LOOKING FOR: ADULT FICTION Marilia Savvides founded The Plot Agency in 2024. She began her career in publishing at Peters Fraser and Dunlop, where she spent eight years, first as International Rights Agent, and later as Literary Agent, building her own list of authors. In 2019, she joined 42MP, where she worked as Literary Agent for four years, helping to launch and set up the Book Division. She is particularly interested in fiction that is beautifully written and cleverly constructed, but still accessible to a wide readership. She is often drawn to darker tales that weave together excellent characters and an impossible-to-put-down story, from immersive book club novels with a splash of suspense, crime and thrillers, accessible horror, and speculative, genre-bending or dystopian stories. She also adores smart, witty contemporary rom-com in the style of Emily Henry. In the thriller, crime and mystery space she is interested in most areas, except military thrillers and organised crime/ mafia / mob stories. Big hooks and clever set ups are a big bonus! She adores Karin Slaughter (especially her standalone novels) and Gillian Flynn. In the book club / reading group space, she’s particularly drawn to fiction in the vein of Jodi Picoult, Liane Moriarty and Celeste Ng, and absolutely fell in love with Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll, both for the incredible voice, and the exquisite use of structure and time. Complicated family dynamics, empathetic and smart approaches to controversial issues, stand out protagonists (like Elizabeth Zott in Lessons in Chemistry or Bernadette in Where D’You Go Bernadette), long buried secrets, complicity, the road to justice, and impossible decisions, are all themes she finds herself drawn to. In the horror space, she’s a sucker for amazing female-centric stories in the vein of Yellowjackets, and the kind of contemporary, accessible horror that Stephen King always nails. She wants to get lost in a world that feels within reach of ours. In the speculative and dystopian spaces, she’s interested in genius ideas that set up big questions or reflect the most broken (and sometimes hidden) parts of society. She loves Octavia Butler, Margaret Atwood, George Orwell, and also adored The Leftovers, Station Eleven, Wanderers, and The Power. The what-ifs of life and fiction fascinate her. In the grounded sci-fi space, she’d love to find a smart, immersive, and accessible story like The Martian. She doesn’t represent fantasy or romantasy. In regards to sci-fi, unless it’s very grounded and has crossover potential to a mainstream audience, it’s not for her. In the romance space, she’s particularly drawn to smart, complex and witty characters, where the chemistry is jumping off the page. She loves contemporary settings and all the tropes, though the voice and characters must come first to make the reading experience fully immersive. She wants to be cackling, and rooting for the characters with all her heart. She is very hands-on editorially, and loves working with her authors to shape their manuscripts, and brainstorm ideas. The best part of the job is discovering debut authors, and helping them find a home for their books. Marilia would like you to submit a covering letter, 1 - 2 page synopsis and the first 5,000 words of your manuscript in a single Word document. (In addition to the paid sessions, Marilia is kindly offering one free session for low income/underrepresented writers. Please email agent121@iaminprint.co.uk to apply, outlining your case for this option which is offered at the discretion of I Am In Print). By booking you understand you need to conduct an internet connection test with I Am In Print prior to the event. You also agree to email your material in one document to reach I Am In Print by the stated submission deadline and note that I Am In Print take no responsibility for the advice received during your agent meeting. The submission deadline is: Wednesday 13th August 2025
Leading SAFe®: In-House Training During this course, attendees gain the knowledge necessary to lead a Lean-Agile enterprise by using the Scaled Agile Framework® (SAFe®) and its underlying principles derived from Lean, systems thinking, Agile development, product development flow, and DevOps. Participants in the class gain insights into mastering business agility to thrive in competitive markets. They discuss how to establish team and technical agility and organize and re-organize around the flow of value. Attendees also learn and practice the skills to support and execute PI Planning events and coordinate multiple Agile Release Trains (ARTs). Class participants will explore the importance of adopting a customer-centric mindset and Design-Thinking approach to Agile Product Delivery. Learners will also understand how to implement a Lean Portfolio Management function within their enterprise. What you will Learn After attending this class, attendees should be able to: Lead the transformation to business agility with SAFe® Become a Lean-Agile leader Understand customer needs Design Thinking Enable Agile Product delivery Implement Lean Portfolio Management Thrive in the digital age with business agility Become a Lean-Agile leader Establish Team and Technical Agility Build solutions with Agile Product Delivery Explore Lean Portfolio Management Lead the change Become a Certified SAFe® Agilist
