Monday night I served on the panel
of judges for Pitchapalooza here in Kansas City. I wasn’t sure what to expect,
but it turned out to be great fun—and very useful to the people who attended
from all the feedback I heard.
What is Pitchapalooza? It was billed
as “American Idol for Books, only without the Simon Cowell.” Rainy Day Books,
Kansas City’s top independent bookstore, brought in The Book Doctors, AKA Arielle Eckstut and David Henry Sterry, a married couple who wrote the book, The Essential
Guide to Getting Your Book Published: How to Write It, Sell It, and Market
It...Successfully! (Workman
Publishing). To promote their book, the Book Doctors have been traveling
the country offering Pitchapalooza.
People attend and buy their book. From the total number of book buyers,
twenty-five people are randomly selected. These twenty-five writers have one
minute—and only one minute!—to pitch their book to a panel that consists of the
Book Doctors and two local writers or editors or bookstore owners. At the end
of the minute, two members of the panel give feedback to try to help make the
pitch more effective. At the very end, we would select the top pitcher, and the
Book Doctors would make a connection for that writer with the editor and agent
that they thought right for her or him. Last year’s Kansas City winner received
a three-book contract from a major publisher, so the stakes were high.
For all the comparisons to American Idol, there was little similarity. We
were not only kinder than those judges, but we gave feedback that was genuinely
designed to help the writer making the pitch with little thought to how
cleverly it was phrased or how snarky we could get. I was there to deal with
those pitching novels while the other local member of the panel was a
nonfiction editor at a local nonfiction publishing house. I was warned that
most pitches were nonfiction, so I anticipated only having to give feedback
once or twice.
Wrong! All but two of the pitches were for novels. So I was up just about
every time. What they don’t tell you is how challenging this format is for the
judges, as well as the writers who only get one minute. That’s all the time the
judges had also to listen and understand, and we couldn’t have them repeat it.
We didn’t have much time to give feedback, either, so we had to zero in right
away on the major strengths and weaknesses. It was dizzyingly fast!
Still, it was fun to hear the different ideas for novels and characters,
as well as to try to help them improve. I was pleased at the overall high level
of the pitches. There are a lot of good writers out there. One of our
twenty-five passed on his chance to pitch because he said he was learning so
much from listening to everyone else’s and the comments. I was also surprised
at how entertaining it was. Some of these pitches were very original.
In the end, we chose a lucky winner, and the rest of the writers who
pitched got valuable assistance with their pitches while those in the audience
were entertained and educated in the art of the pitch themselves. I came away
with my brain spinning and convinced that Pitchapalooza is a great opportunity
for writers. If you’re in a city where the Book Doctors bring Pitchapalooza,
I’d recommend attending, even if only for the entertainment.
Linda, it sounds like fun, but a little intimidating, too. It would be hard to listen to something only once and then remember it especially when you would hear so many.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds a little like Murder-go-round at Malice Domestic, but at least they each have three minutes. Still, I know at the end of it, unless I take notes, I have a hard time remembering what books I wanted to get.
Linda, Thanks for the information. I have heard of it before but I guessed it was primarily a way for the book doctors to sell their books. It sounds like fun.
ReplyDeleteGloria, it went too fast to be intimidating. You just have to put all your focus on listening to the pitch and then giving feedback, so you spend the entire evening in this extreme state of focus.
ReplyDeleteWarren, I felt just that way when I was first asked to do it, so I checked with a writer friend who had gone when the Book Doctors were in KC the year before. She told me it had been quite useful, so I decided I would join the panel.
ReplyDeleteI suspect that, if you hadn't bought the book before you sat through Pitchapalooza in the audience just listening, you would afterward.
Duh, how can anyone give sensible feedback on a 60-second pitch? Or even a 30-minute pitch? How would Melville have pitched Moby Dick?
ReplyDeleteMelville: 'Gentlemen, my idea is the very quiddity of the human agon! Man meets fish, fish hurts man, man kills fish, fish kills man.'
Judges: 'We'll let you know... in 70 years time.'
Sorry, but Pitchapalooza sounds to me as daft as an Islamic beauty contest where every contestant must appear naked - but wearing a burkha:)
Well, John, that's certainly an interesting opinion. However, if you want to interest an agent or editor in your book, you will most likely need to be able to make a convincing pitch that intrigues her or him enough to ask to see the manuscript.
ReplyDeleteI suspect that, if Melville were alive today writing Moby Dick, the only way he'd be able to publish it would be as a self-published e-book.
I love the idea of Melville self-publishing! So true!!! Thx so much for posting about your experience. You were a wonderful judge. Hope to see you next time we are in KC. Cheers, Arielle
ReplyDelete