Manuscript Mart 2025
In a Nutshell
At the Manuscript Mart, an established literary agent or editor will read your work in advance and meet with you online, via Zoom, to provide direct feedback. This one-on-one, 20-minute session will be scheduled for you to occur during Manuscript Mart Week—May 13–17, 2025. Your chosen literary agent or editor will have read TEN (10) pages of your work in advance, along with an optional query letter and/or synopsis, and will provide feedback from an industry perspective. Most often these are the first ten pages of the writer's manuscript, but they do not have to be.
Note: Registration opens for Manuscript Mart appointments for members on 2/20 and for non-members 2/24.
Manuscript Mart Important Dates
- Manuscript Month Info/Q&A Session: 2/18 (Free)
- Manuscript Mart Appointments Open for Members: 2/20 (opens at 1 PM EST)
- Manuscript Mart Appointments Open for Non-Members: 2/24 (opens at 1 PM EST)
- Manuscript Mart Prep Seminar: 3/5 (Free)
- Manuscript Mart Appointment Deadline and Manuscript Samples Due: 4/8, 11:59 PM EDT
- Manuscript Mart Appointments Take Place May 13–17, 2025
Why the Manuscript Mart?
Friends and fellow writers may give us feedback on our writing, but not necessarily on the business of writing. The Manuscript Mart is a rare opportunity to receive meaningful feedback from an experienced industry professional who is in the publishing game on a daily basis. While a number of agents and editors do go on to represent clients they meet at this event, the Manuscript Mart is about using feedback to strengthen your work while potentially making a long-term match. GrubStreet makes every effort to ensure the agent or editor you meet will read your work closely, consider it carefully, and offer you the best advice they can give, but we cannot guarantee that the person you choose will ultimately be the right fit for you and your work.
What happens in the meeting?
We expect the meetings to be warm, friendly, and professional—not unlike a job interview. The agent or editor will lead the meeting and likely launch immediately into giving feedback on your work. Alternatively, they may begin by asking you questions. You should expect to hear critical feedback that may or may not be difficult to process or accept. If the agent or editor does not respond glowingly to your work or does not offer you a book deal on the spot, it does NOT mean the work is not valuable, nor does it mean that the critique cannot be used constructively to improve your work.
Because the conversation can be overwhelming, you may wish to take notes. You may be given written comments (often margin notes) before or after a session, but this is not guaranteed. Do not expect a request for your full manuscript. If they would like to see more of your work, the agent or editor will ask you to submit it at a later date.
Manuscript Mart Instructions
Review carefully the instructions below for researching agents and editors, formatting your manuscript sample(s), and submitting your manuscript sample(s).
Agents often edit their clients’ manuscripts, thus have experience with macro and micro issues. They are familiar with the industry as well as the craft and can guide you responsibly in both areas as well as give you feedback on how to make your query letter and/or synopsis stand out. Agents also serve as gateways to editors and publishing companies.
While the role of Editor certainly includes the marketing and positioning of books, the editors participating in the Manuscript Mart do still edit, and it is likely their greatest strength. Their eyes are trained to notice red flags, redundancies, and “lazy” writing. Editors will have knowledge about the state of the market for your work. If an editor is excited about your book, an agent may be more likely to give it a serious look.
The agent and editor bios for Manuscript Mart 2025 will indicate the kinds of books they are looking for and what they have represented recently. However, we strongly recommend you rely on your own online research and read as many of their clients' books (or samples of the books) as you can.
Select your agents and editors and register for your Manuscript Mart meeting(s) via GrubStreet.org. You may reserve as many appointments as you like, and you will be able to make additional appointments up until the deadline of Tuesday, April 8, 2025, 11:59 PM EDT.
Manuscript Mart registration for members ($250 per appointment) opens Thursday, February 20, at 1:00 PM EST. Registration for non-members ($265 per appointment) opens Monday, February 24, at 1:00 PM EST.
To apply for a Manuscript Mart scholarship, click here.
ENSURE THAT YOUR MANUSCRIPT SAMPLE ADHERES TO THESE GUIDELINES:
No more than TEN (10) double-spaced pages of a fiction or nonfiction manuscript. Pages should be numbered, titled, in black 12-point Times New Roman font, and on white 8.5 x 11–inch electronic pages with one-inch margins on all sides.
You may include an optional one-page query and/or one-page synopsis of the work as a whole. The query and synopsis may be single-spaced.
Your manuscript will be submitted in a single ".doc" or ".docx" document which you can create in programs like Microsoft Word and Google Docs. Please avoid submitting PDFs. If you submit a PDF, the agent or editor will most likely not give you written feedback on the document.
Submission document examples could include the following:
TEN (10) double-spaced pages of manuscript + a one-page query + a one-page synopsis (12 pages total)
TEN (10) double-spaced pages of manuscript + a one-page query (11 pages total)
TEN (10) double-spaced pages of manuscript + a one-page synopsis (11 pages total)
TEN (10) double-spaced pages of manuscript (10 pages total)
The title of the file MUST be your full name, e.g., ToniMorrison.doc. Files must end in a .doc or .docx extension.
Polish your TEN-page sample and make it as strong as you possibly can. It should represent your best work and preferably be the first ten pages of a book-length manuscript.
We strongly recommend including an optional query letter and synopsis. A query letter and synopsis help agents and editors give you better feedback relevant to your entire work. They can also give you feedback on these pitch documents themselves and tell you what would make your query letter and/or synopsis stand out to them and their colleagues. You can find suggestions for writing a query letter here and for writing a one-page synopsis here.
SUBMIT YOUR MANUSCRIPT SAMPLE(S) USING OUR FORM
If you have registered for multiple meetings, you will submit a Manuscript Sample form once per agent or editor.
Submit your manuscript sample(s) by 11:59 PM EDT on TUESDAY, APRIL 8, 2025. Under no circumstances will we accept late submissions. We will not offer refunds or credits if you do not submit on time.
Once you have registered for your Manuscript Mart appointment(s) and are ready to submit your sample (having followed the formatting instructions), SUBMIT YOUR MANUSCRIPT SAMPLE using our form.