THE STORYTELLER'S PITCH WRITING CONTEST
Official Rules
1. Eligibility
The Storyteller’s Pitch Writing Contest is open to legal residents worldwide who sign up at www.the-writers-sanctuary.com/contest. Entrants must be 16 years of age or older as of their date of entry in order to qualify. Entrants between the ages of 16 and 17 must submit written parental or legal guardian consent on the same Word document as their submission, at the time of submission. This contest is subject to federal, state, and local laws and regulations and void where prohibited by law. The Writer’s Sanctuary’s employees, its subsidiaries, affiliates, suppliers, partners, advertising and promotion agencies, and directors (collectively the “Employees”), as well as members of an Employees’ immediate family and/or those living in the same household of Employees are ineligible to participate in the Storyteller’s Pitch Writing Contest.
2. Sponsorship
The sponsor is The Writer's Sanctuary, LLC (“Sponsor”), located at PO Box 591, Arroyo Grande, CA 93421. Sponsor will conduct the contest substantially as described in these Official Rules.
3. Agreement to Rules
By entering this contest, the Entrant (“You”) agrees to abide by the Sponsor’s Official Rules and decisions, which are fully and unconditionally binding in all respects. The Sponsor reserves the right to refuse, withdraw, or disqualify any entry at any time at the Sponsor’s sole discretion. By entering this contest, You represent and warrant that You are eligible to participate based on eligibility requirements explained in the Official Rules. You also agree to accept the decisions of the Sponsor as final and binding as it relates to the content of the Storyteller’s Pitch Writing Contest.
4. Contest Entry Period
This promotion begins on March 6, 2026 at 12:00am PT and ends on April 1, 2026 at 11:00pm PT (“Entry Period”). To be eligible for the Contest, entries must be received within the specified Entry Period.
5. How to Enter
Eligible entrants can enter the Storyteller’s Pitch Writing Contest by submitting an entry via the online form provided at www.the-writers-sanctuary.com/contest. As a participant, your entry must fully meet all Contest requirements, as specified in the Official Rules, in order to be eligible to win a prize. Incomplete entries or those that do not adhere to the Official Rules or specifications will be disqualified at the Sponsor’s sole discretion. Participants enter by paying $20.00 USD per entry and submitting a pitch via the online submission form.
Additional rules:
• Pitch submissions must be no more than 150 words, formatted in 12-point Times New Roman font.
• Entries do not have to be from a completed manuscript.
• You may enter as many pitches as you like; each entry is a separate fee of $20.00 USD.
• Published and unpublished authors may enter; however, pitches may NOT be for a traditionally published or previously traditionally published work.
• Pitches CAN be for manuscripts you have previously queried, provided the work is not published or currently in the process of being traditionally published.
• All entries must be owned and written by the entrant. Submissions generated in whole or in part by artificial intelligence (AI) tools — including but not limited to ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, or similar generative AI writing tools — are not permitted and will result in immediate disqualification.
• Entrants between the ages of 16 and 17 must submit written parental or legal guardian consent on the same Word document as their submission, at the time of submission. Entries from minors submitted without verifiable consent will be disqualified.
• The Contest is hosted by The Writer’s Sanctuary, LLC and is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Facebook, Instagram, Meta, X, TikTok, Squarespace, or any other social media company.
Fraudulent methods of entry or circumvention of the rules may result in the Sponsor invalidating your entries and removing them from the Contest at the Sponsor’s sole discretion.
6. Contest Timeline
• March 6, 2026: Contest Opens
• April 1, 2026 (11:00pm PT): Submissions Close
• April 27, 2026: Semifinalists Announced
• May 11, 2026: Finalists Announced
• May 26, 2026: Winner Announced
7. Contest Structure
All Entrant Round: All submitted pitches are reviewed and receive written feedback from the contest judging panel, which includes freelance editors and published authors.
