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June 27, 2007
Welcome to the Conference Series Workblog, Day 2. (Link to Day 1)
Self-promotion is one of the many possible reasons for attending a writing conference. Although the possibilities are endless, I’m going to discuss three primary tactics to achieve this goal: Pitching, Freebies, and Volunteering.
Pitching
The first thing I’d like to do is debunk a myth.
Pitching–aka, enticing an agent or editor to request full or part of your manuscript through a physical meeting and verbal story description–is not “just for newbies” or “just for unpublished authors”. Pitching, (a verbal alternative to querying, which we can discuss at a later date,) is for any author in need of an editor and/or agent. I have an unagented friend whose first and only published book went out of print several years ago. You can find a used copy of the book on Amazon. You can find my friend pitching at conferences.
The second thing I’d like to do is offer an analogy.
Imagine, if you will, that you are at a video store with your spouse or sibling or best friend (hereafter: Alice). There’s a movie out that you really, really, really want to watch. (For the sake of argument, let’s say it’s The Princess Bride.) Alice–a serious movielover–has never heard of it. You’ve forgotten your purse/wallet at home, and Alice has kindly offered to pay for the movie herself–IF you can convince her the movie you want to see is worth renting.
Here’s what you don’t do:
You don’t cry or clam up or mumble something about how it’s impossible to condense a two-hour masterpiece into a ten-second explanation. You don’t hand her a bunch of homemade pamphlets about the movie and/or tell her how your mom said it was “lovely”. You don’t clutch the DVD box like it’s your last grip on humanity and read the text on the back in a robotic monotone. You don’t say, “Why don’t we rent the one that isn’t quite finished and hasn’t been edited, but the first half or so doesn’t completely suck.”
Here’s what you should do:
You think to yourself about why you want to see this movie so badly. Is it the action? The romance? The suspense? The mystery? The characterization? The unusual premise? And then you think about what Alice’s favorite types of movies are, and you sell her on that angle. You might say, “TPB is a screwball comedy about a farm boy turned pirate, out to rescue a pampered princess named Buttercup.” Or, you might say, “TPB is a funny, sweet romance about a princess in need of love, and a dashing rogue unafraid to risk his life–or his heart.” Or, you might say, “TPB is a guy-friendly action movie filled with swordfights, circus performers, and rodents of unusual size.” Remember: ALICE LOVES MOVIES. Alice WANTS to take home something great. That’s why Alice is in the video store with you in the first place!
Practical tips:
* Research the agent/editor before you pitch.
* Ask questions about the agent/editor to critique partners or chaptermates
* DO pick an agent/editor who enjoys your style/genre of book.
* Do NOT pick an agent/editor who does not represent your wordcount/genre.
* Do NOT pick an agent/editor with a bad reputation.
* Pitch a completed manuscript. (Do not waste the editor/agent’s time.)
* Pitch a manuscript you can mail immediately if asked to do so.
* When crafting your pitch, think back-of-book or DVD-box blurb.
* A pitch is not a query letter. Less formal, more fun.
* Short is better than long.
* Practice in the mirror.
* Practice with a friend.
* Practice with a stranger.
* Speak up and slow down.
* Memorize from a notecard if you must, but do not read from it during the actual pitch.
* Make eye-contact! (Impossible if reading from said notecard)
* Know your story.
* Know about the editor/agent.
* Know about the editor/agent’s clients/line/new releases.
* Be prepared to be interrupted.
* Be prepared to answer questions about your story.
* Be prepared to answer questions about yourself.
* Be prepared to answer questions about your career.
* Be prepared to explain why you chose this editor/agent.
* Be prepared to ASK intelligent questions to the editor/agent.
* Be prepared to discuss what else you did/will write.
* Smile. Be personable.
* Ask “How are you?” and listen to the answer.
* RELAX.
* Alice loves books!
* Alice wants to love YOUR book!
Number One Takeaway:
Remind yourself of the worst case pitch scenario: Agent/Editor does not request to see your book. Then remind yourself of what happens if you DON’T pitch: Agent/Editor does not request to see your book!
Pitching is win-win. Even if you don’t get a request, you get 5-10 minutes with an industry professional, during which you can get all sorts of information that you’d never have a chance to ask about under normal circumstances.
My other posts about pitching: [Link 1] [Link 2]
Freebies
Many conferences have a fun little section called the Goody Room. In this room, you will find tables filled with a plethora of promotional items, all of which are free for the taking. Typically, almost anyone can sign up to donate items to the Goody Room.
