MASTERING THE TRADE BOOK

INSTITUTIONAL FUNDS ACCEPTED

Vassar Institute for the Liberal Arts

Poughkeepsie, New York

June 9-12, 2025

Join us this summer for an exclusive, three-day national retreat designed for senior academics who are SERIOUS about writing that big trade book – and don’t have time to waste.

This unique event – the first of its kind – will bring together scholars from across the country for a focused, immersive experience designed to cultivate mastery of all aspects of trade publishing and turbo-charge the transition to writing for popular audiences.

Learn how to:

  • Find an agent

  • Write a killer non-fiction book proposal for a commercial publisher

  • Craft elegant, unforgettable prose that blasts off the page – and straight into the hearts of agents, publishers and (ultimately) readers

  • Stop wasting time on dead-end scholarly questions and esoteric “stakes” that no one outside academia cares about

  • Kill jargon where it starts – inside your head, your heart and your inner insecure grad student

  • Build your social media platform and become THE public voice in your field

  • Successfully pitch and write op-eds for major national and local media

Hear from:

  • Industry experts

  • Agents

  • Editors at “Big 5” New York trade publishers

  • Academics who have successfully made the transition to trade

  • One of New York’s top book publicists

Engage in:

  • Specially tailored writing exercises, designed to blast away the cobwebs of academic writing and help you find your inner storyteller

  • Marketing exercises that will help you see your book as a commercial product and not just an intellectual product

  • “Shark Tank” pitch slam night – 60 seconds to pitch your book idea to a panel of top New York literary agents

PLUS: As a special bonus, all participants will be given one year of complimentary membership in the Scholars to Storytellers group coaching program (a $1200 value) – a cohort-building exercise designed to create accountability, community and actionable follow-through on what we learn together during the retreat.

Please note: This retreat is designed to be of value mostly to tenured scholars in the humanities and social sciences who are serious about writing a “trade book” or otherwise engaging with the general public. Non-tenured academics, scholars of the hard sciences or professional fields (law, business, education, public health, etc.), independent scholars, contingent faculty, graduate students, retired academics and others are welcome to participate. However, such applicants are advised to consider seriously how a trade book might fit into their career goals and whether participation in the retreat is a good use of their funds. If you are unsure, you are strongly advised to contact us before registering so we can constructively advise you on the program's suitability for your goals.