Saturday, April 25, 2026, 8:00 A.M. – 1:00 P.M. PT
23 Years of Pitch-O-Rama Success!
Are you developing a concept for a new book? Do you have a manuscript in progress? Have you always wanted to publish that book you’ve been working on for years? If this sounds like you, we would love to invite you to Pitch-O-Rama 2026! Everyone is welcome to participate!
We are happy to announce we will be hosting the next Pitch-O-Rama as a virtual event on April 25th, 2026, where writers will be given the opportunity to pitch their works to agents and editors for publication.
New to Pitch-O-Rama? Pitch-O-Rama is an annual event where we bring in a set of publishing professionals to share their knowledge of the publishing industry. During the event, you will be able to practice your pitch with coaches and fellow writers, and then share that pitch with an expert who will provide advice on taking your writing project to the next level. A chance like this is an invaluable learning experience that could put you on the path to publication. We hope to see you there!
Testimonials from Past Participants
“Pitch-O-Rama was not only helpful, but fun, with lots of laughter, networking, and relevant information. As a newbie, I felt at home and am pitching the WNBA to my friends and colleagues. Go women writers! WNBA, you rock!” – Susan Allison
“I participated in the WNBA-SF Pitch-o-Rama in 2021. At the time, I’d almost completed my memoir, From Junkie to Judge: One Woman’s Triumph Over Trauma and Addiction. I worked hard on my pitch and three of the agents asked me to submit to them. Several months later, with the manuscript polished and ready to go, I did so. Even though other agents were interested, I signed with Anne Marie O’Farrell, whom I had met via the WNBA event. Working with both Anne Marie and Caroline Fanelli at her agency, I added an appendix to the manuscript, and they started submitting. Less than three months later, I signed with HCI (Health Communications Inc.), which specializes in recovery and self-help books.” – Mary Beth O’Connor
“I will always be incredibly grateful to WNBA for the Pitch-O-Rama. Several years ago, I was struggling to get an agent. I had a toddler at home, and I was sure I had missed the boat. Here in the Bay Area, there are many talented writers, but very little access to literary agents. There were big pitch conferences in New York and other parts of the US. But at the time, I couldn’t travel because I had such limited time and money as a new mom. I was pining away on my computer, querying agents and drowning in the isolation. I found out about the Pitch-O-Rama, and immediately registered.” – Aya De Leon
Special Pricing
Registration is $95 for WNBA-SF members and $145 for non-members! If you’d like to take advantage of member pricing, visit our website to learn more about the benefits of WNBA-SF membership and join the chapter’s community!
To register, please visit the event page and fill out the form at the bottom of the page!
Remember to follow WNBA-SF on Instagram @wnba_sanfrancisco to stay connected and current on our events, interviews, and other activities!
Post Pitch-O-Rama Party
Thursday, May 7 at 12 pm PDT
A FREE Virtual Event
Unable to attend? No worries. Register anyway and receive the replay!
Congratulations on participating in this year’s Pitch-O-Rama! You were awesome. Now, it’s time to celebrate! Join the Women’s National Book Association – San Francisco Chapter‘s Annual Post Pitch-O-Rama Party. Whoo hoo!
Pitching your book is a meaningful step forward … but it’s just one step! This mixer, hosted by chapter president Brenda Knight and networking ambassador Debra Eckerling, is designed to help you build on the momentum you’ve created and move forward with intention.
There will be a chance to celebrate your wins, reflect on what you learned, and ask for any support you need as you commit to next steps. We are a community, and that’s what being party of a community is all about.
About the Speakers
Brenda Knight, author of Women of the Beat Generation, began her publishing career at HarperCollins working with luminaries including Paolo Coehlo, Marianne Williamson, Mark Nepo, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Knight was awarded IndieFab’s Publisher of the Year at the American Library Association in 2014. She is the author of Random Acts of Kindness, Be a Good in the World, and Women of the Beat Generation which won the American Book Award. She is President of WNBA-SF Chapter.
Debra Eckerling is The Book Proposal Expert, a book proposal specialist who helps authors clarify their message, develop their content, and craft proposals that get noticed. She is the author of Your Goal Guide and 52 Secrets for Goal-Setting and Goal-Getting, host of GoalChat and the Book Proposal Podcast, and the creator of The DEB Method for goal-setting simplified. Debra has spent years helping writers, entrepreneurs, and experts turn their ideas into compelling book plans that get noticed by agents and publishers. Learn more at TheBookProposalExpert.com
Perfect your book pitch with expert guidance!
