WOTD: Pitch
Today's word of the day is pitch, the process of throwing a book against the wall to see if it will stick.
After a manuscript is written, "the pitch" is what gets it turned into a book. The pitch, in the form of a query letter, is made to an agent. The pitch, in the form of a submission, is made to an editor. The pitch, in the form of accounting projections, is made within a publishing house to put together an offer and allocate resources. The pitch, in the form of brochures and sales materials, is made to buyers at the chain and independent bookstores. The pitch, in the form of blurbs and marketing, is made to the public.
So it's a good idea for authors to study the art of the pitch.
I was watching TV last night instead of writing, but I'm calling that professional development time because what else are TV commercials but slick professionally-packaged pitches for us to learn from?
Case in point, commercials for two different cell phones, either of which could easily kick my current cell phone's butt. But which pitch is more likely to make me want to dump my current contract?
Pitch A: "Our phone has a feature that can identify any song it hears. Just hold the phone up to a radio, a speaker at the mall, or a TV set while a song is playing in the background. In just a few seconds you'll get the title and artist as well as a link to purchase a copy of the song and listen to it any time you want. Wow!"
Pitch B: "Our phone makes clicking sounds when you press the touchscreen. You may think you pressed too hard, so that something inside the phone is breaking, but no, it's supposed to sound like that. This is, apparently, the phone's most notable feature."
So, which pitch works better for selling cell phones? "Solving life's dilemmas one app at a time" or "What mad genius and his ten thousand co-workers would think up these stupid clicking noises?" The equivalent pitches in the book world would be something like this...
Pitch A: "When you hold my book up to a TV screen, the book characters come to life and interact with whatever show you were watching!"
or
Pitch B: "When you tear pages out of my book, it makes a loud ripping noise. You might think you're causing irreparable damage...and you are! Aaaaaugh! Why would you do that?!!"
I know which pitch I'm using with my next book.
After a manuscript is written, "the pitch" is what gets it turned into a book. The pitch, in the form of a query letter, is made to an agent. The pitch, in the form of a submission, is made to an editor. The pitch, in the form of accounting projections, is made within a publishing house to put together an offer and allocate resources. The pitch, in the form of brochures and sales materials, is made to buyers at the chain and independent bookstores. The pitch, in the form of blurbs and marketing, is made to the public.
So it's a good idea for authors to study the art of the pitch.
I was watching TV last night instead of writing, but I'm calling that professional development time because what else are TV commercials but slick professionally-packaged pitches for us to learn from?
Case in point, commercials for two different cell phones, either of which could easily kick my current cell phone's butt. But which pitch is more likely to make me want to dump my current contract?
Pitch A: "Our phone has a feature that can identify any song it hears. Just hold the phone up to a radio, a speaker at the mall, or a TV set while a song is playing in the background. In just a few seconds you'll get the title and artist as well as a link to purchase a copy of the song and listen to it any time you want. Wow!"
Click to viewPitch B: "Our phone makes clicking sounds when you press the touchscreen. You may think you pressed too hard, so that something inside the phone is breaking, but no, it's supposed to sound like that. This is, apparently, the phone's most notable feature."
So, which pitch works better for selling cell phones? "Solving life's dilemmas one app at a time" or "What mad genius and his ten thousand co-workers would think up these stupid clicking noises?" The equivalent pitches in the book world would be something like this...
Pitch A: "When you hold my book up to a TV screen, the book characters come to life and interact with whatever show you were watching!"
or
Pitch B: "When you tear pages out of my book, it makes a loud ripping noise. You might think you're causing irreparable damage...and you are! Aaaaaugh! Why would you do that?!!"
I know which pitch I'm using with my next book.