Blogetary (Weblog + Commentary = Blogetary)

The BEA Writer’s Digest Conference was totally worth it. There is one panel I went to that I sort of wish I’d chosen differently and gone to a seminar on plotting, but on the whole, it was a good experience. I might get into it more in depth later, but for now, I’m pretty tired (and I still have that cold and gimp).

Part of the conference included the Pitch Slam Session that I was sure I wasn’t going to participate in. Let’s face it, what writer ever feels they’re ready? Really? Go back to anything you’ve written in the past and before you know it you’re tweaking it yet again.

Anyway, at lunch, someone asked if I was going to pitch and I said no, but I was going to watch and learn so I’d be ready next time.

I had texted a friend earlier who said if I didn’t pitch my book he would hunt me down… I knew he was joking but he was right. I had the opportunity now. I needed to take that opportunity and risk now. Who knows when I would have a next time? What’s the worse that could happen? They aren’t interested. So I go to the next agent. Or the next. Or if there aren’t any agents at the con who are interested, I try doing it the old-fashioned way.

I decide to think about it and leave the option open, but I figured I still wouldn’t go through with it.

Anyway, I scribbled notes in panels and seminars and made conversation with writers and agents and found my fellow scifi/fantasy geeks (is there such a thing as geekdar?) and by 3 pm, when the Pitch Slam started, I found myself in line after all, in front of my “dream agent” running through a 3 sentence blurb in my head, over and over and over again, thinking in between pitches, “Dammit! If I’d known I was going to do this, I woulda taken that class on pitching!”

There are at least 30 agents at this conference who represent literature in a number of areas. They have all written bios for the program to let you know what they are interested in and what stories they are looking for. The advice is to choose one dream agent to pitch to with a number of backups. The session goes for 2 hours and each person has 3 minutes. In the past, depending on the length of line of the agents you choose to pitch to, some people have pitched to 7 agents.

My dream agent couldn’t make it, but she sent her assistant. I thought about running out then, but decided to keep a stiff upper lip, stay the course, and all that rot…

As the line in front of me got shorter, I kept repeating my pitch, but it kept changing. Should I approach it this way or that way? I had only decided to do this around 2:45pm. At about 3:12 it was my turn. I pitched. It came out lame (I thought), courtesy of my “deer in the headlights” brain freeze, but I brazened it out and went on through it to the end. The assistant and I talked over a couple of points and while I think I can guess why he liked it, I’m still not sure. He liked something about it though, because I was given contact information and told to send him the first 2 chapters.

I couldn’t believe it. I just wanted to get up and leave right there. My 3 minutes weren’t even up. When it the timer yelled out “30 seconds” I hurriedly added my idea for the sequel, just in case. He may not remember that bit. I need to remember to add it to the query or synopsis.

I know it doesn’t mean I’ve sold anything, but still. It’s so cool. I’m so glad I tried it, whether or not I would have gotten a request.

Yes, I considered going to some other agents as well, but the other agents I was interested in were from the same agency he was in, so I decided that was enough for now.

I left the room in a daze and wandered around aimlessly in the hallways until I found an empty restroom with no one in it, went into a stall and promptly cried like a baby. Happy, scared, excited. My baby was going to finally be viewed by someone outside of immediate family and friends.

Then I went outside and called my friends and did a victory dance!

What this means, however, is that I will be incommunicado for a while as I work on the query letter, synopsis and polishing those chapters. You’ll probably hear from me no sooner than say mid Week. By then, if my brain is not all rotted from writing hibernation mode, then I’ll set up that Writer’s Market contest.

So, that’s the news for now!