I recently attended a writers' conference in Seattle that
focused entirely on publishing.
Since I was pitching that day, and was scared out of my mind, the class focusing
on developing and presenting a good pitch was extremely beneficial and helped
me to sort out my thoughts and ideas to develop a great pitch. Now I am just crossing
my fingers that the requests for my MS turn into something more!
Here is what I learned from the May 2017 Seattle Writer’s
Conference about pitching to an agent.
The set-up of a
perfect pitch: in order
-Introduce Main Character
-Flush out the Main Character (Tell us what they want out of
life or what makes them interesting.)
-Inciting incident (What propels your novel into motion- The
Hook)
-What is the major plot of the book about (What does the
Main Character intend to do about the incident): Part three should automatically lead to four. State the incident and what the Main
character intends to do about it.
-Complications (What stands in the way of what the MC
intends to do.)
-What will the MC do to fix the problem (Do not say whether
or not they will succeed.)
-Stakes: If the MC fails. What will happen to them?
A couple of other
great tips for your pitching session:
-Start with your genre, title, word count and any relating
novels they may be able to draw from (never use the classics like Harry Potter
or Hunger Games: personal pet peeve of almost all authors)
-Never end the pitch with a rhetorical question
-Although agents prefer you to memorize your pitch, if you
don’t feel comfortable, do what you are best at. If you need to read your pitch, then do it. Represent yourself the best you can.
-If you are looking to write compelling pitches and first
pages your BEST resources to find and study are successful debut authors in
your genre. They have learned to
develop an amazing roadmap in order to get published so USE THEIR ROADMAP.
Personal things I
learned about my pitching session:
-First pitch is the hardest. I was shaking like a leaf. But once I started, I got comfortable
and was able to pitch with a lot more ease the rest of the time.
-The agents are human just like you are, so talk to them
like a human, not a robot. During
my first pitch I realized I had brought an apple with me (pregnancy and anxiety
do not go well together.) I sat
down and just said “Obviously I am pregnant and nervous because I brought an
apple to my pitch session,” she laughed and I immediately felt more at
ease. I realized after that, that
she is human, and was able to talk to her with greater comfort and ease.
-Be prepared. I
studied common questions that agents ask in pitch sessions and I had an entire
typed out page of well thought out answers that I could refer to. The agents asked a lot of questions,
and I felt well prepared to answer them because I had gone to great lengths to
research and develop my thoughts, especially the break-up of my plotline. When they asked specific questions
about my plot, I felt prepared to answer.
I hope this helps future writers to be more prepared for
their pitch sessions! Good luck to
all of us in this huge and exciting undertaking.
***********
Megan Lee has a BS in Print Journalism and Law and
Constitutional Studies and has published articles in several local and online
resources where she has won small competitions. She spent time editing talks for worldwide audiences and now
spends most of her time nurturing two toddlers and dreaming up stories.
To find Megan Lee:
Facebook: Megan Sonderegger Lee
Twitter: @meganleewriter
Up and coming niche blog: Toddlertestkitchen.com
