By Penny Nolan
Eventually, you will need a pitch when submitting your book to an agent, publisher, or editor. It’s sometimes called an elevator pitch because you must convey the idea of your picture book quickly, as in an elevator. When writing a children’s book, you will have to sum up your book in 1-3 sentences. You don’t actually need it yet, but it may help you figure out problems in your story now. You can always change it later, and probably will.
The pitch consists of three parts:
1. Who is the main character?
2. What is the problem?
3. How will the problem be fixed? Hint at the solution
In simple terms - (This . . ., but . . ., so. . .)
Here is one of my pitches:
When the enormous mess in Jess’s room grows into a mischievous monster, Jess’s beloved guinea pig, Pipsie gets lost in the clutter. But clever Jess tricks the messy monster into having so much fun playing games, he loses himself as the room is cleaned – and helps find Pipsie!
So, take a look at your story. Make sure you know who or what the main character is, what their problem is, what is stopping them from getting to their goal, and what is the solution.
More on pitches, queries, synopsis, and submissions later.
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