After weeks of reading and obsessing over all the fabulous entries, our amazing mentors have chosen their mentees!
The mentors have worked tirelessly reading all their submissions for Pitch Wars. Behind the scenes, there’s been blood, sweat, and tears. The mentors have cried and laughed and shared how much they love your words. There were so many, SO MANY, wonderful entries, and our mentors were sad they couldn’t pick them all. It came down to which ones spoke the most to their hearts.
Please know that mentors are not required to send feedback to those who submitted to them. Our mentors have their own books to write, mentees to mentor, jobs, and family life. Some will have the time to send feedback and some will not. Please don’t pester mentors for feedback in their emails, their sites, or on social media. If you get feedback, it’s a bonus.
There are many pathways to acquiring your publishing goals. Pitch Wars is just one of a few. Though we know you’ll be disappointed if you don’t find your name on the following list, please remember that you are in the game. Just finishing a manuscript requires a love for writing, and putting your work out there is such a brave act. Congratulations for getting into the game. Every heartache, every victory, will get you a step closer to success.
Brenda: If you don’t find your name on the following list, I know how you feel. I’ve had many heartaches and many missteps. There was never a Pitch Wars for me. I’ve been rejected (a lot). I’ve had to change my course (a few times). But giving up was never an option for me, which I’m sure it’s not for you. Perseverance is key in being successful in publishing. We pick ourselves up, learn what we need to get better, and head back into the trenches. I’ve made several friends on my publishing journey. I’m still learning (and failing at times). My wish for you is to keep going, never give up, and gather friends who will cry and celebrate with you through the battle. I admire each and every one of you for taking that brave leap and sharing your work. The support you all show each other touches my heart each day. I’m truly blessed to be in this community with you.
Kellye: This is always a bittersweet time for all of us Pitch Wars mentors. We’re super excited for our mentee because we fell in love with their work and can’t wait to make it even better. But here’s a secret: our mentee wasn’t the only amazing manuscript and writer subbed to us. It always blows my mind how many talented people are out there and – as a reader first and foremost – it makes me so excited for the future of publishing. Submitting your work to Pitch Wars was the first step in what I hope will be a long and amazing writing career. And even if your name isn’t listed here, guess what? You still won. Because you finished a book. You were brave enough to show it to four complete strangers. You took part in what is probably the most amazing online writing community there is! Celebrate that. Celebrate you. And, most importantly, get back to writing!
Thank you for entrusting us with your work!
Kellye and Brenda
CRITIQUE GIVEAWAY!
If you weren’t chosen by a mentor, check the blog on Tuesday, October 16 for our Pitch Wars After Party. We will be giving away some critiques!
And here is the Pitch Wars Class of 2018 …
Adult/New Adult
| Alice Stephens | Katie Tunning |
| Angel Luis Colon | M.D. Thomas |
| Carolyne Topdjian | Stacie Murphy |
| Carrie Callaghan | Samantha Rajaram |
| Diana A. Hicks | Daisy Blaine |
| Farah Heron | Nam Patel |
| Farah Heron | Meryl Wilsner |
| Gigi Pandian | J.A. Crawford |
| Heather Van Fleet and Lana Sloan | Lauren Silverman |
| Helen Hoang | Ruby Barrett |
| Ian Barnes | Sarah Burton |
| Ian Barnes and Laura Lashley | Ann Fraistat |
| Jason Hine | Kola Heyward-Rotimi |
| K.A. Doore | Steve Hugh Westenra |
| Katie Golding and Michelle Hazen | Taylor Koleber |
| Katrina Carrasco | Trevor Barnes |
| Kristen Lepionka | Nigar Alam |
| Kristin Rockaway | Tiffany Griffith |
| Kristin Wright | Jane Igharo |
| L. D. Lewis | Karintha Parker |
