‘Tis the season for people to hit the road on vacation. It’s also the season for Twitter Pitching. You heard me. Twitter Pitching: writers pitching their books to agents and editors on Twitter. It’s not just a thing, it’s a really big thing!
Even though Twitter pitch events take place all year long, the second half of the year features some big ticket events like #PitMad, #PitWars, and #SFFPit. So how do you participate in a Twitter Pitch Contest.
1. Pick Your Contest(s)
For the most part, anyone can participate in many of these contests, as long as you’re submitting a work in one of the genres specified. Some, like #PitWars, require you to complete an application. Below is a short-list of some popular Summer/Autumn pitch contests to look out for.
June 7th, 2017 | #PG70PIT | Website
If you have a polished Middle Grade, YA, or Adult manuscript ready to go, leap into the Twitter Pitch pool with the #PG70PIT contest. Run by freelance editor and story consultant, Laura Willard, you not only have an opportunity to submit your work on Laura’s site, but also via Twitter.
June 8th, 2017 | #PitMad Twitter Pitch Party | Website
Run by author Brenda Drake, #PitMad takes place every quarter. This contest welcomes submissions from all genres ranging from Picture Books To Adults. The June event is the second one of the year. If your manuscript isn’t ready to pitch yet, don’t worry. There are two additional #PitMad dates this year: September 7th and December 7th, also from 8am to 8pm ET, so aim for one of those.
June 22nd, 2017 | #SFFPit Sci-Fi Fantasy Pitch | Website
The brain child of author Dan Koboldt, this event is only for submissions that fall under the category of Sci-Fi/Fantasy. All “age categories” (PB, MG, YA, and Adult) are welcome.
June 22nd, 2017 | #PBPitch | Website
#PBPitch is a Twitter pitch party exclusively for Picture Books. This contest also runs from 8am to 8pm ET.
June 28th, 2017 | #FaithPitch | Website
If your manuscript is faith-based, consider #FaithPitch from Little Lamb Books. This contest happens twice per year—the first was in February 2017. The one-day event gives writers the chance to tweet a pitch for their unpublished, but polished manuscript. Books for both kids and adults are welcome.
August 2nd-6th, 2017 | #PitWars | Website
Pitch Wars has gained tons of street cred over the years as one of the best pitch contests out there. A month-long blog tour takes place during which the year’s mentors are featured. The mentor list consists of published and/or agented authors and editors. You’ll then submit your manuscript for a chance to become a mentee. Each mentor picks one writer to work with. If chosen as a mentee, your mentor will read your full manuscript and work with you to prepare it for submission to an agent. Many mentees have gone on to receive offers of representation.
August 30th, 2017-September 3rd, 2017 | Pitch América | Website
This contest is geared toward Latinx writers working to enhance diversity in publishing. The entries will be open on midnight August 30th, 2017 until 11:59pm until midnight on September 3rd, 2017.
2. Know the Lingo
When you participate in a Twitter Pitch contest, not only do you need to keep your pitch brief, but you need to include the right hashtags to identify the type of project you’re pitching. Here are some examples of common hashtags:
| #PB = Picture Book | #MG = Middle Grade | #YA = Young Adult |
| #NA = New Adult | #A = Adult | #CB=Chapter Book |
| #M = Mystery | #Mem = Memoir | #LF = Literary Fiction |
| #R = Romance | #SF = Sci-Fi | #F = Fantasy |
| #T = Thriller | #W = Western | #WF = Woman’s Fiction |
For example, you might see a pitch like this next week in #PitMad:
A suspicious bear time travels from the 60s to solve mysteries with an anxiety-ridden flamingo in FUZZY PAWS, P.I. #CB #PitMad
Be sure to review contest guidelines for the appropriate hashtags.
3. Prepare Your Submission Package
Once you’ve picked your contest(s), you’ll need to:
- Read the contest requirements and guidelines. Have we mentioned this enough?
- Make sure your manuscript is polished and ready to go on the day.
- You’ve got 1-3 compelling tweets prepared. The number allowed depends on the contest. You can also use Twitter scheduling tools to make sure your pitches are evenly spaced out (see below).
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4. Brush Up On Your Twitter Skills
If you’re not familiar with Twitter and interested in jumping into upcoming events, it’s not too late. All you need is a Twitter crash course—Twitter Pitch Contest-style. Check out my video demo below on the basics:
YouTube
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5. Get Your Tech Ready
If you don’t have a Twitter account, sign up for one today. It’s free and you don’t need to have any followers to participate in one of these contests. Do, however, write an intriguing Twitter bio for yourself and upload a nice profile pic. Do not make this a selfie you took in your bathroom. Trust us on that one.
Check out tools like Hootsuite, Buffer, or Twittimer. We use a great tool called Social Pilot. All of these are great for scheduling your tweets throughout the day. Also, Hootsuite and Tweetdeck allow you to set up a column to follow the contests’ official hashtags.
Know Before You Tweet
Now that you know a little more about these contests and how they work, here are Steph’s suggestions.
- Don’t query an incomplete project. If you only have 5k left to write, that’s awesome, but then you still have to go through rewrites and edit your work. An agent or editor will expect your manuscript to be ready to go. Be a pro and make sure it is before you tweet.
- Don’t “like” a fellow writer’s pitch. What we mean by that is, don’t click the Like button on a pitch that you appreciate. You can, however, reply to the tweet or retweet it. Leave the liking to the agents and editors—unless the contest guidelines specify otherwise.
- Don’t junk up agents’ or editors’ twitter feeds by “mentioning” them. In case you’re new to Twitter, a mention is what happens when you include someone’s Twitter handle in a tweet. Here’s an example: Hey, @joeagent111 I really hope you like my pitch! Yeah, just don’t even go there.
- Be professional. Don’t criticize other writer’s pitches on Twitter. Be kind and supportive. Karma can be wicked, so put good things out into the world.
- Be prepared. Not only should your manuscript be ready to go, but have your query, synopsis, and a handful of tweets on the day.
- Track Your Tweet Success Rate! Use our handy tracker below to help you track those tweets that perform the best.
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