StoryStudio Chicago presents:
Pub Crawl: Learn, Pitch, Publish
at our Online Month-Long Publishing Intensive
Feb. 2027

Pub Crawl features classes, panels, and events centered on the publishing world all month long. This will lead up to our Pitch Weekend for a chance to virtually meet with (and pitch to!) agents and editors.

REGISTRATION OPENS NOVEMBER 17, 2026

2027 INFORMATION

One ticket will get you access to the entire month of events. Recorded sessions will be available to ticket-holders to watch for a limited time after each live event.
All Add-On sessions (Agent and Editor Meetings) must be purchased separately. See below for list of available add-ons.

Here’s what you can expect for our 2027 Pub Crawl:

  • CHECK OUT THE 2026 SCHEDULE HERE! (2027 schedule coming soon)
  • Bi-weekly classes on publishing
  • Agent and Editor Panels
  • Behind the Book talks with authors and their agents/editors 
  • Keynote Address by Dave Eggers
  • Genre Lunches: Join us at noon for a short class & discussion around your favorite genres
  • Slack channel to connect with fellow writers
  • Access to Zoom recordings of Pub Crawl sessions
  • Write-Ins and Socials
  • Office Hours to ask all your publishing questions
  • And don’t forget about Pitch Weekend! We’ll be hosting one-on-one agent and editor meetings (All add-on meetings must be purchased separately).
PURCHASE ALL-ACCESS TICKET —  $285
Agent and Editor Meetings COMING SOON
2026 PUB CRAWL SCHEDULE

Keynote Speaker 2026: Dave Eggers

Dave Eggers is the author of many books, among them The Eyes and the Impossible, The Circle, The Monk of Mokha, Heroes of the Frontier, A Hologram for the King, and What Is the What. He is the founder of McSweeney’s, an independent publishing company, and co-founder of 826 Valencia, a youth writing center that has inspired over 70 similar organizations worldwide. Eggers is winner of the American Book Award, the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award for Education, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, the TED Prize, and has been a finalist for the National Book Award, the Pulitzer Prize, and the National Book Critics Circle Award. He is the 2024 John Newbery Medalist, for the most distinguished contribution to children’s literature for The Eyes and the Impossible. Eggers is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

TESTIMONIALS FROM PREVIOUS ATTENDEES

For someone like me, who doesn’t have an MFA, StoryStudio’s events are a great way to learn craft, as well as the nuts and bolts of publishing.

There really is something for everyone at PubCrawl, and the generosity of the writing community is on full display. Despite being entirely online, a sense of community was palpable – a pleasant surprise.

The wisdom and advice imparted in Pub Crawl created a road map for my journey ahead; but more than that, the sense of community experienced during this month-long course will stay with me throughout my writing life.

This experience allowed me to access information and ask questions in a way that just Googling cannot do. You can’t run up to an agent you admire on the street and demand answers about the publication process. This made things so much more accessible and I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity to learn from such amazing minds.

I highly recommend Pub Crawl! I’ve attended twice – the first time I was drafting my novel and the second time I was in the middle of querying it. The information I learned during Pub Crawl was helpful both times! Particularly while I was querying, there were questions that came up, and it was great to have a reliable place to ask my questions and learn what to expect from the publishing process.

It was inspiring to hear industry professionals I admire being vulnerable and sharing all the messy parts of publishing, not just the highlights. I took away a ton of practical advice and the online format was really accessible to me as the parent of a small child!

Questions? Read our FAQs
Want to apply for a Scholarship?
Click here.
This info session is from the 2022 Pub Crawl, some details/dates may vary.
WANT AN IDEA OF WHAT PUB CRAWL HAS TO OFFER? CLICK HERE FOR LAST YEAR’S SCHEDULE

2026 Pitch Weekend: February 26th – 28th

Note: All sessions and meetings will take place via zoom. We will send you a link and instructions before your class begins. After registration you’ll receive a follow-up email confirming your place at Pub Crawl and any add-on sessions you have requested. Please note that registration and add-on sessions will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis.

Refunds: Registration and add-on sessions are fully refundable, minus a 25% cancellation fee through January 31, 2026. After January 31, tickets cannot be refunded. Charitable contributions cannot be refunded.

Pub Crawl: An Online Publishing Intensive is partially supported by a grant from the
Richard H, Driehaus Foundation.