Hi all!
Since a lot of pitch parties are coming up on Twitter, I thought I'd share some tips with you all!
I have participated in a few pitch parties, and they're really fun! Not only can you pitch your book using hashtags that agents and publishers are looking through, but you can see everyone else's pitches too. The big thing to remember is that even if you don't get any interest from agents or publishers, that doesn't mean you can't query them anyway. They may not have seen your pitch, or didn't like the way you pitched your book. Either way, don't let that stop you from querying them if you want to.
Do:
Read the rules.
Make sure your book fits the genre and age group listed if there are any. Don't rule yourself out before you've even started.
Use the correct hashtags.
Make sure your hashtags are correct and fit your genre, other wise the agents you're looking for will struggle to find you.
Have four or five different pitches.
Twitter will delete duplicate tweets, so make sure you switch up the wording and hashtags in each tweet. Also, don't post the same pitch over and over. Mix it up!
Schedule your tweets.
When I participated in the parties I wasn't able to post the pitches all day because I was at work. So I used TweetDeck to write my pitches and choose a time of day for them to come out. Make sure you use a test tweet beforehand!
Retweet others pitches.
If you see a pitch you like, retweet it! That author will be grateful and may even retweet yours. If more people retweet your pitch then you're more likely to get noticed by agents.
Explain the main plot of your book.
I know it's hard to squeeze it into so little characters, but you can do it. Don't pick a subplot or minor character to focus on when your MC is off doing something else.
Research before you query.
Unfortunately, vanity publishers and fake agents love these events. Make sure you research carefully before sending anyone anything. There have been cases of fake accounts being set up to pose as agents and reject every author who queries them. Check their page, is it new? Does it have many followers? How many tweets are there?
Have fun!
Don't get disappointed if you don't get any likes from agents. Out off all the parties I participated in, I only got two likes. One was a vanity publisher and the other was a dodgy agency. Just enjoy yourself.
Don't:
Like others pitches.
It's in the rules, just don't do it.
Get angry if people like your pitch.
Not everyone knows the rules, just ignore it and move on. Don't call them out in a mean way, they just liked your tweet.
Bash anyone else's pitch.
It's rude, and it won't get you noticed.
Post duplicate tweets.
As I said before, Twitter will delete them. Switch up the words and hashtags every so often so your tweets stay up.
Schedule tweets to post exactly on the hour.
That's when most people post, go for a more obscure time like 13:21. It means that your tweet won't get lost immediately in the influx of posts on the hour. The less posts there are at that time, the more likely you are going to get noticed.
Use pictures.
Most pitch parties don't allow them as it's a way to sneak more words in. Check the rules to see if you can post pictures.
Participate in every pitch party.
There are so many, and some will not fit your book. If you're writing erotica, there's no point in doing #SFFpit. If you're writing fantasy, don't participate in #KissPitch. Make sure you participate in the correct ones.
That's it for this week! Hope you found it useful, and good luck to anyone participating in upcoming pitch parties!
See you next week.