If you are a writer of books, whether fiction or non-fiction, there will come a time when you must pitch your book. Now I don’t mean toss it into the trash, although you may feel like doing that during the writing process. 🙂 

By pitching I mean presenting your book idea to an agent or editor in a succinct statement. I like to call it an “elevator speech” because it should be short enough to state during an elevator trip between the first and second floors. 

What are the characteristics of an outstanding pitch: 

1) Brevity. The pitch should be short enough to state in 30 seconds or less. 

2) Substance. The pitch should summarize the essential message of your book. 

3) Clarity. The pitch should clear and to the point. 

Pitches resemble the blurbs that are published on the back of book covers. Take some of your favorite books and analyze the cover blurbs. Then craft a pitch for your book that will cover the three characteristics listed above. 

Finally, practice your pitch over and over before you actually present it to an editor or agent. By then, if you’ve practiced enough, you should know your pitch as well as you know your name. 🙂