Semifinalist Round (20 Selected): The top 20 semifinalists are selected and receive enhanced written feedback on their semi-finaled pitch.
Finalist Round (10 Selected): The top 10 finalists are invited to submit a query letter alongside their original pitch. Finalist pitches and query letters will be read and evaluated by literary agents Samantha Fabien (Root Literary) and Suzie Townsend (New Leaf Literary & Media).
Winner (1 Selected): The Grand Prize Winner is selected from among the 10 finalists.
8. Prizes
All Entrants: Written feedback on their submitted pitch.
Semifinalists (20 Selected): Enhanced written feedback on their pitch.
Finalists (10 Selected): One (1) 30-minute pitch strategy call with NYT bestselling author C.J. Redwine and Mary Weber (approximate retail value: $150 per call). Calls will be scheduled within 90 days of the Winner Announcement date.
Grand Prize (1 Winner):
• One (1) 30-minute call with Samantha Fabien, literary agent at Root Literary (approximate retail value: $300)
• Three (3) months of complimentary membership in The Red Herrings Society, Writer’s Sanctuary’s writers’ group (approximate retail value: $105; based on $35/month)
Grand Prize calls and membership access will be delivered within 90 days of the Winner Announcement date. The actual/appraised prize value may differ at the time the prize is awarded. Prizes are determined solely by the Sponsor. No cash or other prize substitution is permitted except at the Sponsor’s sole discretion. Prizes are non-transferable. Winners are solely responsible for all applicable local, state, and federal taxes. Winners shall not transfer assignment of prizes to others. By accepting a prize, the selected Winner grants permission for the Sponsor to use the Winner’s likeness, name, biographical information, and quotes for advertising and promotional purposes without further compensation, unless prohibited by law. NOTE: If required by law, the Grand Prize Winner must provide the Sponsor with a valid Social Security number or taxpayer identification number before the prize can be awarded. A Form 1099 may be issued to the Grand Prize Winner if applicable.
9. Judge Substitution & Evaluation
In the event that a named judge becomes unavailable due to illness, scheduling conflict, or any other circumstance beyond the Sponsor’s control, the Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a judge of comparable professional standing (a working literary agent or publishing industry professional) without prior notice. The Sponsor’s judging decisions remain final and binding regardless of any such substitution. The Sponsor makes no representations regarding the tools, methods, or processes used by individual judges in their evaluation of entries. Entrants acknowledge that the Sponsor cannot guarantee or be held liable for the practices of any judge participating in the Contest.
10. Odds
The total number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning.
11. Selection and Notification of Winners
Winners will be selected by a panel of judges assessing entries under the supervision of the Sponsor. The Sponsor will notify Winners by email within ten days following selection. The Sponsor is not responsible for Winners’ failure to receive notices due to spam or junk email filters, or for incorrect contact information provided by entrants. If a Winner (1) fails to claim their prize within 15 days of notification or (2) is found ineligible, the prize may be forfeited and an alternate Winner may be selected. IF ANY WINNER VIOLATES ANY OF THESE OFFICIAL RULES, THE WINNER (AT THE SPONSOR’S SOLE DISCRETION) WILL BE DISQUALIFIED AND ALL PRIZES WILL BE IMMEDIATELY FORFEITED.
12. Rights Retained by You
Entrants retain all rights to their submissions. The Writer’s Sanctuary recognizes all entries as being copyrighted to their original owners. Entering this Contest does not transfer or license your intellectual property to the Sponsor in any way.
13. Rights Granted by You
By submitting an entry, You retain full ownership and copyright of your work. We will never publish, reproduce, or distribute your actual pitch outside of the internal contest judging process. What we may use — for promotional, advertising, and publicity purposes — is a reference to your submission (for example, mentioning that you entered or advanced), along with any quotes you choose to provide, and your name, photo, likeness, and author biographical information, in any media now known or hereafter developed, in perpetuity, worldwide, without further notice, consent, or compensation. All entries must be original work and must not violate any proprietary or intellectual property rights. Entries that infringe upon the intellectual property rights of others will result in immediate disqualification, and You shall indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the Sponsor from any resulting claims or suits at Your sole expense.
