Perfect Your Pitch – Perfect Your Style

Today’s post is a double-header. Our good friend, Diane Holmes from Pitch University, gives us her top five conference pitch tips.

Also, nailing the perfect pitch is just as important as making a favorable first impression when you’re face-to-face with the agent/editor of your dreams. Carrie and Jen share their favorite fashion sites and a few quick tips on what to wear.

First up, Diane Holmes from Pitch University. Welcome back, Diane!

5 Pitch Tips to Turn Your Conference Pitch Appointment into a big HECK, YES!

#1 Pitch Creation – Turn off your Writer Brain and turn on your Reader Brain. What did the reader experience after reading the first fifty pages? As a reader, you were interested by something cool (character or story), then another cool thing (usually story). Say that.

(Hint: If it’s hard to switch gears, reformat the first part of your MS into a “book,” print off, and read on the beach. *grin* )

#2 Pitch Accuracy – I’ve yet to read a pitch or query that actually matches the real pages of the book. Yes, I’m serious. (Read the Pitch U Case Studies, to see what I’m talking about.)

It’s fine to keep working on the words of your pitch, but your pitch is probably WAY off. Find a Beta reader willing to read your first 50 pages then have them verbally tell you what they’d tell a friend your book was about. Oddly, they’ll tell you something really short. Imagine that.

(Most critique Partners fall into the trap of trying to “play with the words” of the pitch. So find that Beta Reader!)

#3 Test Drive Your Pitch – What if you knew before the conference that your pitch was likely to work? What if you weren’t worried about the words or your presentation? Yeah, what a relief. Pitch University is the only online venue that is focused on pitch practice, but many writer’s groups are starting to have meetings devoted to pitch practice. If yours doesn’t do this yet, suggest it!

NOTE: Romance University and Pitch University are partnering for a June 19 – 25, 2011 PitchFest at Pitch U to help YA and Romance writers get ready for RWA Nationals (or any conference). You’ll be pitching (and practice pitching) to Vickie Motter of Andrea Hurst & Associates, Jenny Bent of The Bent Agency, Lucy Carson of the Fiedrich Agency, and more! Preference will be given to writers from Romance U. (More details about this at the end of the post.)

#4 Unique Strategies in Pitch Practice – One of the biggest things that will throw you off when giving a pitch is that pitch appointments are run like races: ready, set, go! We writers are not GO people. So, prepare yourself by working with another writer, your family, or even the UPS guy. Go stand across the room. When you hear GO, race-walk across the room, sit down, and deliver that pitch. (For the UPS guy, it’s fine to race-walk down the driveway, lean on the mailbox, and shout the pitch over the sound of the diesel engine.)

#5 Working with Abject Terror – Okay, I’ll never be totally without that nervous feeling when pitching, but no more abject terror. One way to really reduce your fears is to forget this notion that you should memorize your pitch.

If notes are good enough for ToastMasters International, they’re good enough for you! Unless you’ve had training or held a job that has trained you to memorize , you’re likely to either go blank or say everything in a monotone rush. Either way, it’s not good. Instead, create your short pitch and make notes of keywords. Let the keywords remind you of what you want to say, then look back up, smile, and talk about your story.

What other conference pitching problems do you have? I’ll be checking the comments today and offering solutions.

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You want to look “put together for Nationals.” Like a professional author. Instead, you’re freezing, and your nose is running from the Arctic chill of the air conditioning in the hotel or you’re sweating like a pig because of the humid New York summer weather.

Perfect Your Style

First, almost everyone attending conference will be traveling. Via plane, train or automobile, no matter how you get to New York, you’ll need clothes that travel well, that don’t require ironing, and make you look stylish and professional. It’s tempting to toss all of your favorite outfits into a suitcase, but don’t forget about the atrocious baggage fee if your suitcase is overweight. Will that fourth pair of shoes tip you over the weight limit?