Your Pitch. Perfected.
In this interactive Pitch Clinic, publisher Brenda Knight (Books that Save Lives) and book proposal strategist Debra Eckerling (TheBookProposalExpert.com) team up to help authors refine and strengthen their pitches in real time. Whether you’re preparing for a conference or Pitch-O-Rama; a meeting with an agent or publisher; or an email submission, this session will give you the tools and confidence to make your pitch stand out.
Brenda Knight, Publisher, Books That Save Lives, and President of WNBA-SF Chapter, is a longtime publisher and industry veteran, who draws on decades of experience acquiring and publishing bestselling and award-winning titles. She offers an insider-perspective on what agents and publishers are really looking for — and what makes a pitch irresistible.
Debra Eckerling, TheBookProposalExpert.com, brings her talent for helping writers clarify their ideas, define their audience, and communicate their book’s value with confidence. The author of Your Goal Guide and 52 Secrets for Goal-Setting and Goal-Getting, Debra helps writers, entrepreneurs, and consultants turn their compelling book concepts into strong, strategic proposals that sell.
Together, Brenda and Debra provide practical feedback, actionable advice, and professional insights designed to help you pitch your book like a pro.
To learn more about Pitch Clinic, please visit the event page!
A well-established agent, who began her career as an editor at major publishing houses, Rita Rosenkranz represents almost exclusively adult non-fiction titles. Her wide-ranging list includes health, history, parenting, music, how-to, popular science, business, biography, sports, popular reference, cooking, writing, humor, memoir, spirituality, illustrated books and general interest titles. She represents first-time as well as seasoned authors, and looks for projects that present familiar subjects freshly or lesser-known subjects presented commercially. Rita works with major publishing houses, as well as regional publishers that handle niche markets. She is a member of the Association of American Literary Agents (AALA), The Authors Guild, and Women’s Media Group.
Celebrating 48 years working in publishing, John Willig often says to friends that his career actually began as a Newsday paperboy growing up on Long Island, New York. After graduating from Brown University, his first job was as a sales representative in academic publishing. He soon began work as a marketing manager and then editor for HarperCollins where he published in 1984 one of the first books on AI Artificial Intelligence: Tools, Techniques and Applications by Tim O’Shea and Marc Eisenstadt. As his interests moved to trade publishing, he became an executive editor at Prentice Hall for business books. While at P-Hall, John enjoyed working with such authors as Henry Mintzberg, Philip Kotler and Jim Collins. He acquired and edited Jim’s first book Beyond Entrepreneurship which now has a new edition B.E. 2.0. In 1991 he decided to become a literary agent to work more closely with writers. Throughout his career as an editor and agent, John has successfully negotiated over 850 publishing agreements and worked with many award-winning authors. John participates at many industry events including the 
Katharine Sands has worked with a varied list of authors who publish a diverse array of books including fiction, memoir and non-fiction. Among the books she represents are: The Apothecary’s Curse, nominated for the Bram Stoker Award in the First Novel category by Barbara Barnett and its sequel, Alchemy of Glass; Girl Walks Out of a Bar, a memoir by Lisa Smith that was featured by People Magazine as Notable Nonfiction and I’m Speaking: Every Woman’s Guide to Finding Your Voice and Using It Fearlessly by Jessica Doyle-Mekkes. Katharine likes books that have a clear benefit for readers’ lives in categories of food, travel, lifestyle, home arts, beauty, wisdom, relationships, parenting, and fresh looks, which might be at issues, life challenges or popular culture. When reading fiction, she wants to be compelled and propelled by urgent storytelling and hooked by characters. For memoir, femoir, and himoir, she likes to be transported to a world rarely or newly observed. She is the agent provocateur of Making the Perfect Pitch: How to Catch a Literary Agent’s Eye, a collection of pitching wisdom from leading literary agents.
Paul S. Levine “wears two hats:” he is a lawyer (www.paulslevine.com) and a literary agent (www.paulslevinelit.com). Mr. Levine has practiced entertainment law for more than 40 years and established his first solo practice in 1992. Seeing an underserved niche on the West Coast, he decided early on to focus on serving book authors. This naturally evolved into his work as a literary agent. Seeking to expand the range of services he could offer his clients to include the representation of books, Levine opened The Paul S. Levine Literary Agency in 1996, which he has recently expanded. Whether he is considering fiction or non-fiction, Levine will not take on a project unless he feels certain he can sell it. With a preference for politically and socially important works, he represents more than 200 book authors, the vast majority of whom are new, unpublished, or self-published writers. For Levine, the most rewarding moment is holding his client’s published book in his hands at a well-attended book signing and seeing the smile on his client’s face. Enjoying public speaking and teaching, Levine presents extensively at writers’ conferences throughout the country and at entertainment law-related classes and seminars.
