The Art of online pitching - How to make the best of an online pitch event
The dos and don’ts of pitching your book online to catch the agent and/or editor attention.
Happy Saturday everyone…
This is my sophomore year hosting the #JoyPit pitch event, and with that I have learned quite some things about which pitches catch the most attention and why. So I thought why not share what I have learned with the querying authors community and give them a better chance. We all know how dark and gloomy querying can be.
My whole aim of starting #JoyPit event last year was to provide another opportunity to writers to grab the attention from industry professionals.
Because that’s the major point of these online pitch events. Yes, we build the community and get to know writers who are writing in similar genres, find critique partners and beta readers and potential lifelong buddies. But getting industry attention is the first and foremost objective.
So, here goes the dos and don’ts of online pitching.
The Don’ts :
Being vague in your pitch - I have come across many pitches which make the stakes so vague it becomes generic. For example, “MC needs to save the world.” But instead the stakes should say what your MC does to save the world. Vagueness is going to kill interest on your pitch. So be as specific as you can in your pitch.
Too many proper nouns - For a pitch, we are already short on real estate, and wasting precious characters is an absolute no-no. If you have many MCs, try to concentrate with the main MC or use something like ‘group of friends’ or ‘siblings’ or ‘unlikely travel companions’ or whatever suits best. I’m just throwing out random options here, but I’m sure you can definitely do better.
Trying to thrust too much information - your pitch is supposed to be short, punchy, and to the point. Trying to add too much info in 280 characters is going to absolutely confuse whoever reads it and make their eyes move past your pitch, and you don’t want that.
The Dos:
Summarize your main plot - I know, it’s easier to tell and crunching a 80k book into a one liner is no small feat. But spend some time, learn from other pitches, focus on the main thread of the story. In my personal experience, starting with the inciting incident and setting up what happens next is a good way to pitch.
Do your research - This is kinda generic actually and not specific to pitching. And I understand this is not something you can do overnight. But once you decide to be part of the writing community, you need to always keep your research hat on. Research for what’s selling, what agents are looking for, scour their #mswls, listen to agent/editor podcast interviews, keep tabs on the writing industry and community. And if your book happens to have anything that’s trending like Romantasy or vampires, or whatever it might be, make sure to mention that in your pitch.
Prepare multiple pitches - Try to put together different pitch styles, because you never know which may attract more attention. Some novels are more suited to the emoji style or tropes/MC description. Intriguing images, GIFs, moodboards can capture attention as well. Use them as it suits your style and if the pitch event permits. Make sure to read the event guidelines.
Pin your pitch - If it’s a pitch event on X/Twitter, make sure to pin your first pitch to your profile.
Bookmark all your pitches - And also bookmark all your pitches. Because you never know when the algorithm favors one of your pitches.
Interact with other pitches and share support - This is something I have seen many writers fail to do. But this is one of the most full-proof way to get your pitch noticed. Interact with other pitches and in turn others will interact with yours as well. It’s like the age-old saying kindness begets kindness. So, do your part
Form support lists prior to the event - I have seen so many folks make support lists for each pitch event they are planning to attend ahead of time. So they can swap support with each other. It’s a great way. Personally, I never did support lists; I just went ahead and interacted with pitches during the event without any expectations that the other writer will do the same. Still it worked great for me.
Have fun - Now as simple as it sounds, I know so many writers who feel despondent when their pitches don’t get as much attention as they expected. But we can only do what’s in our control. We cannot control the algorithm and we cannot make anyone like our pitch. All we do is try and try. So we need to accept what happens and just have fun.
Alright, that’s all the pitching wisdom I have for now. If you are a querying author, consider participating in #JoyPit happening this June 7th, 2024. If you know other querying authors, do share and spread the word. Happy Pitching!!!
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See you next Saturday…
~Toodle-oo~