LOOKING FOR: ADULT FICTION, NON-FICTION Diana joined the prestigious DHH Literary Agency in June 2024. She started agenting with Rupert Heath Literary Agency in 2011 before moving to UTA and Marjacq in 2017. Before that she was senior commissioning editor at Transworld. Diana was chosen as one of The Bookseller’s Rising Stars of 2012, was a nominee for RNA Agent of the Year 2019, and was shortlisted for Literary Agent of the Year 2022 at the British Book Awards. Her list includes a wide range of bestselling and prize-winning authors in the UK and internationally. Diana represents adult fiction and non-fiction. For fiction, she is looking for upmarket women's commercial, with depth and heart, including reading group, historical, saga, uplit and contemporary stories that are irreverent and make her laugh; accessible literary fiction, high-concept crime fiction and thrillers. She has a thing for spy novels and would love to find a great vampire story. On the non-fiction side: memoir, smart, funny feminists, lifestyle, cookery and social justice, and open to anything with a strong, original voice. She also encourages submissions from writers who have been traditionally under-represented. Diana would like you to submit a covering letter, 1 - 2 page synopsis and the first three chapters (a maximum of 5,000 words) of your manuscript in a single word document. (In addition to the paid sessions, Diana is kindly offering one free session for low income/underrepresented writers. Please email agent121@iaminprint.co.uk to apply, outlining your case for this option which is offered at the discretion of I Am In Print). By booking you understand you need to conduct an internet connection test with I Am In Print prior to the event. You also agree to email your material in one document to reach I Am In Print by the stated submission deadline and note that I Am In Print take no responsibility for the advice received during your agent meeting. The submission deadline is: Wednesday 13th August 2025
The Art of Delegation and High-Impact Feedback: In-House Training Whether you are a project manager, an executive, or simply someone involved in leading or helping others, a critical part of your work must involve delegating and giving feedback. These two skills, however, are not as simple as they seem. How do you know what to Partcipant? What kinds of feedback should you give? Knowing this and practicing this are two different things. Ultimately, delegating and giving feedback are skills that must be done mindfully, strategically, and meaningfully. They must be done in ways that not only positively impact performance, but also inspire growth, engagement, and motivation. When done poorly, they can create significant problems. But when done well, they can generate value for everyone and benefit future endeavors. In this course, you will learn to think more deeply about the importance of delegating and discover how to give better feedback. You will have opportunities to apply best practices and methodologies that you can use in the real world, ultimately paying off for you and for others. What you Will Learn At the end of this program, you will be able to: Explain why common excuses for NOT delegating are short-sighted Identify what needs delegating by using a proven methodology Utilize best practices in real world scenarios, delegating in a way that benefits you and the individual to whom you Partcipant Summarize key lessons learned in brain science which enhance the feedback-giving process Recognize the critical connection between feedback and performance Apply a proven model to deliver feedback that inspires growth, engagement, and motivation Getting Started What is delegation? What makes delegation hard? What do I Partcipant and why? How to Partcipant effectively Feedback Exploring the feedback process Why feedback is hard to give...and receive Why giving feedback effectively is important Feedback models
AgileBA® Foundation and Practitioner: Virtual In-House Training The AgileBA® Foundation and Practitioner course takes you through a business understanding of the external and internal forces that underline the project from a business perspective, looks at modeling techniques, (As Is - To Be), and also provides an overview to project management (AgilePM) from an 'Agile' perspective. The course explains the role's relevance and involvement throughout the project.
The Electronics Equipment Repair 1 equips participants with practical “Hands-On” skills relevant to the workplace and the theory required for certification. Participants on successful completion of the course will have the skills and knowledge to: Demonstrate the operation of a wide range of electronic components and circuits and their applications in modern electronic-based equipment such as amplifiers, Hi-Fi systems, stereos, and control systems Construct, test and fault-find the following popular basic circuits: Power supplies, amplifiers, timers, etc. Become competent in the correct use of electronic test and measurement equipment such as Analogue and Digital Multimeter and Oscilloscopes.