Who does the Goody Room self-promo?
* Published Authors
* Unpublished Authors
* Publishing Houses
* Workshop Presenters
* Industry Professionals
* Bloggers seeking increased readership
What kind of items can be found in the Goody Room?
* Free books
* Free book excerpts
* Free bookmarks
* Free business cards
* Free magnets
* Free cover flats (often autographed)
* Free pens/pencils/erasers
* Free notepads/stickynotes
* Free DVDs with book trailers and/or excerpts
* Free pins with logos/sayings/etc
* Free candy/chocolate/etc (sometimes branded, but not always)
The best (most popular) items are:
* Useful and/or consumable
* Compact for ease of travel
* Lightweight for ease of travel
* Branded with your name and web site
Another popular self-promo item is the branded t-shirt. You may give them away (here’s me in a Colleen Gleason tee) or simply wear them around like a walking billboard to create buzz. Buzz=good.
An important thing to remember about freebies is that freebies = free for them, not necessarily free for you. Always keep ROI (Return On Investment) in mind.
Volunteering
An often overlooked method of self-promotion is simply volunteering your time. Conferences are hard work. Most of the people who organize and run them are unpaid. You could be one of them!
Uh… great, you say. What’s in it for me?
For one, good karma. Being helpful is a fine quality!
For two, you get your NAME and your FACE out there. You might be the one managing the agent/editor appointments, for example. Or the one facilitating the workshops, or sending out newsletters with updates, or ferrying the guest speakers to the hotel.
Volunteering is an unbeatable networking opportunity!
YOUR TURN: If I didn’t answer your question(s) on pitching, volunteering, or self-promotion, please ask them in the comments and I will respond. If you are a veteran pitcher, please share your horror/success story. If you have taken advantage of a goody room–either as a giver or a taker–please give your thoughts on what elements work and what elements do not have the desired effect. If you have volunteered at a conference, (or worked behind the scenes in any capacity,) please share your experience!
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March 29, 2007
Don’t! It’s not personal… and I can prove it!
First, let me give a couple examples of rejection. So as not to call out any of my CPs (although they are welcome to post supporting documentation in the comments! g*) I’ll give a few from personal experience.
Rejection From Pitching
My very first conference pitch for my very first completed novel resulted in a request for a partial. I sent in the partial, which resulted in a very nice No Thank You letter. I was unsurprised, yet devastated. Now, many books later, I look back at that first novel and wonder how the agent made through any of it without setting fire to the damn thing. She wasn’t rejecting me. She was rejecting the hideous pile of double-spaced crap I’d foisted upon her.
Rejection During Pitching
Recently (as you may know if you read my Feb blog post,) I got a Please God Don’t Send Me That reaction during the pitch itself. As soon as I said the word “funny”, the agent grimaced and said, “I don’t like funny books. You can send it if you want, but I probably won’t like it.” Once again, she wasn’t rejecting me, she was rejecting humor. It had nothing to do with my mechanics or prose or voice or anything like that–she just didn’t do funny.
Rejection From Querying
So what if you’ve never met the agent? You query. Now, I have only queried 3 agents in my life, so I’m not the world’s foremost expert on this, but one did send me a rejection. In less than 24 hours of receiving the query. Yowza! I didn’t even expect them to get the email in that amount of time, much less decide they hated something about it.
I’ll never know what it was that caused the rejection, but since I feel confident in both my ability to craft unique stories and my facility with the English language and its grammar, I’m led to assume it was something about the story itself that just didn’t work for them.
Maybe it was another case of not doing funny. Or maybe they don’t like my style of humor. (EX: Some people love Monty Python movies. Some people hate them.) Or maybe they just took on something in the same vein as my story. Or maybe they have no clue where they would submit a story like mine. Or maybe they hated the story premise itself. The world will never know.
Rejection from Slush
While at the recent Miami conference, agents read the first 2 pages of several manuscripts aloud and commented on whether they’d request or reject. They didn’t get to my story (curses! I so wanted to hear their reactions!) but one of the stories they all said they’d reject based on the title alone.
Shock and horror flooded the audience of aspiring writers. The crowd muttered things like, “How could they!” “How evil!” “How unutterably unfair!” “Shouldn’t they have read the partial to give the poor writer a chance?”
And my answer to all this is: No. As callous as it sounds to an aspiring writer, people can and do reject based on mere titles and this should not surprise you. Which brings me to my point:
Proof Rejections are not Personal
Every time I browse an aisle in a bookstore and come away with nothing, I’m essentially rejecting all the books on those shelves, sometimes on no more than a title/cover.