| Laura Brown and Tif Marcelo | Rachel L. Hamm |
| Laura Brown and Tif Marcelo | Rochelle Karina |
| Layne Fargo | Halley Sutton |
| Marty Mayberry and Leonie Kelsall | LL Montez |
| Mary Ann Marlowe | Eliza David |
| Mia P. Manansala and Kellye Garrett | Meg Long |
| Michael Mammay and Dan Koboldt | Christopher Kerns |
| Michelle Hauck | Sonja Hutchinson |
| Michelle Hauck and Jason Hine | Jessica Sherry |
| Michelle Hazen | Eagan Daniels |
| Natasha Raulerson | Jason Beymer |
| Nikki Dolson | Jennifer Stark |
| Paris Wynters | Justin Sturm |
| Paris Wynters | Nanci Schwartz |
| Rebecca Enzor | Dan Rowinski |
| Sarah Remy | Alexis Ames |
| Shari Schwarz and Clarissa Goenawan | Irene Reed |
| Susan Bishop Crispell | Leslie Gail |
| Suzanne Park and Alexa Martin | Sarah Partipilo |
| T. Frohock | Elvin Bala |
| Wendy Heard | Wanda Morris |
Middle Grade
| Adrianna Cuevas and Arianne Costner | Shannon Cooley |
| Ashley Martin | April Clausen |
| Cindy Baldwin and Amanda Rawson Hill | Stacy Mitchell Nockowitz |
| Eric Bell | Chad Lucas |
| G.Z. Schmidt | T. James Belich |
| Gabrielle Byrne and Julia Nobel | Mindy Nicole Thompson |
| Jenna Lehne and Tara Creel | Laura A. Woollett |
| Jessica Vitalis and Julie Artz | Tiffany Liu |
| Juliana L. Brandt and Lacee Little | Lorelei Savaryn |
| K.C. Held | Abigail Rayner |
| Kim Long and Jennifer L. Brown | Summer Short |
| Kimberly Torne | Emily Joy Howard |
| Margaret Dilloway | Bruce Luck |
| Maria Frazer | Chrystal Giles |
| Nicole Melleby | Jeanne Becijos |
| Nicole Panteleakos | Susan Vizurraga |
| Rajani LaRocca and Remy Lai | Kathryn Powers |
| Rebecca Petruck | Waka T. Brown |
| Sabrina Kleckner | Theresa Duck |
| Sarah Cannon and JC Davis | Ellen Stonaker |
| Sean Easley | Megan Clements |
| Yamile Saied Mendez | Robert Polk |
Young Adult
| Abigail Johnson | Rebecca Rode |
| Adalyn Grace | Chelsea Beam |
| Alex Reda and Renée A. Price | Julia Ferreri |
| Andrea Contos and Kay L. McCray | L.L. Madrid |
| Annie Sullivan | Melissa Chai |
| Aty S. Behsam | Rowyn Ramsky |
| Brittney Morris | Jessica Lewis |
| Chelsea Hensley | Tina Chan |
| Cole Nagamatsu | Amy Wagner |
| Destiny Cole and Ruthanne Snow | Christina Dotson |
| Elly Ha | Steve Hanton |
| Erica Waters | Stacie Turner |
| Erin Foster Hartley | Breeny N. |
| Francesca Flores and Kimberly Vale | Amanda Miah |
| Gloria Chao | Susan Lee |
| Heather Ezell and Rachel Griffin | Linda Kao |
| Hoda Agharazi | Lyssa Mia Smith |
| Isabel Ibanez Davis | Ava Reid |
| Jamie Howard | Kaitlin Bartlett |
| Jenna Lincoln | Jeff Wooten |
| Jessica Bayliss | Samantha Eaton |
| K.C. Johnson | N.D. Green |
| Katie Beers and Lindsey Frydman | Ashley Winstead |
| Kerbie Addis | Anne Persons |
| Kimberly Gabriel and Dawn Ius | Margie Fuston |
| Kit Frick | Michelle Hulse |
| Laura Brooke Robson | Rachel Morris |
| Luke Hupton-MacGregor | Mary Roach |
| Lyndsay Ely | Nancy Yan |
| M.K. England and Jamie Pacton | Rochelle Hassan |
| Megan LaCroix and Kim Chance | Jessica Olson |
| Megan Manzano | Jessica Froberg |
| Mel Howard and Alechia Dow | Tigest G. Negussie |
| Melissa Erin Jackson and Lindsey Duga | Natasha Watts |
| Michaela Greer | Jumata Emill |
| Rachel Lynn Solomon | Monica Gomez-Hira |
| Rebecca Kim Wells | Xiran Jay |
| Rebecca Sky and Fallon DeMornay | Tala Shannak |
| S.T. Sterlings | Lindsay Smith Zrull |
| Sabrina Lotfi and Carrie Allen | Kristy Boyce |
| Samantha Joyce and Laurie Dennison | Elizabeth Schwab |
| Sana Patel | Erin Bledsoe |
| Sheena Boekweg | Kate Meadows |
| Sonia Hartl and Annette Christie | Auriane Desombre |
| Stephen Morgan | Marisa Urgo |
| Swati Teerdhala and Rosie Brown | Madeleine Dresden |
| Tobie Easton and Jennieke Cohen | Charis M. Ellison |
| Trisha Tobias | Jasmyne Hammonds |
| Victoria Lee and RF Kuang | Maria Dong |
21 Comments
Mary Long · October 11, 2018 at 10:05 pm
Just a quick question, will the ones whom did not get picked be able to get any feedback from the mentors that we submitted to? Like just some general thoughts on our work?
