Ok, I might get quite a few eye rolls when I say this. If you’re an author, you need to perfect your pitch.

Now, that may sound like something that comes straight out of the mouth of any one of your favorite tech bros. And you wouldn’t be wrong. However, there’s a lot of wisdom in this statment, and it’s not just about marketing.

You Actually Don’t Know What You’re Talking About

As an author, I thought I knew what my story was all about. Why wouldn’t I? I’ve lived with it for years now. I knew all the characters as if they were my own personal friends and enemies. I know all the plot twists, all the scenes, all the settings. I was pretty confident that I knew what the Slipshot was all about.

Except I didn’t. Or at least, I didn’t know how to articulate it.

30 Seconds. Now Let’s Go!

In the real world, you got about 30 seconds to keep someone’s attention. This number varies depending on the circumstances. For me, it was when I tried my hand at the con scene. The first con that I tabled at was GalaxyCon in San Jose, CA. It was a stressful time for me, and in fact, I almost talked myself out of it a few times, saying I wasn’t ready, that I needed to wait a little longer, and so on. By the time the con rolled around, I had everything ready. I had the imagery, the character standees, the merch, books, giveaways. Everything was in order.

Except for one very important thing. And that was the pitch.

People’s attention would be captured by our visuals. And then they’d move towards the booth, look around and invariably say, “So, what’s this all about?”

I’d take a deep breath, and start. A long, rambling discourse on everything that happened in the Slipshot. All the characters, key events. I stumbled over important but not pivotal scenes. You see, there is one thing that everyone who came up to the booth wanted: A reason to pick up the book and read it.

Needless to say, whenever I tried to answer the question, “What’s this all about?” eyes would glaze over, glances would shift from side to side as my audience of one would strategize their exist strategy.

I can’t blame them.

It wasn’t until three cons later at FanExpo in San Francisco that I was really able to refine my pitch. Whereas before I got the silent groan, now people were much more engaged and excited about the story. Bloggers and vloggers wanted to talk to me. And the big driving question, the one that I literally salivate over everyday: What’s next for the Slipshot?

You got your 30 seconds, now what?

First, the obvious.

Keep it concise: Don’t go too deep. Don’t give a lot of detail. Give only a glimpse, a teaser.

The art of the tease: Always, always, always end your pitch with a question, not an answer. “The story starts with our protagonist Fredrick in a dark alley in San Francisco’s Tenderloin district, where he meets a mysterious character named Opal. Beside her stand two weird, glitching creatures. Machines, maybe. With their arrival, he realizes something strange is happening, something way beyond his control. What will happen to him and his world if he can unravel this strange mystery?” If your audience is paying attention, you got another 30 seconds. Don’t waste it.

Don’t sell: I tried it once. I said, “This novel series is one of the best ones you’ll ever read.” I immediately regretted it. Like immediately. I could feel my neck and cheeks grow warm, it was so embarrassing. And for good reason. My audience, the person I was talking to, would have none of it. I Immediately backed down and started talking about the art form.

The pitch opens the doors to empathy. Partly, it’s about meeting people where they are. About having the clarity to see where people want to go. Sometimes, the discussion was about the visual art. Sometimes about the writing process. Whichever way the conversation goes, you need to be able and willing to go there. Because that is where engagement comes. And once you get engagement, you gain an audience.

It’s Not Always About Business

The pitch does help you in your business, no matter what your business is. But it’s also more than this. It’s a way of understanding the heart and soul of your story. Most likely, your story does have a heart and a soul. Distilling this down to a vision that can be articulated really helps you to understand where you are on the long creative process. By that I mean, not just this story, but every story you make in the future.

Book sales, publisher interest, these are all important. But for yourself as a writer, it’s at least equally important to understand yourself through the work you create. This, really, is what a good pitch is all about.

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