Imagine me with a megaphone. Here, I sit bellowing at you – yes, you aspiring authors out there – because the madness and mayhem of #PitMad is coming.
While many know and love #PitMad, let’s give a quick explanation for those who don’t. The lovely and wonderful Brenda Drake has set up a pitch contest on Twitter. It happens quarterly, and the next one falls on December 1st 2016. Yes, the date is correct. That’s this Thursday!
Is it complicated?
No, it’s Twitter. 140 characters. Clearly written rules on Brenda’s website.
But, come on, what should my focus be?
140 characters is not a lot. Also, I’d highly suggest taking advantage of genre hashtags (i.e. #YA #UF for Young Adult Urban Fantasy). The link above leads to a list of shorthand just for this competition.
My top 3 tips going in:
- Follow the rules.
- Prepare ahead of time.
- Don’t participate if you don’t have a completed manuscript.
My top 3 when you get a request:
- Research first – look at websites, look at Absolute Write, talk to your peers, etc
- Submit only to those you trust / feel you can work with
- Include the tweet they picked even if they don’t request you to do so.
The last one makes the agents’ lives a lot easier. They go through hundreds of tweets for us, so be kind.
I’ve avoided contests since my contract, but I might participate if I don’t have edits clogging my free time. Feel free to comment below to get a free opinion on your tagline.
Good Luck!
Eli Celata 
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