Pitching my newest novel
trying out the traditional method
More PNWA goodness!
The main draw of doing a smaller conference, aside from meeting local authors, was the chance to pitch in-person to a panel of agents. It was not quite as easy as reading my query letter. Here's how it worked:
1: You signed up for a 'pitch block' of 90 minutes when you registered for the conference.
2: There were a 6 or so agents of varying genres all seated in a row. You had to know which ones represented your genre, or else you'd just waste a time slot.
3: Everyone lined up for the agent they wanted to pitch. One at a time, each person got 4 minutes to pitch and respond to the agents questions.
4: When the four minutes were up, you had to get up and move to another line to wait for an agent. Some people only pitched to one, some to a handful.
It wasn't awful. And honestly probably the best way to get as many pitches done in the shortest amount of time. It took some research on the writers' part, but that's something you should do anyway. No use pitching a cozy mystery romance to someone looking for true crime.
Now, before you salivate at the chance to get an agent, any agent, a word of caution. There was one agent there whose agency was on a writer beware list. Some sketchy practices in the past, dead ending projects, etc. And while they represented my genre, I passed them up. I'd rather stick to reputable agencies than take a desperate shot at representation. So do your homework!
Now, a bit of bragging.
I got 3 out of 3 requests for more!
Very excited. I know the agents came specifically to acquire new projects, but I also heard them passing on projects they felt weren't in their area or sounded incomplete.
And let me tell you, it was a bit nerve-wracking. I am used to talking in front of large groups and dealing with stressful situations. I have a performing background and work a high-stress job. But there was still an element of vulnerability presenting my idea, which sounded so lame when condensed down to a few sentences.
The Pitch
Here's how I built my pitch, with plentiful advice from agents, mentors, and friends.
A pitch is not quite like a query letter. You have less time, and the plot needs to be summarized in just a few sentences. One is preferable. Yikes, right? Also, you need to market yourself and place yourself alongside known writers, or the so-called 'comp' titles.
I suck at this. I blank anytime someone asks me. So, I had to spend a lot of time brainstorming who I thought was adjacent to my book, either in tone, genre, or overall feel.
Next, there was a humorous amount of conflicting advice. I went to a few pitch prep sessions and in each one, some expert - and I mean that sincerely! - contradicted what the previous one said.
An example. William Kenower who was very funny and knowledgeable, gave the advice to lead with the title and the pertinent details: genre, word count, audience, era, etc. Later that day Gerri Russell told us explicitly to not lead with the title. Don't even mention it, as it will probably get changed during editing and marketing.
So... what now?
Well, basically trust your gut. For instance, the lovely ladies from Allegory Editing gave me an impromptu pitch coaching session and recommended against including my self-published book and the awards I won. Their reasoning is that I haven't sold 10,000 copies, so it could be seen as a negative.
But, after talking it over with some trusted writing buddies, I decided to include it, as you'll see below. I followed other great advice from the Allegory ladies but didn't in this. And, when I mentioned the award I won, two of the agents were interested in hearing more. So, trust yourself!
Okay, here's an early version of the pitch. Remember, not a plot summary and not a query letter. I left out the awards stuff at the end, as it doesn't change in the different versions.
My book, Warrior of the Dusk, is a 65000 word fantasy/mystery with a touch of horror along the line of T. Kingfisher.
Brionne is an acolyte of the Goddess of Death and Demons. Four of her sisters have been kidnapped. Rhoden serves the God of Justice and is tasked to aid Brionne. But when they learn the kidnapper is using necromancy, it is a race against time to find Brionne's sisters before they can be used to attack the human world.
Okay, first bit of advice was to make a stronger goal and conflict for my main characters. I have two, but I decided to focus on Brionne. Also, to include the audience of the book.
Warrior of the Dusk is a 65000 word adult fantasy with a touch of horror, in the style of T. Kingfisher.
Brionne is an acolyte of the Goddess of Death. When four of her sisters are kidnapped, she reluctantly accepts the aid of Rhoden, a soldier of the God of Justice, to track them down.
In this uneasy partnership, they discover the kidnapper is using necromancy. They race against time to stop him before he uses Brionne's sisters to attack the human world.
Some punchier word choices, but still feels a bit clunky. Also, I need more comp titles, which I sincerely struggle with. And I think I'm missing some key details, like how I structured it like a mystery novel, rather than a classic fantasy plot. And I have questions: Brionne's real sisters? Or the acolytes? Why is the partnership reluctant? Why does Brionne want to get her sisters back?
Okay, version three.
My adult fantasy, Warrior of the Dusk, is 65000 words, built around a mystery with a touch of horror (and a smidge of romance) in the vein of T. Kingfisher or if Inistar Khanani wrote adult fantasy.
Brionne, an acolyte of the Goddess of Death, has found refuge from her former life among her sister acolytes. When four of the acolytes are kidnapped, she reluctantly accepts the aid of a soldier of the God of Justice to find them. They must rescue the acolytes before a necromancer uses the acolytes’ divine abilities to attack the human world.
My self-published sci-fi was a 2022 Indies Today Award finalist and I was an Honorable Mention in the 2012 Writers' Digest Short Story competition for romance.
This was actually version twelve or something and ugh, it is missing so much! But that's what the query is for. Each agent asked for a full query letter (which we'll talk about in another post) as well as the first five chapters.
So much stress for four short minutes! I had it memorized, which I recommend. Lets things flow more naturally but is not a requirement.
Oof. I'm tired just remembering all the work we put into refining and practicing. My friend and I practiced in the car on the way over to Seattle over and over.
The Lost Hero, which has been coming out in episodes for paid subscribers, will be released for sale in December!
You can pre-order the eBook on Amazon. It’s also releasing as a Kindle Unlimited. I’m trying to get the hard- and paper-back sorted out, but apparently the cover is 0.02 mm too big? IDK. The struggles of self-publishing.
If you enjoyed this post, please consider subscribing. I post original short stories, book reviews, and writing advice, as well as my process as I edit my newest novel, Warrior of the Dusk. I will be querying it for traditional publication; subscribe to follow along as I work through that whole process.
Archer 887, the first book in the Archer series, was a 2022 Indies Today Awards Contest Finalist, and is on sale now through online book retailers. Pick up a copy, leave a review, and let me know what you think! The next Archer book, Vanguard, will release in 2024.
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I also write about my work as an RN on my Substack:Â This Is My Nurse Face. Crazy stories, advice, and vents about inpatient nursing. Blood, guts, snort laughing: all the best things.
I practiced in the car too :) The actual four minutes turned out to be less stressful than I'd anticipated, so that was nice. Good luck with those submission requests!