I know what I like to read, so I’m in the section of the right genre(s), but I don’t read the back of every single book on the shelves. Sometimes I do read the backs, and I think, “God, that’s stupid” or “Please, that old plot again?” and set the book back down. Sometimes the back cover copy is intriguing enough that I flip to the first page. Sometimes my eyes glaze over on that first page and I put the book back down. Sometimes I leave the aisle empty-handed. Before I leave the store, I glance at the table near the doorway with all their “featured” books. If a cover/title combo intrigues me enough, I might go pick it up and look at it. Otherwise, I shrug, chalk it up to a “nothing enthused me” day at the book store, and go home.
On the one hand, it’s terrible, because as an author I know what little control we have over those things like story titles and cover art. But as a reader/buyer, you’ve got to narrow the selection somehow. Bookstores have thousands of books. I can’t read every book on every shelf and THEN decide which one to buy. It would be ridiculous to expect anyone to.
So, I think it’s the same for an agent. (Be prepared: here comes a metaphor.)
Their slush pile, their inbox, their pitching table at the conference, all those things are their “bookstore”. Assuming you did your homework and are pitching/querying someone who represents what you write, this is the equivalent of the agent being in the right (genre) section of the store.
If you show up with a Kool-Aid mustache or send them signature confirmation envelopes filled with heart-shaped glitter, you’ve just presented them with the “bad cover/title combo” and they’ll pass.
Next comes your pitch or query letter, aka the “back cover copy/blurb”. If it sucks, they’ll move on. “What?” you scream. “How am I supposed to condense a 100,000 word masterpiece into an edgy, conflict-filled two paragraph hook?” Hey, that’s not their problem, in the same way that it’s not your problem when you’re browsing for books at your local bookstore.
If the back cover copy sounds boring/stupid/ridiculous, you’re not going to read all 100,000 words just to see if whoever wrote the blurb was a moron who didn’t do the story justice. No way. You’re going to set that book down and pick up the next one and hope its back cover blurb is more promising. This is what people do. And agents are people, too. We’ve all got a finite amount of available time and have to make the best judgments we can.
So the next time you or someone you know gets a rejection, go ahead and indulge in a little pity party, but then get over it. Because it’s not personal. It’s subjective. I have friends who love books and authors I despise, and vice versa. This means that’s there’s an agent out there who would love whatever it is you’re writing. So keep writing, and keep querying. All it takes is one Yes!
Your turn: I’d love to hear your rejection tales, whether they’re horror stories, commiserative anecdotes, or your own philosophies on dealing with the reality of rejection in a subjective industry. Sound off!
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February 27, 2007
So, as many of you know, I went to the Fun in the Sun conference down in Miami this weekend, along with three of my local chaptermates. We had a blast plotting on the car ride down and listening to speakers and going to events and drinking in the hotel bar and all the other fun stuff you do at conferences.
Despite all that, I’d wager that two of the top 5 reasons people go to conferences include: (You knew there’d be a list, right?)
1) Pitching agents/editors
2) Getting that “ah-ha!” moment
So, without further ado, I’d like to share those two experiences with you.
My experience with pitching
I had two agent appointments, one with Agent ABC (Big Agency) and one with Agent XYZ (Even Bigger Agency).
My chaptermates mostly met with different agents/editors than me, but one met with Agent ABC, who asked for a mailed partial, and one met with Agent XYZ who gave her a business card and also asked for a mailed partial.
So then it was my turn.
First off, Agent XYZ was just not that into me.
The appointment coordinator brought me to her side while she was still talking to the previous person (the appointments were in one big room with agents and editors behind small folding tables) so I had to hover unobtrusively until they wrapped it up so I could have my turn. You only get a certain number of minutes, so the person before me was taking up half of *my* time. Neither of them bothered to say anything to me or even so much as make eye contact, so I was forced to stand there looking retarded until they finally cut it off and made their good-byes so I could sit down.
The conversation went like this:
Erica [holding out her hand]: Hi, I’m Erica. Nice to meet you.
Agent XYZ [with a quick handshake]: What are you pitching?
Erica: It’s a funny paranormal with–
Agent XYZ: I don’t like funny books.
Erica: Uh, okay.
Agent XYZ: You should’ve pitched someone else.
Erica: Uh, okay.
