So, you’ve written the perfect pitch.  You’ve practiced until you’ve got it memorized.  So you’re done right?  Not quite.  When we speak we use different tones, inflections, gestures.  It’s important to incorporate all of that into your pitch.  No one wants to listen to someone recite something from memory in a monotone voice, with their arms glued to their sides.  Practice your tone inflections and gestures.  Remember to speak slowly.  The rate that you should speak will feel too slow to you, but will be just right for your listener.  Nervous?  Don’t worry, no one else can hear your heart pounding, they can’t see if you are shaking, and they won’t mind if you pause once in awhile to catch your breath.  Breathing while pitching is important–it will help you keep a good pace.  Also, pay attention to your audience.  If they laugh at a joke, then pause, let them laugh, and then continue.  Don’t try and talk over them.  So, now that you’ve practiced with your tone and gestures, you are now read to stand and deliver your well practiced pitch.

So you know all the basic parts of the pitch, but you are still having problems, turning your 80,000 word masterpiece into a three minute pitch.  Yeah, I had a lot of problems creating my pitch too.  That’s why I got help.  I turned to my writer’s group and they helped me hone in on what needed to be said and what didn’t. Never be afraid to ask for help and if you don’t already belong to a writer’s group–join one.  A good group will provide you with priceless help by critiquing you and encouraging you.  Plus, practicing in front of other people will help put you at ease.  Once you have your pitch fully written, it is important to practice, practice, practice.

The why should I care aspect of the pitch should be throughout the pitch with a big push at the end.  We previously talked about what your character was doing and how you need to mention what they are feeling throughout the plot.  Knowing how the character is feeling, helps us a reader connect with them more, and makes us care what happens to them.  It’s also good to summarize the main dilemma at the end of your pitch, but don’t tell me the ending.  If an agent or editor asks, then tell them.  Now this is only true for pitching–not the synopsis, which needs to have an ending.  Remember, the point of the pitch is to hook your audience and make them want to know more, to make them want to read your book.

It’s important to mention where your story takes place, normally.  This is especially true if we are dealing with historical fiction; time travel; or fantasy worlds.  So if it’s relevant to your story be sure and mention where it takes place, and if necessary when it takes place.  An editor/agent will want to know up front if you are pitching a historical novel set in Greece, vs a modern story in small town USA.  They will also want to know if this is present day Earth, futuristic, or a whole new world that has yet to be discovered.  You would also want to mention if you are dealing with an alternate reality.  Where and When are two things that should be in the beginning of your pitch.

I previously talked about the 5 Ws.  So we are going to focus in on that.  Who is the main character?  Most plays have a lead, maybe two.  If your book was a play, who is the star?  Let’s look at a common book.  Twilight.  It’s arguable that Bella and Edward are the leads, but really it’s just Bella, especially since it’s told from first person.  In the Harry Potter series, it’s Harry.  Yes, I’m trying to use obvious examples.  Both of these books have a whole cast of characters, but narrow your pitch down to just one person and maybe their enemy.  The character you want to focus on is the character that drives your plot and that we come to care enough about to keep turning the pages.  That is the only character who really needs to be in your pitch.  So, who is your main character?

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