Publishing Fundamentals II: Book Proposals, Query Letters, and Pitches
with Elise McHugh
Genres: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, The Writing Life, Writing for Performance
Online
Online Open to all levels
Open to all levels 6 Sessions
6 Sessions You’ve finished (or are close to) writing your book. Congratulations! That’s a milestone worth celebrating!
Now that your manuscript exists, you're primed for the next challenge: helping others understand what you’ve created. Pitching, querying, and proposing a book are the art of distilling the entire universe of your work—and why it matters—into one or two pages.
Over six weeks, you’ll learn to shape the core materials used in traditional publishing: the pitch, the query letter, and the book proposal. Each one asks you to think about your project from a new angle—what it’s about, who it’s for, how it fits alongside other books, and why it deserves a place in the market. Instead of treating these elements like an opaque set of industry expectations, we’ll approach them as craft: structured, learnable forms that build on storytelling instincts you already have.
Each week, we’ll look at a different component of the pitching and querying process. You’ll practice representing your project with a strong hook; writing an author bio with both personality and credibility; shaping brief and extended descriptions of your book; identifying your core readership; and researching competitive and complementary titles. You’ll also see how these pieces come together into a proposal that reflects the heart of your project while meeting the practical needs of agents and editors.
This is a hands-on, example-heavy course. You’ll draft sections of your materials, refine them through guided exercises, and receive feedback from both peers and your instructor. Along the way, we’ll talk openly about what typically happens behind the scenes—how submissions are evaluated, how these materials evolve over time, and how writers can approach the process without feeling swallowed by it.
You’ll leave with:
- A working pitch and query letter
- The foundations of a compelling book proposal
- A more defined sense of your book’s hook, audience, and positioning
- Practical tools you can return to throughout your publishing life
Ideal for fiction and nonfiction writers who are drafting, revising, or readying a book-length project for submission. If you’re ready to move from writing the book to advocating for it, this class offers a supportive, practical path into the next stage of your publishing journey.
This class focuses on:
- Publishing & Professional Development: Focuses on submitting work, understanding the publishing industry, or building a writing career.
- Community & Connection: Emphasizes collaboration, peer connection, and social writing experiences.
What to expect:
- Goal-Setting & Accountability: Includes tools or practices to help students stay motivated.
- Project-Based: Students will work toward completing a specific project (e.g., a story, poem, or essay).
- Career & Industry Guidance: Focuses on navigating the writing profession.
- Lecture: Instructor-led teaching
- Class Discussion: Facilitated class conversation
- 1-2 hours of reading and/or writing outside of class
Students say…
“I was referred to Hugo House by a former student. What I've learned from two classes with Elise McHugh has proved invaluable to me. My level of naivety was so great that I didn't know what I didn't know. Now I have an actual chance of being published. Thank you!”
“Instructor Elise McHugh is an ideal instructor for this class; she's obviously worked in publishing for a significant amount of time and understands the processes and players. I enjoyed her teaching style as well, and felt she responded to extemporaneous class inquiries with charm and erudition. I was also impressed by how well she tailored the information to different types of writers (fiction, genre fiction, non-fiction, etc).”
“The instructor has current and extensive experience in publishing. She was able to answer every question we had with great specificity.”
Registration Dates:
- December 2: Member registration opens at 10:30 am PT
- December 9: General registration opens at 10:30 am PT
- December 14: Last day of Early Bird discount
- December 16: Scholarships open
Elise McHugh
Elise McHugh is a senior acquisitions editor for the University of New Mexico Press. She holds an MA in creative writing and has taught English 101, poetry, and publishing classes and workshops in a variety of settings.
Describe your teaching style.
I’m a lifelong learner, and I learn all the time in workshops and on panels. It’s one of the many reasons I enjoy teaching. The energy generated by people as they share experiences and questions and ideas feeds part of me that always needs replenishing. My approach as an instructor is to use examples and humor to demystify the process as much as possible in a supportive environment where everyone takes away something that will replenish them and get them once step closer to their goals as writers and as human beings.
