It’s a…well, TBH, it’s a gloomy and humid Monday morning around these parts, but let’s pretend it’s more like this: In keeping with such a GLORIOUS morning, Cat and I have a surprise! We have chosen, not two, but six winners! Each of us will critique three queries. Yeah, I thought you’d like that. So, who? WHO? WHOOOOO? I will be critiquing the following three entrants’ queries: #5: Nicole. Small town girl deals with family issues. Meets new guy in town & crushes instantly. C

Seriously, querying my first manuscript made me completely insane. My early queries were amazingly awful, so awful that I think back to one in particular and assume it’s why a certain agent I admire never requested any of my subsequent work. I used to get SO ANGRY because I’d written an entire BOOK, darn it! How could queries possibly be so hard? There’s an art to it, but it takes time to learn. Many writers I know (myself included) now write queries before or while they’re d

Welcome, Pitch Wars hopeful! I’m Sarah Cannon, and I’m so glad you’re here. Let me tell you more about who you’re dealing with: at heart, I’m as much a teacher as a writer. I taught in public schools in my 20’s, then stayed home and homeschooled my three kids. (That’s still going on, but they keep getting taller for some reason.) I also tutor a wide variety of subjects. There are two takeaways here: I spend plenty of time with MG-aged kids, and if I choose you, you should nev