Georgia Hughes is the editorial director at 
Daniel Roth is the former Vice President of New Business Development at HarperCollins and Editorial Director at Simon & Schuster. Helping writers find their story!
Arnie Kotler cofounded Parallax Press in Berkeley in 1985 and helped craft the lectures and writings of Thich Nhat Hanh and other spiritual peace activists into landmark books. Jodie Evans, cofounder of CODEPINK: Women for Peace, told Publishers Weekly, “Arnie has an 
Sophia Lawson is Editor at Jim Dandy Publishing, a house dedicated to diversity. Specializing in fiction, children’s books, memoir, personal growth, gift books, and graphic novels, she leads the Editorial Board. Passionate about literary excellence, Sophia champions compelling stories and discovers fresh voices to deliver impactful books to readers worldwide.
Lisa Diane Kastner is the Founder of Running Wild, LLC, a content creation, distribution, and licensing company. Featured in FORBES and several other publications, she’s been named to multiple “Best of”s. A writer and editor for more than twenty years, she has identified talent like the multimillion selling, global phenomenon Jamie Ford’s “Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet”, Reuben “Tihi” Hayslett’s “Dark Corners” which was named one of the best of the year by Kirkus Reviews, and Shay Galloway’s completely groundbreaking “The Valley of Sage and Juniper”, among many others. She has been mentored by such legends as the National Book Award winner and Pulitzer Prizewinner Percival Everett; multiaward winning and NYTimes bestseller Jonathan Maberry; and multi-award winning and NYTimes bestseller Jackie Mitchard. Lisa began Running Wild with the belief that we can change the world through story. A noted author in her own right, Lisa was a Drexel Scholar, obtained her BS from Drexel University, her MBA from Pennsylvania State University, and her MFA from Fairfield University. 
Michael 
Mary E. Knippel is an intuitive writing mentor, international speaker, best-selling author, and journalist for over 35 years. She helps women bring their transformational stories to life in the international bestselling Amazon collaboration book series “Written In Her Own Words-Wise Woman Wisdom”. Mary guides her clients through every aspect of the writing journey, from identifying their story to crafting and editing it into their chapter to bringing their stories to the world. She believes everyone has a unique story to tell and encourages daily journaling. Her memoir, “The Secret Artist-Give Yourself Permission to Let Your Creativity Shine,” came about as she shared how she coped with her breast cancer experiences. You can learn more about how to become an author in the next collaboration book, attend one of her workshops, join her at the next Elite Women’s Writing Retreat, or sign up to receive writing tips on her website: 
Lindsey Smith is a literary agent at Speilburg Literary Agency, where she acquires books across a broad range of genres, including true crime, pop culture, humor, gift books, music-related titles, unique histories, cookbooks, activism, cultural and social issues, and stories that are a bit weird and wonderful. She is especially passionate about projects featuring BIPOC voices and other underrepresented stories and perspectives in media, including exciting book, film, and TV adaptations.A bestselling author of eight books, including the award-winning Eat Your Feelings, Lindsey brings deep industry experience to her work. She is the founder of One Idea Press and owner of a bookstore in her hometown, as well as co-founder of Get It Done, a company specializing in writing, communication, marketing, and publishing services.Having worked as an author, publisher, PR strategist, and publicist, Lindsey knows the book industry inside and out. She has been featured in O: The Oprah Magazine, Cosmopolitan, the Today Show, TEDx Pittsburgh, and Talks at Google. She resides in Lancaster, PA, with her punk rock husband and their beloved dog, Winnie Cooper.
Paula Allen founded and runs Screenland Literary Associates, a boutique agency that specializes in matching authors to publishers and screenplay writers to film and television companies. She started her career at Barnes & Noble as a bookstore clerk, working her way up into the corporate buying office, where she was first a non-book buyer, and then became the merchandise manager for the non-book and children’s buying teams. After 11-years at B&N, she jumped to Warner Bros. as a licensed book specialist and led their publishing team for both children’s and adult books. She followed Warner Bros. with Nickelodeon as their global licensed publishing SVP. In 2015 Paula relaunched Screenland LA, representing talented book and script writers. Paula also consults with companies who need help with their publishing strategies.
