Publishing 101: The Covering Letter

13th May 2026 12:30pm to 1:00pm, Online

'Publishing 101' is a series of W&A events in which we home in on a key element of the submission and/or publication process.

Led by members of the Writers & Artists team, in these 30-minute lightning sessions we'll give you everything you need to know: dos and don'ts, working examples, practical exercises, and a chance to ask questions. 

The covering letter is the first thing an agent will see from you. It contains the pitch that will get them excited about reading your opening chapters, the comparison titles that'll show them where your book fits in the market and the place to tell an agent why you're choosing to approach them. We will explore how to get your covering letter right, to show you've done your research into who you're approaching and to give them all the information that they need. We'll share examples of successful and unsuccessful covering letters help you diagnose the problems in your own letter and make sure your approach stands out for all the right reasons.

The event will take place online via Teams and lasts 30 minutes. It will also be recorded so if you are unable to attend live, you'll be able to catch-up and access the recording for up to two weeks after the event has taken place.

Speaker profiles
Clare Povey

Clare Povey joined the Writers’ & Artists’ Yearbook team in 2016 at Bloomsbury Publishing. She is the Content & Partnerships Manager at writersandartists.co.uk and established the Writers' & Artists' Working-Class Writers' Prize, providing writers with author mentoring and publishing opportunities and support. Clare is also the author of middle grade books The Unexpected Tale of Bastien Bonlivre, a Waterstones Children’s Book of the Month, The Bad Brothers, The Wanderdays: Journey to Fantome Island and The Midnight Sweet Factory.

Booking & payment

The workshop fee of £10 (incl. VAT) is payable in full online. Please note that payment instalment plans are available for all W&A events, writing courses and editing services. Contact W&A Admin on [email protected] so that we can find a payment schedule that works for you.

This is a live online event which will be presented using video conferencing software. Joining instructions and full guidance will be provided by the W&A Team a week before the event start-date. Please note, all event timings are in UK time.

To view our event refund and cancellation policy, please click here.

Accessible to All

  • It’s of real importance to Writers & Artists that our events and courses remain accessible to all.
  • Writers & Artists has made one bursary place available for this event as part of our accessibility scheme. Please visit our bursaries page to find out how to apply for a bursary to the event.
  • Payment instalment plans are available for all W&A events, writing courses and editing services. Contact W&A Admin on [email protected] so that we can find a payment schedule that works for you.
  • At the speaker's discretion, event materials will be made available to attendees after the masterclass.
  • A link to a recording of the masterclass will be circulated after the event. This will be made available to event attendees only, for two weeks.
  • If you'd like to receive a transcript of the session, please do let us know and we can circulate following the session.
  • This event will include written text and visuals. Please contact us in advance so that we can make arrangements to be sure all documents appear in a format that works for you.
  • If you’d like to attend but have any questions or concerns regarding accessibility, then please email [email protected]

Location

Online

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