FAQ
Complete FAQEach class description includes a breakdown of what you can expect in terms of in-class activity, feedback, and homework (if any).
Generative means you’ll be generating new writing, either in class or at home between classes.
Workshop means you’ll be sharing work to be read and critiqued by your instructor and classmates and that you will also be critiquing the work of your peers.
Reading means you’ll be doing close reading of a work with an eye toward craft.
Craft discussion means you’ll be looking at the tools writers use to do that thing they do so well and then trying it out yourself.
Class levels are designed for various stages of the writing journey. Simply self-select the level that sounds best for where you’re at.
Introductory: This is your first creative writing workshop, first writing class since high school, or first foray into a new genre or form. You’re looking to try something new, kickstart your writing, and/or establish yourself in the fundamentals.
Intermediate: You have a strong understanding of writing fundamentals and are eager to deep dive into craft. You’re honing your writerly identity and voice through independent projects. In workshop, you look for constructive feedback and are ready to do writing and reading outside of class.
Advanced: You’ve written a significant body of work and have taken it through several stages of revision. You’re getting ready to publish or are in the early stage of publishing, and you’re interested in refining the skills that will take you to the next level in the literary industry.
All Levels: You are any of the above and are looking to play with new possibilities.
You’ll get your class information, including Zoom link if applicable, three days before the first day of class.
If you register for a class within this three-day window and do not receive this information, please contact us at welcome@hugohouse.org
Write With Hugo House is our free monthly write-in program that takes place online via Zoom.
We also have payment plans available for most of our classes. These payment plans are available to all students. Additionally, we offer partial scholarships (covering up to 40% of class tuition) for students who meet our income guidelines.
Lastly, we announce flash sales, early bird periods, and special deals through our e-newsletter; sign up at the bottom of this page.
At this time, we offer payment plans on classes 4 sessions and up. To register for a payment plan, select “Pay in installments” on the class details page, select your preferred option, and proceed to add to cart usual.
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We charge a 5% nonrefundable administrative fee for all payment plans. This fee is based on total class cost.
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We are unable to hold seats for prospective payment plan students. Students will be enrolled once their first installment has been paid.
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If you need to cancel, Hugo House will issue refunds according to its cancellation and transfer policies. Your 5% nonrefundable admin fee will not be refunded.
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If you withdraw from a class after it begins, you will not receive a refund and are still responsible for paying the full course tuition.
Asynchronous classes are perfect for students that need flexibility!
During an asynchronous class, instructors release new lessons once per week. Students then have one week to complete that lesson and any accompanying coursework. You’ll learn as much as you would in a traditional class but with the flexibility to work at the best times for your schedule!
While there are no live sessions, asynchronous classes are still a lively and rigorous experience. Async classes are not static lessons but an adaptable and energetic community space. Be ready to work in a collaborative environment, giving and receiving feedback on your writing, participating in discussions, and growing your writing practice in a way that works best for you.
Asynchronous classes take place through the website Wet Ink. Students receive an invitation to the class and to set up a Wet Ink account on the start date of the class. Each week of the class, a new lesson will be available through the Wet Ink portal. Classes close two weeks after the end date, and students receive an email containing their content from the class when it closes.
Hugo House will only process refund requests that are submitted 5 days or more before the class start date. To request a refund, log in to your account, go to “My Account,” select the “Orders” tab on the left-hand side, click the appropriate order, and request a refund for your specific class. Administrative fees apply. Please see our full refund policy here.
To request a refund for class credit, please note such in the message section of your refund request.
In general, we do not record classes. However, an exception can be made with instructor approval if a student has specific access needs.
We encourage students to only sign up for classes that fit with their schedule.
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If Hugo House needs to cancel a class for any reason, you’ll receive a full refund.
You can apply for a scholarship by clicking the red “Request a Scholarship” text on class pages. The scholarship request text is located at the top of each class page, underneath the “add to cart” button.
Scholarship application dates can be found in our Academic Calendar.
Due to the limited number of scholarships, please only request up to two scholarships for two different classes per quarter if you truly meet the financial need requirements.
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