Lately on panels there’s a question I’ve been hearing more often than others:
What’s the best way to pitch to an agent at a conference?
With RWA National coming up, plenty of writers are practicing their pitches now and I wanted to throw in my perspective from the other side of the desk.
First, there’s no such thing as a perfect pitch, just like no novel can please every single reader. The purpose of a pitch is simply to make an agent want to know more, which hopefully means they’ll request a partial or full manuscript. Verbal pitches are limited because you have to read to get a sense of the storytelling, but you can still judge the hook. When you’re an agent listening to a series of pitches in a one- or two-hour window, you’re looking for a great story, and sometimes that comes in a lightning-strike moment. (I came up with this metaphor last night during one of New York’s rare, furious thunderstorms, the kind that set off car alarms up and down the street.)
The first thing to note is that it’s best to be ready with two types of pitches: one for the 10 minute sit-down appointment and one for that chance meeting in the elevator (or hallway or cocktail party).
Checklist for the Agent Appointment
• Is your manuscript complete? I know one agent whose pet peeve is the writer who pitches a work-in-progress. She’ll stop you and ask you to be in touch when the manuscript is finished. I’m a little less picky. If you booked an appointment with me, those 10 minutes are yours and you can use them however you like: to practice your pitch, ask questions, or whatever. But keep in mind that I probably won’t be requesting material for an incomplete manuscript. An exception to that rule is the author who has published several full-length manuscripts with a small press or e-book publisher. If you have that kind of track record, I’d probably be fine with a partial and outline.
• Have you studied your market and do you know your subgenre? About half the writers I meet at appointments aren’t certain about their subgenre. They ask me if I think their novel is women’s fiction or contemporary romance, historical fiction or historical romance. This usually means the writer hasn’t read enough books in those markets. Try to find some comparable authors or titles and see where they’re shelved and how they’re categorized. A good rule of thumb is, if the main conflict is about how the hero and heroine get together, and there are detailed sex scenes, then it’s romance (okay, except in “sweet” romances).
• Did you select the right agent? It’s disappointing to have to tell an author I don’t represent romantic comedy, romantic suspense, or contemporary romance, when there’s an agent across the room who does. Try to sign up for an agent who reps the subgenre you’re writing. Google the names, go to their websites, check with your writer friends.
• Can you describe what the book is about in one sentence or two? Note: This is also your elevator pitch. What I like to hear in the first sentence is the subgenre or category (I’m looking for paranormals and historicals), and something about one or both main characters. For example, “I have a paranormal romance about a lion shape-shifter who is defending his pack’s territory and in the process captures a human female working as a naturalist in the area.” You get the picture. I emphasize talking about characters in your one-sentence pitch because it immediately gives us someone to relate to. It’s hard to relate to a theme, so I don’t particularly like the pitches that say: “My book is about loss and redemption.”
• Can you extrapolate? Be prepared to expand on your initial pitch with a few more sentences about plot, the setting or world you’ve created, and the villain or antagonist. You don’t have to memorize lines—in fact, it’s better if you don’t—but know what you want to say. Finally, let us know your word count, preferably between 75,000 and 120,000 words. And let us know if you’re planning a series, and if so, how many books you envision.
• Did you practice? It’s okay to be nervous. We know it’s kind of like speed-dating. But if you practice with your critique partners, you’re more likely to be confident and prepared for different scenarios.
I hope these guidelines help for anyone planning to pitch a novel this conference season!
No related posts.
Honestly, I think pitching at a conference really doesn’t work, at least for me. Yes, you may get a request, a partial or even a full but has an agent or editor signed someone at one of these conferences?
It’s rare but it happens. Several times I’ve requested partials or fulls, and then found the ms needed some revising. In some cases, I’ve invited the writer to send me their material again after another round or two of self-editing.
For example, “I have a paranormal romance about a lion shape-shifter who is defending his pack’s territory and in the process captures a human female working as a naturalist in the area.”
Actually, that sounds intriguing. Something new.
Great tips. And that elevator pitch is something you’ll use for the rest of the story’s life, so committing it to memory or getting it tattooed somewhere discreet is definitely worth the effort.
Loved the article – forwarded to me by a friend.
I’m really struggling with the pitch. I’ve written a novel (no, really, done!) and I’ve never seen anything like this..I’m struggling come up with the pitch. When prompted yesterday by a friend to summarize, I launched into an odd, evasive theme-based collection of words that didn’t describe much.
I’d pay someone to read the first four chapters and help me work out a pitch. Any recommendations on how I can get some assistance with this? What kind of activities I might do to clarify and summarize a unique piece? I can’t even quite figure out the genre!
Hi Edmond,
Start with the characters and see if you can come up with a few one-liners. Look at the back-cover copy of comparable books for inspiration. Figure out the genre by spending time in the library or bookstore–a lot of time–and reading books with similar themes, settings, writing style. Tell the librarian your theme and ask for recommendations. You’ll rule out some titles right away but keep looking. Finally, consider getting a critique partner or two, writers who are going through the same thing you are. To find them, join Backspace (bksp.org) or a local writers org. Good luck!
With Nationals coming, I recently added this Pitch Guide
to my website.
(NOTE: This is for the 10 minute pitch appointment. Do not attempt this in an elevator. Doors will close, and I don’t mean just the sliding ones on the elevator car.)
Good luck!
Thank you both for great suggestions.
I spent yesterday working on the pitch and came up with about 5 one-sentence summaries to try out how it feels to say them aloud. I’m still crafting the language, but I’m closer than before.
Thank you for this dialog and thank you Emmanuelle Alspaugh for the intriguing column.
Learning a lot here!
Thanks, Emmanuelle, for these great tips, especially about including the stats.
My regional conference does a pitch fest the evening before the agent/editor pitch sessions. They assign a pubbed author to each small group. We can practice and get input before the real thing takes place the next day and I found it to be very helpful–I got 3 requests for fulls.
Do you think regional conferences are better to pitch at than nationals where there are a zillion others pitching? Or maybe it doesn’t make a difference–a good idea is a good idea.
I feel for you hearing all those pitches over and over and over! I’ll bet your mind is numb at the end of the day. Speed-dating, that’s funny! Speed dating where everyone wants to date you.
I really like the regional conferences. But you’re right–it doesn’t matter much where you pitch if you have a great ms.
I’m usually good for about 90 minutes of pitching. After that, I tend to tire out. Lately I’ve been offering to lead workshops in lieu of that third hour of appointments. I actually really love workshops–they’re (usually) less stressful for writers and you can have more fun in them. You can also disseminate lots of information widely.
The speed-dating aspect is also for the authors! There are thousands of agents out there, so if you don’t make a connection with the agent across the table, you can cross her off your list and move on to the next one.