Amy Weingartner has a varied career in publishing, comics, and filmed entertainment as a writer, editor, agent, professor, producer and publishing/entertainment executive. She began her career at D.C. Comics/Warner Bros. on Tim Burton’s Batman Returns and then became a book editor and comics writer for D.C. Comics in New York. She moved to Marvel Entertainment, where she edited Spider-Man Magazine, working with legendary creator Stan Lee. For several years, Amy worked with Disney Publishing in New York and Los Angeles as an editorial director, book editor and licensing manager. Amy is an agent with Screenland Literary Agency and teaches screenwriting at The Los Angeles Film School and Creative Writing at AMDA College of Performing Arts. She is also the author/editor of over a dozen published books, including: Where’s Jack? A Disney’s Nightmare Before Christmas Look and Find book; Disney’s Masterworks of Animation (book series writer/editor); Frozen: Anna & Elsa’s Winter’s End Festival; and several Disney Infinity chapter books. Her nonfiction essays and original fiction have appeared in publications such as The New York Times and The Massachusetts Review.
Logan Brown is a New York based, assistant agent at Screenland Literary Associates. A graduate of the Los Angeles Film School, she’s spent the time since her graduation work closely with writers across film, television, and publishing, supporting development, managing submissions, and client strategy. Alongside her work at Screenland, Logan has written for publications including Office, Acclaim, and Brick, and previously works as a lyricist for RCA Records artists. Her background across editorial, music, and film informs a broad, cross-disciplinary perspective on storytelling and talent development.
Lisa Hagan has enjoyed an extensive career as a literary agent working with clients from all over 
Brenda Knight, author of Women of the Beat Generation, began her publishing career at HarperCollins working with luminaries including Paolo Coehlo, Marianne Williamson, Mark Nepo, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Knight was awarded IndieFab’s Publisher of the Year at the American Library Association in 2014. She is the author of Random Acts of Kindness, Be a Good in the World, and Women of the Beat Generation which won the American Book Award. She is President of WNBA-SF Chapter.
Kate Farrell, author, storyteller, and educator founded the Word Weaving Storytelling Project and published numerous educational materials on storytelling. She has contributed to and edited award-winning anthologies of personal narrative. Her award-winning new book is a how-to guide on the art of storytelling for adults, Story Power: Secrets to Creating, Crafting, and Telling Memorable Stories. She offers workshops on storytelling and the heroine’s journey for libraries and writing groups 
Debra Eckerling is The Book Proposal Expert, a book proposal specialist who helps authors clarify their message, develop their content, and craft proposals that get noticed. She is the author of Your Goal Guide and 52 Secrets for Goal-Setting and Goal-Getting, host of GoalChat and the Book Proposal Podcast, and the creator of The DEB Method for goal-setting simplified. Debra has spent years helping writers, entrepreneurs, and experts turn their ideas into compelling book plans that get noticed by agents and publishers. Learn more at 
Judy M. Baker is the creator of the Buzzworthy Book Experience. She has coached hundreds of authors, guiding them from “where do I start” to “how do I make money from my books?” since 2011. “Marketing is a conversation and everyone is in sales” are lessons she learned when working with wine pioneer Robert Mondavi. Presentations to the Bay Area Independent Publishers Association, Redwood Writers, Napa Valley Writers, Women’s National Book Association, and the Bay Area Consultants Networks have earned praise. Judy wrote and self-published her first book at 16. Her stories and poetry appear in anthologies from CWC Press, Redwood Writers Press, and Napa Valley Writers. Judy is Immediate Past President of Redwood Writers, the largest chapter of the California Writers Clubs. She also served as president of the Bay Area Independent Publishers Association.
Debra Eckerling is a goal strategist, author, and book proposal expert who helps writers transform their ideas into sellable book proposals. The founder of The 
Jim Lauria is an international business executive, author, and water industry thought leader who has been an active LinkedIn member since 2004, building a community of over 12,000 followers and 4,500 subscribers to his LinkedIn newsletter To Know Water Is to Love Water. A chemical engineer by training, Jim has leveraged LinkedIn to establish himself as a leading voice in the water space publishing feature and cover articles for top industry publications, co-hosting the podcast Water We Talking About?, reviewing 75+ water books, and posting a daily water quote for over 500 consecutive days. He is also the author of How to Get Your Money Back From Big Companies and has used LinkedIn strategically to attract consulting clients, speaking engagements, and collaborations across the global water sector. Jim lives in Napa, California, and looks forward to sharing the practical LinkedIn strategies that have fueled his publishing and professional journey. Connect with him at 
Many of us know that book marketing can be expensive and overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be.