Clothing: Lightweight, separates. Oh, you’ve heard this over and over. A mix and match wardrobe. Snort. We’re serious. They say black is boring, but when considering a travel wardrobe, black is your best friend.

We’ve put together a list of our favorite shopping websites:

Coldwater Creek

Can you see it? Mostly blacks and grays, with a few bright splashes. There’s literally hundreds of ways to change up the outfits and yet have them all match. And best of all, they’re wrinkle free. Gotta love the lightweight knits!

Chico’s

Check out the travel wear line at Chico’s. Again, mix and match, with a greater variety of colors. You’ll want to notice the accessories too!

J.Jill

J.Jill has a “Wearever” line of no-wrinkle knits, which are packable and stylish.

Boden

The Boden line, well known for their bright prints and quirky yet stylish clothing, is another one of our favorites. We like their assortment of dresses for every shape and size.

The fall collections are already hitting the stores, which is great news for you because that means summer items are on sale.

Accessories: Let’s face it, most of us are fiddlers. If we’re wearing a necklace and we’re nervous, that’s the first place our hands are going to go. Twisting rings, pulling on earrings, and jangling bracelets are distracting to the agent/editor you’re trying to impress. If you know you can’t leave it alone, leave it at home! Charm bracelets, metal bangles and long necklaces that are going to bang against the table every time you lean forward? Wear them AFTER the pitch session.

Hair: Picture yourself leaning forward, tilting your head as you listen and well, sweating. Is your hair in the way? Do strands get caught in your mouth when you move your head? If so, think of a simple pulled-back style. A low ponytail, chignon, French braid. Here as well, keep the accessories to a minimum.

Makeup: I’m a face sweater. It starts on the side of my face, and eventually ends up dripping off my ears. The sides of my hair get wet, and when I’m really stressed, it will actually drip off my bangs. Short of wearing a Rambo-style headband, what do I do about makeup? There’s so many waterproof and smudge proof products out there, that a trip to any department store will set you up in style. Revlon offers a light foundation, Revlon ColorStay Active Light Makeup SPF 25, that’s smudge-proof, sweat-proof and rub-off proof! Bobbie Brown mascara is waterproof and lasts…and lasts….and lasts. If you don’t normally wear lipstick, leave it off or dab on a bit of lip gloss. Try out all products before you leave home as well, an allergic reaction is not something you need at conference!

Shoes: Ah, the biggest dilemma of them all. A different pair for each outfit? Yikes! First and foremost, you’ll be on your feet for many hours out of the day. Think comfort. If you’re a Fashionista and can’t imagine leaving the sky-high stilettos at home, you can always pack a pair of ballet flats in a plastic bag and put them in the bottom of your purse or tote bag for a quick change when your need for comfort exceeds the need to be fashionable.

Here’s a link to the Gap’s City Flat:

These flats are foldable and fit into a handy carrying pouch.

As writers, we are also observers. And as such, take some time over the next week or two to observe your fellow man when they appear to be having a meeting. Does she twirl her hair? Does he lick his lips? Now take a few minutes to observe your own. Tics, trembles and twirling are surely something all agents have seen before, but the more you notice you’re doing it, the less likely you will during the actual pitch.

You want the agent/editor to remember you for your brilliant pitch, not for your fashion faux pas.

The best fashion advice? Don’t forget to smile.

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Are you pitching at Nationals this year or have you pitched to an agent/editor before? What are your favorite wardrobe choices when traveling? Share them with us!

Urban Fantasy writer C.J. Redwine is back for another installment of Query Writing 101 on Monday, June 6th.

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Bio: Diane Holmes is the founder and Chief Alchemist of Pitch University, the only no-cost, 100% free website devoted to learning how to verbally pitch your book and answer the question, “What’s your book about?” Pitching is the skill you need to sell your book to agents, editors, and ultimately, readers. And the best part about Pitch U? You learn directly from the experts who pitch books for a living: agents, editors, and experts.