14. Refund Policy
Entry fees are non-refundable. No refunds will be issued after submission, including in cases of disqualification due to rules violations.
15. Terms & Conditions
In its sole discretion, the Sponsor reserves the right to modify, suspend, cancel, or terminate the Contest should unauthorized human intervention, a bug or virus, fraud, or other causes beyond the Sponsor’s control impact or corrupt the security, fairness, or administration of the Contest. Individuals who tamper with the operation or entry process of the Contest, or who violate these Terms & Conditions, will be disqualified at the Sponsor’s sole discretion. The use of bots, macros, scripts, AI writing tools, or other technical means for entry is prohibited. Attempts to deliberately damage any website or undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest may violate criminal and civil laws, and the Sponsor reserves the right to seek damages to the fullest extent permitted by law.
16. Force Majeure
The Sponsor shall not be held liable for any delay, interruption, or cancellation of the Contest caused by circumstances beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to acts of God, natural disasters, pandemic, war, government action, power or internet outages, platform failures, or the unavailability of named judges or prize providers. In any such event, the Sponsor reserves the right to modify, suspend, or cancel the Contest or any prize element, and to substitute prizes of comparable value where applicable, without liability to any entrant.
17. Limitation of Liability
Your entry into this Contest constitutes Your agreement to release and hold harmless the Sponsor and its subsidiaries, representatives, affiliates, partners, advertising and promotion agencies, successors, agents, assigns, directors, employees, and officers from any and all claims, liability, illness, injury, death, litigation, loss, or damages that may occur directly or indirectly from participation in the Contest, including without limitation: (1) the Winner accepting, possessing, using, or misusing any awarded prize; (2) any type of technical failure; (3) unavailability or inaccessibility of any transmissions, phone, or Internet service; (4) unauthorized intervention in any part of the entry process; or (5) electronic or human error in the administration or processing of entries.
18. Disputes
THIS CONTEST IS GOVERNED BY THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA, WITHOUT RESPECT TO CONFLICT OF LAW DOCTRINES. As a condition of participating, the Entrant agrees that if any disputes cannot be resolved between the Entrant and the Sponsor, such disputes shall be resolved exclusively before a court located in South Carolina having jurisdiction, without resorting to any form of class action. In no event shall a participant be permitted to obtain punitive, incidental, or consequential damages, including attorney’s fees, other than the participant’s actual out-of-pocket costs associated with entering this Contest.
19. Privacy Policy
Information submitted with an entry is subject to the Privacy Policy stated on The Writer’s Sanctuary website. Please visit www.the-writers-sanctuary.com to review the current Privacy Policy.
20. Winners List
To obtain a copy of the Winners’ names or these Official Rules, send a stamped, self-addressed envelope to: The Writer’s Sanctuary, PO Box 591, Arroyo Grande, CA 93421. Requests must be postmarked no later than August 31, 2026.
21. Social Media Disclaimer
This Contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Facebook, Instagram, Meta, X, TikTok, Squarespace, or any other social media platform.
22. Alternate Method of Entry (AMOE)
No purchase is necessary to enter. To enter without paying the entry fee, hand-print your full name, mailing address, email address, and the title and genre of your pitch on a 3x5 index card, and include your pitch (150 words or fewer, no formatting required) on a separate sheet of paper. Mail both to: The Writer's Sanctuary, PO Box 591, Arroyo Grande, CA 93421. Mail-in entries must be postmarked no later than April 1, 2026 and received no later than April 8, 2026. Limit one mail-in entry per person. All other Contest rules apply. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, or misdirected mail.
23. By entering this Contest, You, the Entrant, have affirmatively reviewed, accepted, and agreed to all of the Official Rules.