Twitter Pitching

by Margie Senechal
 
Yesterday, Nan and I both--unbeknownst to the other--participated in a twitter-pitch event for the Deidre Knight Agency. And we both received "likes" from Deidre Knight herself which means we get to send in the first three chapters of the project we pitched.

Liz hadn't heard of twit pitches and wondered how it was done. I've done a few of them--however, this is the first time I've gotten results.

For me, the hardest part is whittling your pitch down to 140  characters, including hash-tags--which you need to get in the event.

So, I thought I'd let you see how I begin my process.

First stop: A short synopsis paragraph..and remember, this is my actual first draft..

Ten years ago, he had the song of the summer and it was about her. On the night of the Grammys, they shared one passionate night. Ten years later they're reunited for a VH-1 special. Will the passion be reingnited or will the secret she's hiding destroy any future they could've had. #TKA20 #CR

Then I went to Twitter and actually typed this into the box. And it was way over the character limit. So, I began the whittling and came up with this.

Reunited ten years after a night of passion, will the one-hit wonder singing sensation and his muse find their HEA? Or will the secret she's hiding destroy their reunion? #TKA #CR

So, this was actually closer to the limit, but still long. So, you--as the writer-have to figure out what's the most important message you want to send across and delete any repetition. 

For example, one-hit wonder is most often used with musicians, so did I need "singing sensation"? Probably not. It's out of here. And this was the final verson which came in with a character to spare.

When a one-hit wonder is reunited with his muse, will their passion reignite or will the secret she's hiding spoil their HEA? #TKA #CR

In case you're interested in trying out a twitter pitch, here's a link to a list of upcoming ones:
 http://carissa-taylor.blogspot.com/2013/01/contest-madness.html
I know it says 2013, but she updated it earlier this month. You can also just Google twitter pitches--which is how I came up with Carissa's list.

And if you'd like to practice, try out our comment box. I'll be checking in throughout the day and I can help you out. After all, I'm like 1 in 26+.