 Vicky Weber has always loved literature, even from a young age. In 2015, she began her career as an elementary school teacher and earned her Masters in Teaching & Learning with a concentration in ESL. Her first children’s book was published in late 2019, and she’s never looked back!
In April 2021, she gave birth to her daughter and left the classroom several months later to pursue writing full-time. She founded At Home Author, a coaching company to help other aspiring picture book authors learn the industry. Vicky joined The Purcell Agency as an associate literary agent in 2022 and was promoted to literary agent in January 2023. In April 2023, her family grew once more with the arrival of her son and in May 2024, she joined the team at CMA. As a Latinx agent and author, she strongly prefers to work with traditionally underrepresented voices whenever possible. She firmly believes that growing her author list is like growing her little family and she does so with intention.  ABOUT THE AGENT:
Justina Ireland joined Handspun Literary Agency in 2026 as a junior agent. She is also an award winning and New York Times bestselling author of numerous books as well as a writer of both comics and television. Justina is a United States Army Veteran and holds a BA in History from Georgia Southern (previously Armstrong Atlantic State University) and an MFA in Creative Writing for Children and Young Adults from Hamline University.  What would you tell your beginner self after more than three decades of writing?
For Christy Award-winning author Lori Benton, the answer blends honest reflection with deep faith: visit the historical places you once took for granted, practice patience through long seasons of waiting, and learn to surrender your dreams—even when cancer and chemo fog make them feel lost. In this candid Q&A for Writing Day Workshops, Lori opens up about the prayerful rituals that sustain her creativity, how great fiction and dependence on God help her break through writer’s block, and why she’s learning to hold her writing career with open hands in her new season of publishing. With wisdom forged through rejections, closed doors, and unexpected timing, Lori offers the encouragement every writer needs: diligence, resilience, patience . . . and more. Keep reading to discover Lori’s hard-won keys to a writing life anchored in faith. On Believing in Books: A Literary Agent's Honest Lesson About Passion vs. Publishing Reality4/15/2026
 As a new agent, one of my biggest mistakes was signing clients because I believed in them.
Americans love an underdog success story, especially when their success is attributed to passion. We love to tell the legends of famous books that found their way to bookstore shelves through the author’s relentless determination in the face of rejection until they found a single devotee on the other side of the table. The Lord of the Rings, Chicken Soup for the Soul, The Help. For years, my insatiable passion for books fueled little more than my own spending habits. Becoming an agent gave me a thrill of empowerment. Finally, I was ready to put the force of my conviction behind authors who just needed a wind in their sails to overcome what their business plan lacked. Suddenly, I had the midas touch. I could pick a project that no one else on “team gatekeeper” understood and use my sales superpowers to remove the scales from their eyes. And then a terrible thing happened. It worked.  Attention, writers! Four free First Pages Contests from Writing Day Workshops are open right now in Spring 2026, giving you a golden opportunity to receive professional agent feedback on the opening page of your unpublished novel.
Whether you're writing ambitious literary/mainstream/upmarket fiction, heartfelt romance and women's fiction, gripping young adult fantasy, sci-fi, and horror, or pulse-pounding thriller, mystery, cozy, suspense, and crime, there's a dedicated contest perfectly tailored to your genre. Each contest is judged by an experienced literary agent who will select three winners and provide a valuable critique. Best of all, there is no entry fee, and the deadline for all four contests is April 20, 2026. Ready to polish that first page and take your shot? Keep reading for full details on Contests #8 through #11, including submission guidelines and how to enter.  ABOUT THE AGENT:
Layla Fallah is a Kurdish author, artist, and advocate for diverse storytellers. She is a literary assistant at BookEnds Literary Agency. An active member of the Association of American Literary Agents (AALA), Layla is the literary assistant to agents Emily Forney and James McGowan at BookEnds Literary Agency, where they support 100+ clients, including award-winning, critically-acclaimed, and bestselling authors and illustrators. In addition to their role at BookEnds, Layla co-directs the PB Rising Stars Mentorship, a program dedicated to mentoring emerging authors and illustrators from historically underrepresented communities. In all things, Layla is wholeheartedly committed to breaking down barriers in publishing and creating space for diverse voices and visual storytellers. With each story they tell (or sell), Layla hopes to open a doorway for readers who have yet to see themselves reflected in books, and to shine a light on the quiet, everyday magic that surrounds us. When her pen is at rest, Layla can be found painting Kurdistan, planting seeds, or collecting picture books from the public library.  FREE CONTEST FOR WRITERS!
Welcome to a First Page Contest. Contest #11 is for writers of Adult Suspense, Crime, Thriller, Cozy, and Crime. If you write in these categories, keep reading and submit your work! This free contest ends on April 20, 2026 Here’s how it works: We invite an awesome literary agent to judge the contest. The agent picks the genre(s) they want to judge. Writers in that genre are invited to send in their first page as part of the competition. Winners get a fabulous critique from your agent judge. It’s free to enter. Sound good? Then let’s get to some details and rules! PRIZES: The agent judge will pick three winners (in no particular order). All three winners are invited to send their first 5 double-spaced pages to the agent judge for a free critique. If you've ever wanted to know what an agent is thinking when they read your submission, this critique is a great way to learn just that.  FREE CONTEST FOR WRITERS!
Welcome to a First Page Contest. Contest #10 is for writers of Young Adult Fiction in the areas of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and speculative. If you write in this age category, keep reading and submit your work! This free contest ends on April 20, 2026. Here’s how it works: We invite an awesome literary agent to judge the contest. The agent picks the genre(s) they want to judge. Writers in that genre are invited to send in their first page as part of the competition. Winners get a fabulous critique from your agent judge. It’s free to enter. Sound good? Then let’s get to some details and rules! PRIZES: The agent judge will pick three winners (in no particular order). All three winners are invited to send their first 5 double-spaced pages to the agent judge for a free critique. If you've ever wanted to know what an agent is thinking when they read your submission, this critique is a great way to learn just that.  FREE CONTEST FOR WRITERS!
Welcome to a First Page Contest. Contest #9 is for writers of Romance and Women's Fiction. If you write in these categories, keep reading and submit your work! This free contest ends on April 20, 2026. Here’s how it works: We invite an awesome literary agent to judge the contest. The agent picks the genre(s) they want to judge. Writers in that genre are invited to send in their first page as part of the competition. Winners get a fabulous critique from your agent judge. It’s free to enter. Sound good? Then let’s get to some details and rules! PRIZES: The agent judge will pick three winners (in no particular order). All three winners are invited to send their first 5 double-spaced pages to the agent judge for a free critique. If you've ever wanted to know what an agent is thinking when they read your submission, this critique is a great way to learn just that.  FREE CONTEST FOR WRITERS!
First Page Contest #8 of this year is for writers of Adult Literary / Mainstream / Commercial / Book Club / Upmarket Fiction. If you write in these categories, keep reading and submit your work! This free contest ends on April 20, 2026. Here’s how it works: We invite an awesome literary agent to judge the contest. The agent picks the genre(s) they want to judge. Writers in that genre are invited to send in their first page as part of the competition. Winners get a fabulous critique from your agent judge. It’s free to enter. Sound good? Then let’s get to some details and rules! PRIZES: The agent judge will pick three winners (in no particular order). All three winners are invited to send their first 5 double-spaced pages to the agent judge for a free critique. If you've ever wanted to know what an agent is thinking when they read your submission, this critique is a great way to learn just that. |