By Cindy Sproles @CindyDevoted

I recently corresponded with a writer who told me she attended a conference where pitching your work seemed to be “the thing”, but at the same time, there were no classes to help her learn how to pitch. This greatly disturbed me because, though pitching your work is important  – it is only important if you have something to pitch. 

Having said that, I wanted to address some misnomers and see if we can help make your next conference not only more enjoyable but also, more productive.

Let’s back up a few steps to those 15-minute appointments. They are absolutely a wonderful tool for you to access but those appointments are not there to rush you into something.

They are there for several reasons:

1. They are there for you to network – If you don’t have a completed project, take 15 minutes to get to meet an agent or editor – even a publisher. Connect with them. Share your thoughts on things you are working on and ask questions, such as: Is this trending now? Or does your house have success with these types of books?
2. Use the appointment to get feedback on a project – Let the person across the table read a page or so and then ask for honest feedback. Be willing to hear and accept what they offer.
3. Do a paid critique – These are valuable to help you pinpoint areas that may need work. And it’s practice for when you are ready to place your work out there.
4. Pitch a project if you have a project to pitch – I get blowback on this from time to time but here’s my thinking. A lot (I won’t say all – but a lot) of publishers prefer a first-time author to have completed their work. They may love what you do and how you write but having a completed work does two things: 1) It shows you can write a book from beginning to end. You would be surprised at the folks who can polish three chapters to perfection but then they fall short on the remainder of the book. I believe it’s because they get in a hurry.  2) A completed work is worth contract consideration. I once contracted a book on three chapters and a proposal from an author who took three years to finish. Hence why I don’t do that anymore. It only took once for me to learn that was not a good idea. If you are a new author, don’t stress to pitch what you do not have. There are better uses of your time. A finished, well-written book is what we look for and those are worth contract consideration.

Editors, agents, and publishers are at conferences to help you learn. Honestly, they hope to find the diamond in the rough but most have learned that this is rarely the case.  The presence of these professionals is not to put pressure on you to pitch. Most only want you to pitch what you have completed, otherwise, allow them to look over your work and offer you some valuable guidance.  

Here is where you call me Captain Obvious – but writers attend conferences to learn and especially if you are a new writer. That is what you should expect to gain from attending. Knowledge. I would rather chat with you about where you are in your writing career and ask how can I help, as opposed to having you pitch me something that you are not ready to pitch. 

Take the stress off. Relax. Decide how you can best utilize those professionals who are there. You can’t land an agent on an idea. They can’t sell just an idea. They need a completed manuscript to shop for publishers. 

Here’s another thing to consider. Let’s say you are a more advanced writer and you do have a completed work ready to pitch. Make that one sheet. The one-sheet brings up different opinions from different folks but here is why I want you to make a one-sheet. I want you to have it in your hand to use as you learn to pitch to agents and publishers. A one-sheet will have your hook and the enticing information that might be considered back book text. It’s what draws the reader in. It is what you will use to entice an agent or editor about your story. When I was coming up through the ranks, I had an author tell me in a class, “You should be able to bolt outta of bed in the middle of the night and spout out your elevator pitch.” That’s well and good if you are not someone who falls over their words, or is lousy at memorizing, i.e. me. A one-sheet can serve as your memory and take the stress out of pitching your book. I would prefer you read me, word for word, what is on your one-sheet to pitch me your story than to have you stumble and panic because you can’t remember what you wanted to say.  Having a one-sheet is not going to make or break you, but it will certainly serve as a help to keep you on track when you are pitching your book. Let it be your memory to help you present a clear and concise view of your story.

Pitching your book is not the most important thing you do at a conference. Learning is, but it’s an opportunity. It’s up to you if you are ready to take hold of the opportunity at that particular time – and if you aren’t, it’s fine. Don’t stress over it. Instead, spend quality time learning. All too often writers get things out of order when conference time arrives, then when they find rejection it’s devastating. I’ve seen new writers quit because they were pitching a story that wasn’t ready to pitch. Remember, this is an opportunity – one that is at each conference you attend. Learn the craft. Write a story. Polish it. Pitch it.  

I have great faith that you will learn the process. Remember, we all have to learn. Now, dig in and learn. 

Cindy K. Sproles is an author, speaker, and conferenceteacher. She is the cofounder of ChristianDevotions.us and the executive editor of ChristianDevotions.us and InspireaFire.com. Cindy is the managing editor forStraight Street Books and SonRise Devotionals, both imprints of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas. She is an award-winning and best-selling author and the director of the Asheville Christian Writers Conference. Visit Cindy at www.cindysproles.com. @cindydevoted