Hi friends! It’s officially Pitch Wars season and I am super excited for this year’s batch of mentees. If you are unfamiliar with Pitch Wars, it’s a mentorship program allowing unagented authors to apply to work with published authors. Mentors give feedback on their mentee’s manuscript, query, and synopsis and help them devise a pitch. At the end of the mentorship, there is a showcase for the mentees, and agents request the manuscripts of any books they are interested in. It’s how I landed my agent earlier this year, and overall, it’s a pretty amazing experience. The application window for this year’s Pitch Wars opens on September 27th and closes September 29th. I would highly recommend the Pitch Wars process to any authors who are looking for an agent, and as someone who was very nervous at this time last year, I thought I would share some of my tips for the first phase of the Pitch Wars experience, the application and the waiting period.
Application
*My first piece of advice when it comes to applying to Pitch Wars is simple: do it. It’s free, it’s simple (once you have your materials), and really, what have you got to lose? There’s no harm in trying!
*Do your research! Not only should you explore the Pitch Wars website, but also take a look at the mentors. Learn about them and check out their social media (and their books if so desired) to get a feel for who you might want to work with.
*Aim to have your materials (query letter, one page synopsis, and first chapter) ready a few days early so you’re not rushing around trying to revise at the deadline.
*Even though you only have to submit your first chapter, make sure you have a complete manuscript ready to go when you apply. Mentors can ask for your full at any time!
*Read the mentors’ wish lists CAREFULLY. You might think you want to work with a particular mentor, but come to find out your manuscript isn’t a match for their list. Don’t sub a rom com to a mentor looking for dark fantasy.
*You’re allowed to apply to four different mentors. I highly recommend filling all four of those application spots. The more you submit to, the greater chance you have!
*Interact on the hashtags leading up to the application window. There will be lots of ways for you to ask questions, get info, and meet fellow writers, which you should definitely take advantage of.
*I will repeat this refrain often: Applying to Pitch Wars, being chosen for Pitch Wars, completing Pitch Wars can absolutely bring you success. Many mentees sign with agents. Many have gone on to sell their books. But none of this is guaranteed. As much as it seems to be the sole purpose of Pitch Wars, it’s really not. Pitch Wars (in most cases) will make you a better writer, give you a tribe of fellow writers to rely on, and help you put together the best submission package you can.
After the application window closes, the waiting game begins. And to be totally honest, as much as the waiting period is brutal (and it is) it’s one of the easier waiting periods in publishing because, if nothing else, you know when it’s going to end. This year’s mentees will be announced on November 7th, so you will for sure know by that date whether or not you were chosen. So how do you survive the waiting period?
Waiting Period
*Use this time to find your tribe. Last year during the Pitch Wars waiting period, I connected with a group of fellow waitees on Twitter (the easiest place for Pitch Wars interaction, in my experience). We still have a group going today. Having a group of people who are going through the same kind of agony as you is invaluable.
*Plan a NaNoWriMo project. Since mentees are announced early in November, use the waiting period to plan out a project. Getting started the final week of waiting will help keep your mind off the impending announcement.
*Write something new, preferably something not related to your Pitch Wars manuscript (which, should you be chosen, will undergo massive changes).
*Plan mental health breaks and self care. Figure out what works for you and make the time to do it.
*Be aware of social media overload and take breaks as needed. Some mentors will post little teasers of manuscripts they are reading. If that is going to torture you, then stay off Twitter when you can. Or mute #PWteasers if you don’t want to see any!
*Most (if not all) potential mentors will send an email if they are interested in your manuscript. They will ask for the full, and sometimes ask you questions about what you might like to change, what you might need help with, if there’s anything you absolutely won’t change, etc. BE HONEST. Some mentors will also send a follow up email after they’ve read your full manuscript, giving you an idea of potential edits they have in mind. This is another opportunity to BE HONEST (with your mentors and yourself). It is not unheard of for a mentor and mentee to have different ideas about the manuscript in question. That’s fine. Writing is subjective at every stage of the game. What is not cool is to say you are on board with potential changes, and then when chosen, decide not to make them. If a potential mentor makes suggestions you are not comfortable with, let them know. BE HONEST.
*Do your best not to dwell. I know that is easier said than done, but honestly, once you have turned in your application, there is little you can do to change your fate, so try to put the whole thing out of your mind.
*It’s worth repeating: Use this time to find a tribe!
Questions From Followers
What was the hardest part? I’ll be addressing this question in each of my Pitch Wars posts because there are a lot of hard parts when it comes to participating in Pitch Wars. Just being totally, brutally honest here, it is one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life and I went through nineteen hours of labor. Pitch Wars was like three months of labor (only a slight exaggeration). But if I haven’t terrified you with that, the hardest part of the application is just getting to that point with the materials where you feel like they are “done”. Obviously the purpose of Pitch Wars is to revise your manuscript, so in no way is it expected to be perfect when you apply, but of course, you want to feel good about it when you send it off. The hardest part of the waiting period is of course, the waiting! It was hard for me personally to focus on anything else during the six weeks or so of waiting, but I leaned a lot on my fellow mentee hopefuls, took time for self care, and started writing a new manuscript to help keep me busy.
Does each mentor/mentor team only pick one mentee? Typically, yes. Every once in a while there will be an exception, but most mentors only have time for one mentee (it’s a lot of work on their end too).
Did you feel ready when you applied? This is an interesting question. When I applied, I had queried my Pitch Wars book already, it had gone out to about 25 agents and had an okay response. I think I got three full requests? So I knew it was at least piquing interest, but it didn’t have the follow through in order to really sell it. So I knew it had something, but I also knew it needed work (which again, is what Pitch Wars is for). That being said, I am the kind of writer that has a hard time seeing something as “done”. I haven’t looked at my PW manuscript since I went out on sub because I know if I do, I will find things I want to change. So I felt as ready as can be in the situation I suppose!
I’ll be doing a couple more of these blog posts as we go through the Pitch Wars process, including what to expect if you make it, what to do if you don’t, surviving the showcase, and the often forgotten, what happens after Pitch Wars is over. Please do not hesitate to let me know if you have any questions you want me to answer about the Pitch Wars process! DM me on Twitter @falonloveslife or on Instagram @coffeebookswinerepeat, or email me at coffeebookswinerepeat@gmail.com and I’ll include them in future posts (or respond to you directly). I’m here to support potential mentees and cheer you all on!
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