Hello. It's been nearly three weeks since my last confession blog post. I have missed you all dearly, but needed a little break to catch up on life. I did learn a valuable lesson. When a dentist/doctor/nurse tells you that it won't hurt, they are big fat liars. Wisdom teeth extractions are far more painful than I anticipated. Oh, I understand why they lie; I get that. If they didn't, I wouldn't let them near me. But still.
One thing that I have accomplished since last speaking to you is that I have begun to pitch and query Iron Thirst. I participated in my first face-to-face pitch with an agent (who did ask for a partial), and I have started sending out query letters. I find that I actually enjoyed pitching the book in person, much more than sending out query letters. I talked a little bit about it HERE. Unfortunately, I can't go to conferences every weekend and mingle with agents. So query letters will have to do.
Which brings me to this week's Watcha Say Wednesday.
Do you prefer to send out query letters, or do you prefer the in-person pitch? When you query - how many do you keep outstanding at a time? Do you have an "elevator pitch" ready to go, or do you wing it?
Answer what speaks to you and ignore the rest. But do tell, curious minds want to know.
Look at all those new bright shiny faces. It’s so good to see all of you. There’s one more day for the CONTEST. And don’t forget to come back by on Monday for the results show. Kris Allen will be singing. Oh wait, that’s not here; that’s Idol. It’ll just be me, but I’ve got presents.
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**This is the faux cover I created, instead of working on revisions**
I am nearing the end of my revisions and will be placing the manuscript in hibernation for a month. While I am not touching it, I wanted to see if anyone would be interested in reading it.
Ideally, I would like two people that have not read previous copies to please read it. Critiques can be as detailed as you want or just broad reviews, and I promise not to cry if you tell me, “Wow, this was complete crap. Were you high when you wrote it?” And in case you were wondering, No – I was not. My first (original) chapter has been critiqued by about ten people, the second by about six, but the rest by only one other person, but she read it twice. (Love ya Beej!) Adding the new chapters changed the story, and I need some fresh eyes on it.
I prefer someone that enjoys urban fantasy. I’d give it a rating of somewhere in between PG-13 and R, maybe if there was a PG-16, but it is definitely an adult read due to violence, language, and sexual content. But not horror. Readers of Charlainne Harris, Laurel K. Hamilton, and Jeri Smith Ready would probably appreciate it most.
If you’d be interested in reading or have questions, shoot me an email (click on the envelope to the right) or respond in the comments. In return, I’d be more than happy to return the favor. I am a fan of just about anything except for literary fiction (mostly because I don't think I would be able to offer a helpful critique), and prefer not to read stories that end where everybody you made me love dies. One of them, two of them, but not every-freakin-body. (Stupid, beautiful, Atonement!)
In May, six agents will descend upon Atlanta. Authors will line up to tell them about their book. Give them the ole verbal pitch. Authors, the introverts, verbally selling their book, by talking, out loud. Oh boy!
I knew this would be a great opportunity, but like other writers, I am terrified of the thought. Lucky for me, the Atlanta Writers Club offered two sets of Pitch Critique Workshops; one in December and one in January. I participated in the one that just passed.
Here’s how it worked. First, I sent in the first 20 pages of Iron Thirst to have critiqued by Joshilyn Jackson (there were three authors to choose from), and then showed up on Dec 5th to receive her critique of those pages. In addition, I sat down with her a second time and gave her my pitch, and she critiqued that as well.
Preparing for the pitch was unlike anything that I’ve ever done before. I started off with my query letter and ballooned it and made it more conversational. Then I removed all the extra buzz words, rehearsed it a few times, realized that it sucked, threw it in the trash, started over, and stumbled upon something…
The verbal pitch is a golden opportunity. It’s not just the opportunity to meet the agent and put a face with the name. It’s a chance to read the agent, not just have them read the query.
What is the biggest problem with the query letter? It’s not just that the agent receives hundreds of them either daily or weekly. It’s not just that you are trying to sell your 80K word story in 250 words or less. It’s that you can’t see their reaction. You can’t tell when you are losing them. You can’t answer their questions when they get a puzzled look on their face.
Writers are not generally great talkers, but we are excellent readers. We are good at watching people’s body posture, and at reading their emotions. It’s what we do with our characters, right? The verbal pitch lets us see when we need to detour, speed it up, slow it down, or wrap it up.
Watching their body cues is the greatest advice I can give when it comes to giving a verbal pitch. But in addition to that, here are a few other tips I will offer from my experience.
Research the person that you are going to be pitching to, and find a way to make a connection with them. Do they represent an author that you admire? Share a common bond of scuba-diving? Do they have a blog?
When you first sit down, do not launch directly into your pitch. Take a moment to speak to them as people and not as someone you wouldn’t be talking to unless your book’s life depended on it. No one likes to feel used. (But don’t worry, they know why you are there.) Then throw in that common bond or that you loved the book they wrote or represent.
Your pitch should be prepared, but not sound rehearsed. Know what you are going to say, but don’t sound like you are delivering something from a manuscript. Just talk to them, and tell them the story.
Don’t use all of your time pitching. Leave room for questions.
Anticipate questions. Have answers ready.
And ask questions. Agents are a wealth of knowledge.
The beauty of a pitch is that you can actually talk a little bit more about your book and why it is different. You don’t get that opportunity in the query letter.
Be excited about your book. If you sound bored when you are pitching it to them, they don’t want to read it. You wrote it and you don’t seem impressed.
Relax. These are people. People that love books.
The critique of my mock pitch went very well. Joshilyn said that she would ask for pages. Stupid me didn’t take her up on it. Granted she is an author and not an agent, but she seemed very interested in the story, and it would have been flippin awesome to have her read it. *slaps forehead* She is an awesome person, and a lot of fun. Her blog cracks me up.
If you are in the Atlanta area, there is another critique workshop next month. Head over to the Atlanta Writers Club website. If you are not a member, ah-hem, do that first. Clubs are awesome, but that’s another post. (Yay, an idea for another post!!)
The big conference is in May. Wish me luck!
So, have you ever participated in a verbal pitch? How did it go? What is some of the best advice that you have received regarding the verbal pitch?