Agent XYZ: Well, tell me what it’s about anyway.
Erica: The heroine is a tooth fairy who–
Agent XYZ: Is this YA?
Erica: Um, no.
Agent XYZ: It’s your first book.
Erica: No, actually, it’s my fourth.
Agent XYZ: Oh. Well, my contact information is on our web site. You can send a partial if you want, but I probably won’t like it.
Erica: Uh, okay. Thanks. [leaves]
So there was that. My appointment with Agent ABC, on the other hand, went much better.
Erica [holding out her hand]: Hi, I’m Erica. Nice to meet you.
Agent ABC [shaking hands]: Oh! I love your name tag. Funky.
Erica [realizing she's wearing her pink furry strap]: Oh. Thanks.
Agent ABC: Ask me anything you want. I’ll answer questions about books, agents, the universe–whatever.
Erica [making nervous geek joke]: What’s the answer to the question of the universe?
Agent ABC [without missing a beat]: Forty-two.
Erica: I love those books! [shares a grin]
Agent ABC: Me too. So, what do you write?
Erica: Well, this story is a romantic comedy with paranormal elements.
Agent ABC [doubtfully]: Paranormal elements like what? Like the heroine’s “psychic”?
Erica [quickly decides not to mention TOUCHED*]: No, like she’s an apprentice tooth fairy from Nether-Netherland.
Agent ABC [bursting into laughter]: Fun. Who’s the hero?
Erica: An archaeologist who won’t give up the tooth?
Agent ABC: You’re the first person to actually make me laugh out loud. Don’t mail me the partial. Email me the whole thing.
Erica: Yay! Thanks.
* TOUCHED is a completed, pitchable project featuring a “psychic” heroine.
My big AH-HA! moment
So, I went to a workshop by Cherry Adair about how to get your writing career in order, especially if you don’t yet have your Plan figured out.
Among other sage pieces of advice, the single most helpful thing she said to me (well, okay, to everyone in the room) was to pick a genre and stick with it for at least 2-3 years. Give yourself a chance to get good at something before developing genre MPD (multiple personality disorder) which doesn’t help anyone, not the editor, not the agent, and definitely not yourself.
Well. As anyone who knows me (or has been to my web site) can tell you, I have serious issues with genre MPD. The stuff I churn out isn’t complete dreck. I’ve had requested fulls (and positive rejection letters) and finaled in contests and all that happy jazz. But, if I would’ve been published in any of those things, I wouldn’t have been able to sell the others.
Most agents do not do ALL genres. And NO editors do. If they’re looking for a new Regency-set Historical author, then that’s what they want. Not one that writes one Regency-set Historical, one contemporary Romantic Suspense, one Historical Mystery with Paranormal Elements, and one Screwball Romantic Comedy. (/erica clears throat and gives guilty smile)
She said, figure out what you like to write, and then write it. Don’t look back. If, after 3 years of seriously pursuing a genre, you discover that you either hate it or suck at it, THEN consider switching to something else. But first give yourself that opportunity to shine.
So, in response to her advice (or should I say warning?) I believe I’m going to stick with the RomCom angle for a while and see how that turns out for me. I’ll keep you posted…
Your Turn!
I’d love to hear about YOUR experience pitching editors and agents, and any Ah-ha! moments YOU’d like to share!
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February 21, 2007
So, today my crit partners were throwing a pity party because the ratio of aspiring authors to acquiring editors is astronomical. I say, WHO CARES? What’s that got to do with me?!
Actually, what I say is this:
First, you cannot, repeat, CANNOT, think of writing (or any profession) from a statistical standpoint.
Sure, there’s thousands (or even tens of thousands) of aspiring authors to every agent, and an even bigger discrepancy when compared to publishing houses. So? It’s not the lottery, where all tickets are created equal.
Do you write a genre that sells? As a matter of fact, if you write Romance, you write a genre that sells 55% of all published fiction. Zow. So right there, your ticket is worth a lot more than ANY OTHER GENRE WRITER OUT THERE. Okay? With me?
Now. Are you a member of a professional organization, and do you take advantage of the information/loops/etc of said organization? If so, once again, less than half aspiring authors do this. Maybe less than 1% if we count all the wannabes that “are going to write a book someday” but don’t have the courage to put pen to paper and get the party started. =)
Do you study the craft by reading books/blogs/etc or taking workshops? If so, once again, you cannot BELIEVE the number of would-be authors that do not do this.
