Award-winning author of Your Goal Guide and WNBA-SF’s very own networking ambassador Debra Eckerling shares tips on formatting your book proposal to maximize success with agents and publishers!
The main thing to remember about a book proposal is you want to give every person who reads it—agent, publisher, editorial board—a reason to say “Yes” and limit the reasons they might find to say “No.” They are looking for a good, salable book, and yours may be what they are seeking.
However, when a proposal has too many errors—aka distractions—the reader may never even consider the content. That is why formatting is so important. You want to present your proposal as professionally as possible, so you make it easy for the decision-maker to move forward.
Your 1st “Do”: Remember the basics…
Read the full article on Writer’s Digest to learn these key “Dos” & “Don’ts” on formatting your book proposal and visit her new Substack for more tips!
Kiri Callaghan
Ana Visneski
Saturday, September 6, 2025
2:00 PM
Koret Auditorium, San Francisco Main Library (Civic Center)
The Fred Cody Award for Lifetime Achievement
California Translation Awards in Poetry and Prose
Awards in Fiction, Poetry, Nonfiction, Children’s Literature & more
Nominees announced in August at 
Dr. Judith Briles is the award-winning and best-selling author of 48 books earning over 60 book awards and recently awarded the Author Laureate honor. To date, her books have been translated into 17 countries with over 1,000,000 copies sold! Judith’s books, and work, have been featured in over 1,500 radio and TV shows. She is the host of the AuthorU-Your Guide to Book Publishing podcast that has received over 21 million downloads, posts less than three minute “how to publish and market” videos daily on her YouTube channel Dr. Judith Briles-The Book Shepherd and is the founder of the Colorado’s Authors’ Hall of Fame. Today, she will explore the wide, wide world of book marketing that leads to author success … that is, if you do it.
Get ready to be blown away by the talents of Chef Katie Chin on Thursday, September 4th at 
Join the San Jose Woman’s Club and Women’s National Book Association for our CHILL OUT & READ Ice Cream Social and Summer Book Fair. You’ll be able to mix and mingle with members, local authors and neighbors to find out about our many activities at the club.
Kate Farrell, storyteller, author, librarian, founded the California Word Weaving Project: Learning through Storytelling; published numerous educational materials on storytelling, and contributed to and edited award-winning anthologies of personal narrative. Farrell’s award-winning recent book is a how-to guide on the art of storytelling, 
Kat Georges is a poet, playwright, editor, publisher, and graphic designer. She is co-director and an acquisitions editor for Three Rooms Press, an independent publisher inspired by diversity, dada, punk, and passion. Her most recent book is the poetry collection Awe and Other Words Like Wow, and she is co-editor of MAINTENANT, the annual journal of Contemporary Dada Writing and Art. She lives in New York City. Kat is currently looking for LGBTQ+ fiction and young adult fiction that deal directly with current anti-queer attitudes, mysteries that center on bold and daring diverse main characters, and riveting women of history who need to have more attention given to them. Kat welcomes voices that have something different to say, that inspire readers, and that shows the power of innovative, compelling writing. To see the latest Three Rooms Press releases, visit 
Bobbie Carlton is the founder of three companies, Carlton PR & Marketing, Innovation Nights, and Innovation Women, an online “visibility bureau,” dedicated to providing women and other underrepresented voices with a chance to be seen as thought leaders and experts. 
My journey to the
Nita Sweeney is a longtime meditator and published author of four books: You Should Be Writing, Depression Hates a Moving Target, Make Every Move A Meditation, and A Daily Dose of Now. Sweeney’s books are infused with her personal experiences of life, depression, running, writing, and mindfulness. 
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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.
Elise Marie Collins has consulted with small businesses, authors, and alumni associations on social media marketing and believes that a social media plan should be intuitive, fun, and seamless. Helping students and clients form healthy lifestyle patterns is Elise Collins’ passion and life purpose. She has taught yoga for the past 20 years and is the author of several books on healthy living, including her latest, Super Ager: You Can Look Younger, Have More Energy, a Better Memory, and Live a Long and Healthy Life. Elise enjoys sharing yoga wisdom and current scientific research and is President of WNBA National.
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 award-winning author of Your Goal Guide: A Roadmap for Setting, Planning, and Achieving Your Goals and creator of the D*E*B METHOD®, for Goal-Setting Simplified. A goals strategist, corporate consultant, and workshop leader, Debra offers personal and professional planning content development, event strategy, and team-building for executives, entrepreneurs, consultants, and companies. Debra has spoken on stages for TEDx, Innovation Women, SCORE LA, and more. She is the founder of the 
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.
Naleighna Kai is the USA TODAY, Essence®, and national bestselling and award-winning author of several controversial novels. She is a literary agent with The Seymour Agency and also a contributor to a New York Times bestseller, one of AALBC’s 100 Top Authors, a member of the Chicago Vocational School Hall of Fame (CVS), Mercedes Benz Mentor Award Nominee, and the E. Lynn Harris Author of Distinction.
