Pitch Clinic 2015
We’re excited to welcome you to Freelance Writers’ Pitch Clinic. We look forward to helping you craft kick-butt pitches that will get you great-paying assignments.
You can get started right now with two podcasts we’ve posted on our Module 1: “Let’s Make Your Story Idea Not Suck!” and our Story Idea Lab.
After our first session, we’ll have a useful homework exercise for you to post in the forum. Then each week, you’ll see new materials and modules appear as we move through the course.
2015 Course Schedule
Please note that ALL our live events for this course are taking place at 12 Pacific/3 Eastern. Just click on the bar to unfold the full schedule. Participation info for live events is posted in the course modules below.
Open to view the course schedule and live event dates.
- Module (Tuesday, March 24): Live Pitch Clinic event: Let’s Make Your Story Idea Not Suck! Listen in as we refine writers’ story ideas live, and make them irresistible to editors. This lesson is free and open to the public…but enrolled, paying students will have first chance at getting their headlines critiqued on the call.
- Q&A call (Tuesday, March 31): Have questions left over from our Lesson 1 live call—or maybe you didn’t get to attend? Here’s your chance to ask the instructors your pressing questions, and learn more about how to develop great story ideas.
- Module 2 (released Friday, April 3): Anatomy of a Killer Query: In this recoded webinar, you’ll learn the pros’ secrets to writing every part of a query letter so that editors find it irresistible.
- Q&A call (Tuesday, April 7): Your chance for you to ask the instructors questions about Lesson 2 on a live call!
- Module 3 (released Friday, April 10): Writing a Kick-Butt Letter of Introduction: Carol and Linda share details on how to avoid common mistakes and write a standout letter of introduction that gets you hired by editors at trade and custom publications.
- Query Q&A call – LOIs (Tuesday, April 14): Ask your questions about Lesson 3 on this live call.
- Module 4 (April 17-27) Post your queries and LOIs in the forum and get detailed critiques from the instructors. This is where you put everything you learned into action. We give you two weeks for this phase, so you have plenty of time to use the lessons to craft an eyeball-grabbing query or LOI. We’ll also have a bonus recording for you, on what trade-pub editors are looking for.
- Module 5 – Ask us anything — Q&A call (Tuesday, April 28): Still got questions? Want to tweak a story idea a bit more? We’ll hold a final, live 1-hour call to get you fired up to press “send” on those pitch letters. Plus we’ll have a vital final handout for you, on how to get editors’ emails. Then…it’s time to start sending out those 8 pitches!
- Bonus Mastermind call (Tuesday, May 26): This is a SPECIAL BONUS for students who submit at least one query or LOI to the homework forums. We’ll be announcing who has qualified to be a case study and get a course fee refund!
Class Materials
All class materials will be posted below as the course progresses week-by-week.
| Module 1 | Live Pitch Clinic event: Let’s Make Your Story Idea Not Suck! |
|---|---|
| Pitch us your ideas and we’ll help you hone them right there on the call. | |
| Unit 1 | Pitch Clinic Refund Offer - FAQs |
| Unit 2 | Getting Started in Pitch Clinic |
| Unit 3 | How to get the most from Pitch Clinic |
| Unit 4 | Module 1 Open Pitch Call - "Let's Make Your Query Letter Not Suck!" - Recording & Transcript |
| Unit 5 | Module 1 Q&A & Story-Idea Pitch: Recording & Transcript |
| Unit 6 | Bonus Podcast: Story idea lab with Carol Tice & Linda Formichelli |
| Unit 7 | Idea Critique Handout -- "Let's Make Your Story Idea Not Suck!" |
| Unit 8 | Pitch Brainstorming Session — Podcast |
| Unit 9 | Module 1 Homework |
| Module 2 | Anatomy of a Killer Query |
|---|---|
| In this webinar, you’ll learn the pros’ secrets to writing every part of a query letter so that editors find it irresistible. | |
| Unit 1 | Module 2 Anatomy of a Killer Query - Webinar, Audio Recording & Transcript |
| Unit 2 | Module 2 Q&A: Recording & Transcript |
| Unit 3 | Module 2 Interview handouts |
| Unit 4 | Template - Query Letter |
| Unit 5 | Bonus podcast: How to Make Your Query Irresistible to Editors |
| Unit 6 | Bonus Webinar: Top 11 Query mistakes |
| Unit 7 | Module 2 Homework |
| Module 3 | Writing a Kick-Butt LOI |
|---|---|
| Carol and Linda share details on how to avoid common mistakes and write a standout letter of introduction that gets you hired by editors at trade and custom publications. | |
| Unit 1 | Module 3 Training: Writing a Kick-Butt LOI - Recording & Transcript |
| Unit 2 | Template - LOI Hybrid |
| Unit 3 | Template - LOI to a Business |
| Unit 4 | Module 3 Q&A: Recording & Transcript |
| Unit 5 | Module 3 Homework |
| Unit 6 | Handout: Article Writing Glossary of Terms |
| Module 4 | Post your queries and LOIs in the forum |
|---|---|
| Post your queries and LOIs in the forum, get detailed critiques from the instructors, and take part in another live pitch session. | |
| Unit 1 | Bonus podcast: How to break into writing for trade pubs with editor Connie Gentry |
| Unit 2 | Module 4 Homework |
| Module 5 | Live “Exit” call |
|---|---|
| Still got questions? Want to tweak a story idea a bit more? We’ll hold a final, live 1-hour call to get you fired up to press “send” on those pitch letters. | |
| Unit 1 | Module 5 Live “Exit” call - Recording & Transcript |
| Unit 2 | Bonus Handout -- "7 Ways to Get Editor's Emails" |
| Unit 3 | Module 5 Homework |
| Unit 4 | Module 5 Mastermind Call — Recording & Transcript |
Technical Support
Have a technical question about the class? Please let us know in the ‘Report Problems’ thread on the Forum or contact our troubleshooters at help@usefulwritingcourses.com