Pitching at Conferences - My Point Was Proven!

So, I just got home yesterday from New York and the National RWA Conference and I had to post this as soon as possible. This is, in fact, something I have said over and over again, but the conference certainly proved my point. I'm talking about pitching at conferences.

As you know, one of the biggest reasons agents and editors do not find many authors at conferences stems from how writers sign up for the sessions. As I have pointed out, most writers just grab any appointment slot they can get their hands on to sell their story. There is no ounce of research done. There is not thought to why they would pitch their story to a given agent or editor. They just grab. Needless to say, because their isn't that careful thought, writers will more than likely see a rejection later on. Sure, they may get a request but that doesn't mean anything. Remember, I have told you that many editors and agents will request from everyone regardless of whether they like the story or not.

In any case, I took my pitches on Thursday morning. This was my scheduled 2 hours of pitches. I will have to say, this year was the first when writers came in who actually did their research, read the blog, and knew what I was looking for. I requested from the majority of writers. As you know, if the story doesn't work for me, I have no problem saying no.

Following the session, as I walked out of the room, I saw the numbers of writers trying desperately to get any slot that opened up. So, I offered to come back on Friday morning and take another round of pitches. This is where the point was made. Since these were not scheduled, the only people who would have signed up were people just looking for any slot. They didn't research, they didn't know what they were getting into.

The results?

Out of that 2 hour block, I passed on over 75% of the stories. The simple reason? The authors were pitching stories I didn't even represent.

Do I know this was something happening time and time again? There is no doubt about it. I saw authors pitching up to 3 and 4 times. I also spoke to several authors that told me 2 or 3 editors, from vastly different publishing houses, requested full manuscripts. Knowing what the publishers put out there, and knowing that one story could not be that flexible told me writers were throwing darts again.

The point is, as a writer, you have to do your research. Your story does not fit with anyone. Along the same lines, just because an editor or agent is available does not mean you can pitch. Agents are available 24/7, 365 days out of the year to make a pitch to. And with editors, if the publisher doesn't accept unagented submissions, the odds are, even if you do pitch, they will pass on it because you don't have an agent.

I hate to say this but, "I told you so."

Scott