A Full Day Event at Asia House, London – Exploring Routes to Publication
Saturday 15th June 2024 from 10am-5pm
Would you love to find out more about routes to publication – from the traditional route to working with smaller innovative publishers to self-publishing? Most importantly, are you keen to discuss how to maintain your integrity and individuality as a writer, whilst also having one eye on the marketplace?
at our 2023 event
You are invited to join us for our luxury ‘Getting Published’ day in the beautiful Library Room at Asia House in Central London.
We are delighted to announce that booking is now open!
Tickets cost £195 for a standard ticket and £595 for a VIP ticket.
The VIP ticket includes priority seating, a personal introduction to our special guests, a VIP goody bag, plus a review by our team of your agent letter and pitch/synopsis (3 rounds of revisions) plus help choosing 12 agents for you to submit to.
Please note our terms and conditions prior to purchasing
The day will be hosted by Novelist and Writing Coach Founder Jacqui Lofthouse. Our special guest speakers have now been confirmed as: Laura Williams from leading London literary agency Greene & Heaton; Literary Agent James Macdonald Lockhart, Novelist, Memoirist and Editor Emma Darwin and Laura Wilkinson, Novelist and Submissions Advisor at The Writing Coach.
In this intimate setting, you will have plenty of opportunity to ask our guests questions and you can of course, if your work is a good fit, subsequently submit to Laura Williams and James Macdonald Lockhart.
Emma Darwin
Novelist, Memoirist, Editor
Emma Darwin’s debut ‘The Mathematics of Love’ is probably the only novel ever to have been nominated for both the Commonwealth Writers Best First Book and RNA Novel of the Year awards; her second, ‘A Secret Alchemy’, was a Sunday Times besteller.
She is also the author of ‘Get Started in Writing Historical Fiction’, and her latest book is the memoir ‘This is Not a Book About Charles Darwin’. She teaches creative writing at Oxford University and Goldsmiths, University of London, and has given workshops from Auckland to Zurich. Her blog This Itch of Writing is linked to by writing courses around the world.
James Macdonald Lockhart
Literary Agent
James Macdonald Lockhart established the James Lockhart Agency in 2023 having previously worked for over 20 years as a literary agent with Antony Harwood Ltd.
James represents writing which covers a broad range of genres, including memoir, geography, economics, politics, history, nature writing, biography, science, travel and literary fiction.
He is also an author and has published two books, Raptor (2016) and Wild Air (2023).
Laura Williams
Literary Agent – Greene & Heaton
Laura began work at Greene & Heaton as an agent in 2018, having worked at PFD (leading London literary agency Peters, Fraser & Dunlop) from 2011 after studying Classics at Oxford.
She has a broad list across different genres of fiction, alongside a smaller non-fiction and children’s book list, and she is always looking for new and exciting projects.
Laura Wilkinson
Novelist and Submissions Advisor at The Writing Coach
Laura has published six novels for adults (two under a pseudonym) and numerous short stories. Her contemporary fiction is published by award-winning independent press, Accent. Her novel, Public Battles, Private Wars, was a Welsh Books Council Book of the month. Her latest, Skin Deep, has been widely praised. Laura’s latest novel That Night in New York has been acquired by Serendipity, the new romance imprint from publisher Legend Times and will publish in September 2024.
Alongside writing, Laura runs workshops on craft, speaks at literary events nationwide and is a very experienced developmental editor and mentor, coaching writers to competition short listings and publication. Laura works with authors at The Writing Coach as a specialist in pitching and helps authors to choose the perfect agent for their book.
Finding your Route to Publication
If you are in the midst of writing a book or moving towards completion, you will be thinking already about your route to getting your book published. You may be a first time or a mid-career author. Either way, you know that you want to reach readers and make an impact with your writing work.
During this special event at Asia House, London you will have an opportunity to network with writers and industry specialists whilst also developing a strategy on your own best route to market.
