The International Dublin Writers’ Festival
No pressure to attend live... but you’ll be joining a wider Festival community of writers from around the world with other opportunities to participate and showcase your work.
From January to July 2026, prizes will be given out every month for pitching and sharing. Along the way you'll learn 7 different ways to pitch your book, each designed to reveal a deeper layer of transformation, story, or insight.
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Each month you can enter again... new month, new pitch, new growth.
Enter Your Pitch:
A sentence under 25 words, or
A link to a short video under one minute on YouTube or a similar site.
You’ll receive guidance, examples, and new pitch ideas throughout the challenge.
To keep the challenge balanced, months alternate:
Each month we are giving away a $250 Amazon or Facebook Ads campaign for a book!
The month to month prize breakdown:
January — Best Pitch Winner
February — Top Sharer Winner
March — Best Pitch Winner
April — Top Sharer Winner
May — Best Pitch Winner
June — Top Sharer Winner
July — Best Pitch Winner
How to win:
These months, our judges choose the most compelling pitch.
Prize: A $250 Amazon or Facebook Ads campaign for your book!
Top Sharer Winner Prize
How to win:
Invite other authors to this challenge with the unique link you will receive after signing up and earn points each time.
The author with the most points that month wins.
This is a win, win, win for everyone you share with.
There is no purchase required from anyone you share with.
Prize: Another $250 Amazon or Facebook Ads campaign.
Because the books that succeed are the books people are compelled to buy. Books with a great pitch.
If you are unsure about where to start or how to write a pitch, do not worry.
Every month we will send guidance, tips, and/or tricks on the best ways to pitch a book.
When you finish a pitch:
Learning to express the transformation your book offers is one of the most valuable skills an author can develop... and this challenge will help you master it.
Mark Gottlieb, one of the leading literary agents in the United States, with almost 360 book sales and topping the Publisher Weekly charts every year for literary agents, will be judging the final winning pitches and picking an overall winner before the festival in August. The overall winner will see us send Mark the synopsis and opening chapter for Mark’s feedback.
And for all winners, your book or books will be featured at the International Dublin Writers Festival, and you don’t even have to come to Dublin to win this award and to get noticed.
All winners will be displayed at the festival.
One overall winner will be recommended to Mark. And he has agreed to give it a thorough review.
Who is Mark Gottlieb?:
Mark Owen Gottlieb is an executive vice president and highly ranked literary agent in overall deals and other individual categories. He is actively building his client list of authors using that same initiative and insight for identifying talented writers. Mark Gottlieb is excited to work directly with authors, helping to manage and grow their careers with all of the unique resources available at book publishing’s leading literary agency, Trident Media Group.
Mark Gottlieb continues to represent numerous New York Times bestselling and prominent award-winning authors through his work at Trident Media Group. He has optioned and sold books to film and TV production companies. Following his time at Penguin Books, he previously ran the agency’s audiobook department and worked in international rights.
You’ll receive your entry link, your unique sharing link, and your first pitch prompt.
And the more authors you invite, the more points you earn... and the more chances you will have to win.
Once you submit, we’ll contact you with the link to your Challenge Entry Form, where you can submit your pitch.
The Future of Story Pitch Challenge is part of this year’s journey toward the 2026 International Dublin Writers’ Festival, where our theme explores how stories evolve and the future of story.
But more than anything, this challenge is about building your readership.
It’s about writers inspiring writers.
It’s about discovering new ways to express your voice.
It’s about learning from each other, celebrating each other, and growing together.
Every strong writing community begins with shared creativity and shared generosity.
By pitching your book, listening to others, and inviting more authors into the challenge, you’re helping build a global circle of support that lifts everyone involved.
You don’t have to attend the Festival to take part.
But by joining this challenge, you become part of the wider movement, a community of writers exploring what storytelling can become, and how stories can continue to change lives.
