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2021 Pitch Wars Wishlist
A little bit about me—Samantha Rajaram: I was a Pitch Wars mentee under Carrie Callaghan in 2018 (author of A LIGHT OF HER OWN and SALT THE SNOW), and I’ve had the honor of mentoring two brilliant (agented) authors so far: Leila Mottley in 2019 (NIGHTCRAWLING), and Milo Todd in 2020. I’m thrilled to be a mentor again this year. As I continue on my own journey as a writer, I appreciate even more what Pitch Wars gave me: I know how to turn around work on a tight deadline, how to approach critical feedback, and how to provide and ask for support. I can’t say enough about how wonderful…
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Pitch Wars Team Interviews with Leila Mottley and her mentor, Samantha Rajaram
(This is an archived copy of an interview originally published here at PitchWars.org) Samantha, why did you choose Leila? Leila’s manuscript and her resilient, courageous protagonist captured me from the first sentence. She deftly created a main character whose intelligence and empathy felt both realistic and compelling, and the setting in Oakland, CA clinched it for me. Her poetic descriptions of the city captured its uniqueness and energy. Leila, why did you choose to submit to Samantha? Samantha’s research background in sex trafficking and law adds a layer of understanding of the novel’s premise and complexities that allows her to support me in handling it as both an individual story…
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Pitch Wars Mentor Profile
I am a historical fiction writer focusing on stories about colonialism and people ignored by history books. I was extremely fortunate to be a Pitch Wars mentee last year (2018), mentored by Carrie Callaghan. When I’m not writing (often at 5 in the morning), I am a college English professor and solo mom raising three tween/teen kids in the California Bay Area. I’m represented by Carrie Pestritto at LDLA and my Pitch Wars manuscript THE COMPANY DAUGHTERS is currently on submission. I am beyond thrilled to be a mentor for Pitch Wars. The Pitch Wars family truly changed my life, and I am so excited to help other aspiring writers…
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Pitch Wars Success Story with Samantha Rajaram and her mentor, Carrie Callaghan
(This is an archived version of an interview originally posted here at PitchWars.org.) We’re back with another Pitch Wars Success Story! Please join us in congratulating and celebrating Samantha Rajaram and her mentor, Carrie Callaghan! Samantha signed with Carrie Pestritto at the Laura Dail Literary Agency. We’re so excited for them! Samanta, tell us about the revision process during Pitch Wars. It was intense! Carrie was so on top of it, and gave me my edit letter well ahead of the deadline, which was such an act of generosity given my hectic schedule. I woke up every day at 3 or 4AM to work on my revisions during that 10…
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A Pitch Wars Team Interview with Samantha Rajaram and her mentor, Carrie Callaghan
(This is an archived version of an interview originally published here at PitchWars.org.) Carrie, why did you choose Samantha? This year’s submissions were outstanding — there were lots of excellent concepts in both historical fiction and fantasy that caught my attention. In this talented, crowded field, Samantha’s entry stood out because it was historical with a literary feel, which I adore, and her novel dealt with an important but relatively unknown subject — the women who traveled from 17th century Holland to the Dutch colonies to become wives to the men already there. The Dutch East Indies Company sponsored these women in a cross between a 17th century marriage scholarship…