Brenda Drake · October 11, 2018 at 10:37 pm
Mentors aren’t required to give feedback. It depends on the individual mentor whether they will or not. Each have different situations (ie. work, family, publishing work). But come back on Tuesday and enter for a chance to win a critique in our giveaway.
Ingrid · October 11, 2018 at 10:53 pm
I don’t see Rheea Mukherjee on the list. I submitted to her and was just wondering what happened.
Brenda Drake · October 11, 2018 at 11:18 pm
Unfortunately, Rheea had to bow out, but we gave her pick to another mentor.
Selene · October 12, 2018 at 2:45 am
If we weren’t picked, how and when will we know if any mentor left us any feedback? I’m hoping at least one had even a sentence of comment, because I have no idea why my query keeps getting rejected, and my critique partners are as clueless as I. 🙁
Brenda Drake · October 12, 2018 at 2:58 am
I answered this above. But here’s what I said … Mentors aren’t required to give feedback. It depends on the individual mentor whether they will or not. Each have different situations (ie. work, family, publishing work). But come back on Tuesday and enter for a chance to win a critique in our giveaway.
Brenda Drake · October 12, 2018 at 3:00 am
And they will send you an email with feedback if they have any. It could take a few weeks since they to get their mentees started on revisions.
Selene · October 12, 2018 at 8:45 am
Oh, I see, not much chance of feedback then. I thought that in your submission database website you’d have created some field where mentors could write something short after they read a submission, and it would be delivered to all participants automatically after the mentee selection. So it wouldn’t be much extra work for the mentors if they did want to leave some (short) feedback. Example: Your query isn’t very good, there are a lot of typos in your pages, this plot sounds familiar, etc. Maybe something to consider for next year.
Brenda Drake · October 12, 2018 at 10:34 am
I didn’t say there wasn’t much chance, just that I really don’t know.
E Larrson · October 13, 2018 at 3:07 pm
That could create an expectation from mentors or make mentors feel bad when they then don’t leave a comment on every submission (sometimes over 300). In the end, it is subjective. It could be that there wasn’t stuff wrong with your work, but something else in their pile spoke to them on a deeper level. This reflects exactly what happens in the slush pile of agents and editors.
I guess I’m just trying to say that I think the system is fine how it is. It’s a contest we can enter for free. I have paid to enter contests where you get no feedback.
If you want feedback, keep searching for betas and CPs (you can never have too many). You said you have CPs so they should certainly be able to say whether your query reflects your MS, or if there’s typos or the material sounds too familiar (if not, find more CPs). I know a fair few mentee hopefuls who didn’t get a single request in PW but have a number of partials and fulls out with agents. It’s subjective. Asking or implying a mentor can/should leave a line of feedback on every submission could deter mentors from offering their [already limited] time.
Greg Weiland · October 12, 2018 at 8:50 am
I want to thank everyone involved in Pitch Wars. Even though I was not picked, It has been a great experience. I learned a lot, especially from all the Blog materials on query letters and on editing. I will continue my writing and I will be back next year. Thanks Again!
Brenda Drake · October 12, 2018 at 10:35 am
You’re welcome! I’m so glad you had a great experience, Greg!
Dee · October 12, 2018 at 8:59 am
Is it okay to say thanks to a mentor who reached out to us? Not to bother, but just to say we appreciated it?
Brenda Drake · October 12, 2018 at 10:36 am
Yes, it’s perfectly okay, Dee. 🙂
Sheralyn Luplow · October 12, 2018 at 10:44 am
I want to thank all the mentors I submitted to for caring and for all their hard work. This was a wonderful learning experience for me. It has been enjoyable getting to know many of you through Twitter. CONGRATULATIONS 2018 mentees!
Debra Irsik · October 12, 2018 at 1:00 pm
Thanks to the mentors and all the hard work. I was not selected but will try again!
Lisa Trank · October 12, 2018 at 4:47 pm
Congrats to all who got chosen and even though I didn’t (this time), I really appreciate the positive energy generated with PitchWars! Keep on writing – the world needs us, now more than ever!
Shahnaz Radjy · October 13, 2018 at 3:18 am
Congratulations to all mentees, and mentors! Pitch Wars is an even better experience than I expected, and I’m excited to keep working on my MS (even if not as a mentee this year). Onward & upward!
Katie · October 16, 2018 at 5:28 pm
Hey Pitchwars Team! I’ve been checking the blog for the afterparty post and haven’t seen anything. Is it rescheduled or hosted on another platform? Thank you very much!
Linda Smith Kerwin · October 22, 2018 at 1:23 pm
I would like to express my appreciation for everyone involved with Pitch Wars. It was a great learning experience for me, and I plan to return next year.
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