Are you a member of a constructive, helpful critique group whose advice you both respect AND strive to implement whenever it improves the story? If so, Hades and Hermes, only a fraction of the professional aspiring authors out there can say yes to that! Do you know how hard it is to find that kind of support? And how hard it is to TAKE and ACT ON constructive criticism? If you’ve got both of that, you are WAY ahead of the curve!
So now the piece of paper you’re holding looks less like a scratch off and more like Charlie Bucket’s golden ticket, my friend!
The last three things consist of talent, which cannot be taught, but if you are getting requests and/or contest finals then you probably possess in spades, SKILL, which comes from practicing the craft and learning from experience, and PERSERVERANCE, which is 100% up to you.
Had J.K. Rowling or Stephen King given up after the first 200 rejections, we wouldn’t have Harry Potter or Cujo today. Got me?
So buck up, soldiers! You can and WILL! Go forth and write!
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February 9, 2007
A fellow writer on one of my loops will be attending the Miami Fun in the Sun writing conference and asked for advice pitching editors and agents. I rattled off my suggestions, and then I realized, HEY–blog post!
Without further ado, here are my pearls of wisdom/opinion:
1) Have a 30 second pitch.
This does NOT have to be 25 words, as dictates popular opinion. But you should be able to tell the POINT of your book very quickly.
Ex: It’s about an ogre helping a princess to escape marriage to a… It’s about a boy and his little sister who discover an extra terrestrial in their shed and decide to… Etc.
If this is tough, try it my “modified GMC” way:
[Heroine] wants [goal] because [motivation] but [conflict] leads to [disaster].
[Hero] wants [goal] because [motivation] but [conflict] leads to [disaster].
Ideally, their conflicts intersect and their motivations clash. (or v.v.)
2) Know your story.
By this, I mean know the story’s details that are going to matter to the agent/editor. They need genre. They need wordcount. They need hook. They need to know whether it’s completed. If the agent doesn’t get this info, she can’t pitch it to editors. If the editor doesn’t get this info, she can’t pitch it to her sales/marketing team.
Ex: Ewoks Gone Wild is a completed, 90k word romantic comedy.
Casper the Friendly Ghost Writer is a completed, 60k sexy paranormal with romantic elements.
3) Ask the editor/agent
After you’ve given them the basic details (which, if you’ve been reading closely, should cover the first, say 45 seconds) then ASK them what else they want to know. And be prepared to answer. They might say:
* Tell me all about your heroine
* What makes her different/stand out?
* Tell me all about your hero
* What makes him heroic?
* What’s keeping them apart?
* What makes them perfect for each other?
* Tell me all about your antagonist/conflict
* How does it end?
* What is the heat level?
* I don’t like that name. Do you have other ideas?
I have gotten all of these questions at some point. No, you won’t get them all at once–usually the editor/agent just asks one or two pointed questions to try to get at the meat of your story. And also no, this is not a definitive list–they surprise me with something new every time. =)
4) Get to know the agent/editor
If it’s an agent, remember that YOU are hiring HER. If you don’t hit it off as PEOPLE, then there’s no point pursuing a contract where you’ll give someone you don’t like/trust/whatever 15% of your income. You might ask things like:
* How do you communicate with your clients? (email, phone, etc)
* What is your process for submitting books to editors?
* How involved are you with plotting/editing before submission?
If it’s an editor, this is the person who will make or break whether your book goes to print and how it looks when it gets there. This is the perfect time to start compiling a mental list of her pet peeves, so that you DON’T MAKE THEM. Some are legit. Some are personal preference. It doesn’t matter. You will have to adhere. This is also a good time to find that editor’s soft spot, so you can tailor to her desires.
Ex, Anna Genoese, Tor:
* big fan of serial commas (legitimate professional preference)
* not fan of princesses after love (personal preference)
* sucker for sexy scientist heroes (personal preference)
5) But ABOVE ALL, before you do any of this, do your homework.
All of the agents and editors are listed on conference web sites–any legitimate conference you go to.
* Read the bios
* Visit their web sites
* Check out their client lists
* Have you heard of any of their authors?
* Have you read any of their books?
* Have they sold/published any recently?
* What are they looking for?
* What are they NOT looking for?
Also, most conferences (Miami Fun in the Sun included) ask participants to list their top 2 or 3 agents/editors so that they can try to match them right books with the right buyers.
Make your choices based on the above “homework” so that you go in there with a “OMG, I gotta have it” mark in your favor, not a “god, what would I do with a story like this?” mark against you.
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