Andy Ross opened his literary agency in January 2008. Before that, he was the owner for 30 years of the legendary Cody’s Books in Berkeley. The agency represents books in a wide range of subjects including narrative non-fiction, science, journalism, history, religion, children’s books, young adult, middle grade, literary and commercial fiction, and cooking. However, he is eager to represent projects in most genres as long as the subject or its treatment is smart, original, and will appeal to a wide readership. In non-fiction, he looks for writing with a strong voice and robust narrative arc by authors with the authority to write about their subject. For literary, commercial, and children’s fiction, he has only one requirement– simple, but ineffable–that the writing reveals the terrain of that vast and unexplored country, the human heart. 
Leland Cheuk is a MacDowell and Hawthornden Castle Fellow and award-winning author of three books of fiction, most recently the novel NO GOOD VERY BAD ASIAN (2019). Cheuk’s work has been covered in Buzzfeed, The Paris Review, VICE, San Francisco Chronicle, and has appeared or is forthcoming in publications such as NPR, The Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, Salon, among other outlets.
Lindsey Smith (Speilburg Literary Agency) represents non-fiction projects. In addition to being a literary agent, she owns a bookstore in her hometown, runs her own publishing press, and is the author of several books and gift products. Having worked in every facet of the publishing industry—from author to publisher, to PR strategist to publicist, she knows the book industry inside and out.
Kat Georges is a poet, playwright, editor, publisher, and graphic designer. She is co-director and an acquisitions editor for Three Rooms Press, an independent publisher inspired by diversity, dada, punk, and passion. Her most recent book is the poetry collection Awe and Other Words Like Wow, and she is co-editor of MAINTENANT, the annual journal of Contemporary Dada Writing and Art. She lives in New York City. Kat is currently looking for LGBTQ+ fiction and young adult fiction that deal directly with current anti-queer attitudes, mysteries that center on bold and daring diverse main characters, and riveting women of history who need to have more attention given to them. Kat welcomes voices that have something different to say, that inspire readers, and that shows the power of innovative, compelling writing. To see the latest Three Rooms Press releases, visit 
Natalie Obando is a graduate from California State University, Long Beach with a BA in journalism emphasizing public relations and a minor concentration in creative writing. For nearly two decades, she’s worked in the world of books as a book publicist. Natalie is the founder of Do Good Public Relations Group and the grassroots organization, Women of Color Writers Podcast and Programming. She is the current national president of the 105-year-old non-profit, the Women’s National Book Association (WNBA), overseeing all eleven chapters across the nation. As the first Latina president of the national organization, her goal has been promoting diversity in publishing via strategic grassroots efforts. Her dedication to promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the book world led her to found and chair Authentic Voices—a four-month long program that immerses people from marginalized communities in a master class of writing, editing, marketing, and publishing.
Peter Carlaftes is a publisher, poet, playwright, author, and actor. The most recent of his seven published books is the poetry collection, Life in the Past Lane. He is co-director and acquisitions editor for Three Rooms Press, with a strong interest in memoirs, literary fiction, mystery, and fantasy by diverse authors.
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.
Jacklyn Saferstein-Hansen is a literary agent at boutique Los Angeles agency Renaissance Literary & Talent. She represents commercial fiction, nonfiction, and illustrated books. Her authors include Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles, thriller novelist Jennifer Moorhead, cookbook author and novelist Allyson Reedy, and many more. Her agency represents big names including Cher, Goldie Hawn, Heidi Murkoff, and Vanity Fair writer Sam Kashner, as well as several prominent literary estates. Originally from Omaha, Nebraska, she earned her BA in English, Classical Civilization and Medieval Studies and her MFA in Screenwriting, both from Boston University. She is looking to add fresh literary voices to her list in the areas of general and women’s fiction, thriller, history, Jewish issues, and pop culture.
Isabelle Bleecker is a book publishing industry veteran based in New York’s Hudson Valley. In her over 30 years in publishing, she has held positions across editorial, production, and subsidiary rights in several houses including Rizzoli, Tuttle, Basic Books, Da Capo Press, PublicAffairs, and Running Press, giving her a thorough insider’s understanding of every aspect of the trade book business. With Jennifer Thompson she established Nordlyset Literary Agency in 2018 and has placed works of fiction and nonfiction with such imprints as Random House, Algonquin/Little Brown, St. Martin’s Press, Dutton Books for Young Readers, Shambhala, and Broadleaf Books, among others.
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 
Throughout her career, Jen Newens has been an author, editor, and publisher, giving her experience in all sides of the publishing business. In her new role as agent, Jen applies her 360-view of the publishing world, seeking out original voices and developing exciting new talent in children’s literature and adult nonfiction categories.
Noelle Armstrong is an Acquisitions Editor at New World Library, a publisher dedicated to books that inspire and challenge us to improve the quality of our lives and the world. She is the host of 
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.