​An insider’s guide to querying literary agents, getting represented, and getting paid for your writing!

​Leila Sales is the author of eight critically acclaimed novels for children and young adults, including This Song Will Save Your Life and Once Was a Time. Her books have been optioned for stage and screen, selected for many state award lists, translated into a dozen languages, and received numerous starred reviews.

​Based on her eleven years as a full-time employee at Penguin Random House, as well as her experiences being published by Abrams, Chronicle, Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, and the University of Chicago Press.

​Leila will walk us through exactly:

• ​How to identify the right literary agents for your specific book and genre

• ​How to research agents’ lists, preferences, and recent deals

• ​What makes a strong query letter and how to structure it effectively

• ​How to craft a compelling pitch that gets agents to request more material

• ​What to include (and not include) in your query package

• ​How to personalize outreach without overdoing it

• ​What agents are actually looking for when reviewing submissions

• ​What to expect after you get a request for pages or a full manuscript

• ​How to evaluate offers of representation and choose the right agent

• ​How to handle rejections and iterate on your query strategy

• ​How agents actually triage their inboxes and the subtle signals that determine whether your query gets opened, skimmed, or ignored

• ​How to position your book so it fits cleanly into an agent’s existing list without feeling derivative

• ​How agents interpret comps, and how to choose ones that quietly signal commercial viability

• ​What your query materials reveal about you beyond the writing itself, and how agents read between the lines

• ​How to time your outreach, batch submissions, and create momentum.

• ​The unspoken red flags that cause agents to pass, even when the writing is strong

• ​and much more....!

​Leila has edited award-winning and bestselling fiction and nonfiction books for readers of all ages.

​Her authors have included:

• ​Award-winning actors Viola Davis and Bob Balaban;

• ​New York Times bestselling authors Gayle Forman, Max Brallier, and Ame Dyckman;

• ​National Book Award Finalist Elizabeth Partridge;

• ​MacArthur Fellow Xu Bing;

• ​and many more....

​🎟️ What's Included with your ticket?

​✅ A 60-minute presentation from Leila Sales focused specifically on nonfiction publishing, pitching, proposals, agents, advances, and what actually happens after you sign a deal.

​✅ An extended open Q&A where you can ask about your specific book idea, proposal draft, platform strategy, or agent outreach plan.

​✅ A small-group of 12 other writers based here in Austin.

​✅ Fresh coffee, tea, and morning snacks.