This weekend, I’ll be
joining hundreds of mystery writers and readers at the annual New
England Crime Bake conference held in MA. This will be my
fourth Crime Bake.
Although
Mystery isn't my main genre, it’s a large part of what I write. Both
of my books, the Paranormal, A Trace of Evil, and the Fantasy, The
Watcher Clan, keep the reader guessing until the end. I haven't found genre to be a problem because most Crime Bake workshops are specifically geared to the writing
process.
This year, I’m looking
forward, albeit with a little trepidation, to one of the most helpful aspects
of the conference, the Pitch session. Here is where the
writer has a chance to pitch his book to agents and editors. Although the idea is
wonderful, the reality is terrifying. In five minutes, the writer has to pitch an
evocative summary of his book and be ready to answer questions about the whole
thing.
During my first pitch
session, the agent listened to my summary and then asked about the plot points
throughout the book, including the ending. I tried to tell the whole story in
what was left of the five minutes but kept forgetting parts I thought she needed
to know. I felt sick.
But, here’s the good
news. Agents/editors are not looking for the writer to fail. They want us to
succeed because they’re looking for new writers. When I finished my pitch, the
agent gave me a great deal of positive reinforcement and excellent suggestions.
She then asked me to send in a chapter of the book.
To be successful, all I have to do is prepare. I've been
trying to list out the high points in the story that will give the best
overview. The whole exercise has my nerves singing. This will be the fourth
time I’m pitching and it feels as scary as the first. When I signed up for this
a few months ago, it seemed like such a good idea. Now, a few days away
from the reality, I’m having second thoughts.
Despite my previous
brave words, I’m beginning to feel the angst. I guess the process of pitching
my baby to someone will never be easy. I’ll just have to rely on the fact
that I've done it before and lived to talk about it.
How about you? How do
you feel about pitching?
As you know, I won't pitch. Call me a woos, that's okay. I'm not as brave as you are and I prefer to pitch my work through a query letter (not that I've ever written one). My first five minute pitch was almost my last, but I gave it another try. I could barely speak.
ReplyDeleteSo, while you're pitching, I'll be relaxing in a cushy chair by the fireplace.
Oh boy. A chair by the fireplace sounds pretty good to me right now. It's a good thing thatI made the choice to pitch so long ago. If it were up to me today, I might chicken out.
DeleteI'm grateful, however, for this chance to discuss my work with a real person. So, I'll be standing in line with all the other writers on Saturday, shaking in my boots!