SAFe® Agile Software Engineering: In-House Training The introduction of Lean-Agile and DevOps principles and practices into software engineering has sparked new skills and approaches that help organizations deliver higher-quality, software-centric solutions faster and more predictably. This workshop-oriented course explores foundational principles and practices and how continuous flow of value delivery and built-in quality are enabled by XP technical practices, Behavioral-Driven Development (BDD), and Test-Driven Development (TDD). Attendees will learn proven practices to detail, model, design, implement, verify, and validate stories in the SAFe® Continuous Delivery Pipeline, as well as the practices that build quality into code and designs. Attendees will also explore how software engineering fits into the larger solution context and understand their role in collaborating on intentional architecture and DevOps. What you will Learn To perform the role of a SAFe® Agile Software Engineer, you should be able to: Define Agile Software Engineering and the underlying values, principles, and practices Apply the Test-First principle to create alignment between tests and requirements Create shared understanding with Behavior-Driven Development (BDD) Communicate with Agile modeling Design from context for testability Build applications with code and design quality Utilize the test infrastructure for automated testing Collaborate on intentional architecture and emergent design Apply Lean-Agile principles to optimize the flow of value Create an Agile Software Engineering plan Introduction to Agile Software Engineering Connecting Principles and Practices to Built-in Quality Accelerating Flow Applying Intentional Architecture Thinking Test-First Discovering Story Details Creating a Shared Understanding with Behavior-Driven Development (BDD) Communicating with Models Building Systems with Code Quality Building Systems with Design Quality Implementing with Quality
Learners will be introduced to EAS as part of the fire safety solution for tall residential properties. This CPD course provides learners with an understanding of the requirements of BS 5839-1 in relation to, design, installation, commissioning, and maintenance of EAS.
SAFe® for Teams: In-House Training Build the skills needed to become a high-performing team member of an Agile Release Train (ART) and learn how to collaborate effectively with other teams by becoming a SAFe® 5 Practitioner (SP). During this course, you will gain an in-depth understanding of the ART, how it delivers value, and what you can do to effectively perform the role using Scrum, Kanban, and Extreme Programming (XP). You will also learn how to write stories and break down features, plan and execute iterations, and plan Program Increments. Finally, you'll learn about the continuous delivery pipeline and DevOps culture, how to effectively integrate with other teams in the program, and what it takes to continuously improve the train. What you will Learn To perform the role of a SAFe® Practitioner, you should be able to: Apply SAFe® to scale Lean and Agile development in their enterprise Know their team and its role on the Agile Release Train Know all other teams on the train, their roles, and the dependencies between the teams Plan Iterations Execute Iterations and demonstrate value Plan Program Increments Integrate and work with other teams on the train Introducing the Scaled Agile Framework® (SAFe®) Building an Agile Team Planning the Iteration Executing the Iteration Executing the Program Increment Practicing SAFe®
AgileSHIFT®: Virtual In-House Training AgileSHIFT® is the change your organization needs: the business landscape is changing and transformation is necessary. But it is also hard. This program is aimed to drive transformational change throughout an organization. This new enterprise agility guidance empowers individuals to use a lightweight tailorable framework to understand, engage with, and champion change by embracing agile and lean ways of working. Taking a holistic view of an organization, AgileSHIFT® will create and support the champions of change your business needs in order to thrive in an increasingly competitive and disruptive workplace. What You Will Learn At the end of this program you will be able to: Identify why organizations need to create a culture of enterprise agility in response to a changing context Recognize how to think and work differently to enable change Explore agile and lean thinking concepts and how they relate to running and changing your organization Utilize key concepts of the AgileSHIFT® framework Describe the AgileSHIFT® delivery approach Getting Started A changing context Enterprise agility The Purpose of AgileSHIFT® The AgileSHIFT® Framework AgileSHIFT® principles AgileSHIFT® practices AgileSHIFT® roles AgileSHIFT® workflow Benefits of AXELOS.com Summary and Next Steps