There are two kinds of pitches.
The shorter one is called an elevator pitch or comparison pitch. It compares your book with at least two other IPs (Intellectual Properties) to give the potential reader an idea of what the book is about. They are usually a sentence or two. For example, The Finder of the Lucky Devil is the Dresden Files meets Shadowrun. This one is good to use when someone on the fly asks you what your story’s about in an elevator or some place where you don’t have a lot of time.
The other kind is a story hook pitch, which is the most common one I do at the table, and this is typically in three parts.
First, you state something general about the world your story is in: This takes place in a world where magic and technology are in competition with each other.
Second, you state who the story is about: We follow Rune Leveau; she has a magical talent for Finding things. She meets a cybernetically altered corporate spy who wants her to help him find a wanted criminal called Anna Masterson.
Now you’ll note that I named two characters and not the third. You do not have to name your characters and it is often more succinct in the pitch if you don’t because the reader is not going to remember, anyway. But there is a purpose for me doing it here, as you will see in the next section.
Third section, ask or imply a question that only reading your book can answer: The problem is, she IS Anna Masterson.
The whole thing: This takes place in a world where magic and technology are in competition with each other. We follow Rune Leveau; she has a magical talent for Finding things. She meets a cybernetically altered corporate spy who wants her to help him find a wanted criminal called Anna Masterson. The problem is, she IS Anna Masterson.
Hopefully, now, the reader’s head should be swimming with the question, What will the cyber spy do when he finds out?
If it is a compelling enough question to them, they usually raise their eyebrows, their eyes get wide, and they say, “Oh!” Then I know I got them; that doesn’t necessarily mean I sold the book, but I did hook their interest. At this point, I will turn the book over and hand it to them to read the back copy, which is different from my story pitch and includes more information about the world.
If your customer handles the book before you hand it to them, let them! People are more likely to buy things they touch. I will sometimes hand the book to people at the top of the pitch, but this is something you’re going to have to judge in the moment.
Here are other examples of my different pitches for my different books to give you more ideas:
The Vilification of Aquamarine: Wannabe Superhero. Aquamarine is trying to break into the superhero business. Her problem is she can only manipulate a cup of water at a time, which is not very effective. Then when she goes up against Overlord of the Dance, she discovers there is a cup of water in the human heart…
The Prisoner of the Dead: Post Post Zombie Apocalypse. The zombie apocalypse happened generations ago, and then for some unknown reason the zombies just got better, only for the outbreak to happen again. And again. And again. And now humanity is trapped in a cycle of life, death, and rebirth. In this world a wild man goes into town to get a repair done he cannot do himself when the outbreak happens. Then he accidentally, but mostly on purpose, killed a man who was protecting a woman who may be the key to ending the cycle.
The Adventures of Pavlov and Schrodinger: Maxwell’s Demon: Mid-Grade Science Fiction. Pavlov was content to be a test animal for the Scientist, until the day the cat showed up. Schrodinger is not entirely sure if she exists or not. Mysteries of the universe, a journey through space and time, and a cat and dog in the middle of it all.
Saint Code: The Lost: Urban Fantasy/Cyberpunk. St. Augustina is cyber spy on a path of redemption, but when a job starts to get more and more personal, and she needs to find out before it’s too late.
Cookbooks and Demons: Paranormal Romance. Helena inherits her grandmother’s old church cookbook. The thing is… she doesn’t know how to cook …and somehow summons a demon.
Silverblood Scion: Epic Fantasy. Elaine is the last princess and Scion of a dead goddess that the local warlord wants to sacrifice to a demon to gain more power. The thing is since she’s the one making the sacrifice, the demon makes his deal with her.
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You can also follow Megan at her website: https://www.meganmackieauthor.com/