A Warm Welcome awaits you …
From the moment you arrive, you know you are amongst friends… Share a coffee, fruit and pastry with us. We’ll be sure to introduce you to your fellow writers and make you feel immediately at home.
Our day begins with a vital discussion, hosted by Jacqui Lofthouse with Literary Agent Laura Williams on the state of the market in publishing today and what you can do as an author to give your work the best opportunity of traditional publication – should you wish to follow that route. There will be plenty of time for direct Q & A with Laura and she will remain with us until noon.
The morning will also include an important talk from Jacqui on confidence in our work – and how not to let our concerns about publication get in the way of our writing life. We know that all writing work begins with inspiration, curiosity and engagement with our stories. Jacqui will teach strategies that will enable you to always put your writing first and to look ahead to publication with excitement rather than fear. At The Writing Coach, we know it’s vital to only seek publication when you are ready and this day will allow you to consider your own readiness for the journey ahead.
Topics of the day will include the various types of publishing, including the full pros and cons of all options – from self-publishing to small publishers to the traditional route. You will be invited to map your own path based on what is best for your writing, and we share tools to enable you to form your personal strategy.
We will also cover pitching and synopses. Whether you go the traditional route or not, having a well-written synopsis is key and the process of formulating that perfect agent letter will be part of our day. We will also look at other core marketing documents for the self-publishing journey.
We are delighted to announce that booking is now open!
Please note our terms and conditions prior to purchasing.
Now for lunch…
Your ticket includes a finger buffet menu including salad and a dessert which will be served in the adjacent studio room. This will be a perfect opportunity to get to know your fellow writers better, as well as to speak with Jacqui and our special guests personally.
You will also have an opportunity to take a look at the visuals from our morning event. The ideas we cover will be chronicled by visualiser David Lewis. After the event, you will receive the key visuals by email as a aide-memoire of all that you have learned.
Our afternoon will include time to work on your pitch and your vision for publication – all facilitated by Jacqui. Our aim is to help you unravel the possibilities for your book and to ensure that you leave with absolute clarity about the steps on your path. We are entirely realistic in our teaching and acknowledge the importance of getting your book right first of all. It can be a long path to publication and our focus throughout will be on how to stay true to yourself as a writer, how to develop as a writer and how to remain inspired and focused whilst navigating the path to publication.
In the afternoon, we will be welcoming Laura Wilkinson and Emma Darwin as our speakers. There will be plenty of time for Q & A to allow you to put your personal questions to all.
Laura Williams will consider submissions from all attendees at our event – provided they are relevant to their areas of interest. We are about to confirm a second agent too.
Booking & Payment
We are delighted to announce that booking is now open!
Please note our terms and conditions prior to purchasing.
Our Facilitator and our Visualiser:
Jacqui Lofthouse is a novelist and founder of The Writing Coach. She has an MA in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia and is the author of four novels, The Temple of Hymen, Bluethroat Morning, Een Stille Verdwijning and The Modigliani Girl. Her novels have sold over 100,000 copies in the UK, the USA and Europe. Jacqui has also run a small publishing imprint ‘Nightingale Editions’. She has taught creative writing in a broad variety of settings from City University to Feltham Young Offenders Institution. At The Writing Coach, her mission is to help writers to be confident and productive, producing their best work and getting it into print.
David Lewis is a professional cartoonist and live illustrator with nearly thirty years experience in the corporate sector. David’s skills have been used at events ranging from the Shakespeare & Co. Literary Festival in Paris to conferences, workshops, and presentations for multi-national companies in Milan, Abu Dhabi, Detroit, and Stockholm. His many satisfied clients include Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (for her 80th birthday celebrations), Richard Branson, many sections of the NHS and large corporations ranging from Johnson & Johnson to Nationwide and Google. You can find out about his work here.
We can’t wait to meet you at this very special day with The Writing Coach! Our aim is to enable you to look forward to publication and to see it as an inevitable outcome in your writing life.