16 students for a day of lessons on Zoom. This course will run from 10am to 4.30pm on Tuesday 13 May 2025. The schedule is shown in UK time.
Please note that precise dates of sessions and details of course speakers are subject to change.
Introduction + The Pitch
10am – 11.30amTHE AGENT LETTER
11.45am – 1pmLUNCH BREAK & WRITING TIME
1pm-3pmLITERARY AGENT MASTERCLASS
3.00pm – 4.45pm
ENROLMENT PROCESS
The 16 places on this course are allocated on receipt of payment, on a first come, first served basis. To secure your place, select your preferred date and then click ‘enrol now’ and complete our payment process.
On receipt of payment, we will send you a link to our short registration form.
If you encounter any problems during the application process, or have any more questions about the course, please email help@curtisbrowncreative.co.uk for assistance.
COURSE FEES & DISCOUNTS
The course fee of £125 (inc VAT) per student is payable in full before the start of the course.
Alumni of our selective three- or six-month Writing Your Novel courses and writers who have taken our six-week Edit & Pitch Your Novel course are eligible for a £25 discount (email help@curtisbrowncretaive.co.uk before paying if you're eligible for a discount code).
OPTIONAL REPORTS
Students will be given the option to purchase feedback on their agent letter from a CBC editor.
- Agent letter report: For an additional fee of £50, you can obtain detailed feedback on your pitch letter after the course. The feedback will comprise in-line comments addressing issues as well as an overview of what’s working well and what could be improved (totalling at least 300 words).
- Submission report: £365 (discounted from £385) for a 1,000-word report providing detailed on your one-page synopsis, pitch letter, and 3,000-word opening. Pitching Your Novel students will be entitled to £20 off a submission report.
