PitMads are mini battles for agent representation that take place on Twitter every few months, generally tagged as #PitMad. The latest friendly war for the valuable attention of agents took place today, September 3, 2020 from 8 am – 8 pm eastern time. Here are the winners and lessons of this PitMad 2020, as far as a first-time participant and observer. Of course everyone is a winner; some just won more than others.
“#PitMad is the original twitter pitch event, where writers tweet
a pitch for their completed, polished, unpublished manuscripts.
Agents and editors make requests by liking / favoriting the tweeted pitch.”
Pitch Wars
My main purpose in writing this is to track agent engagement in PitMads. My first twitter event was #SFFPit (a science fiction & fantasy event) a few months ago, and agent involvement there seemed very low. It’s already obvious that far more agents participate actively in PitMad, and rumors are that Tweets + RTs exceeded 300k. Which is a lot.
Contents
- Top 25 #PitMad 2020 (Sep) Tweets
- 1 / Paulette Kennedy
- 2 / Zachary James
- 3 / Lisa Kingsley
- 4 / Chase Anderson
- 5 / Aldara Thomas
- 6 / Jordan Gray
- 7 / Nadi
- 8 / Carolyn A. Drake
- 9 / Daniel DeVita
- 10 / Gabi
- 11 / Erin L
- 12 / C.L.C. Hasz
- 13 / Mckayla
- 14 / Angelica Monai
- 15 / Marisa
- 16 / Manuia
- 17 / Catherine Downen
- 18 / AT Geiger
- 19 / Kiana Krystle
- 20 / Steph Jones
- 21 / Alexander James
- 22 / Michelle Stoddard
- 23 / Sara Seitz
- 24 / Emily Rae
- 25 / Brittany Kelley
- Observations about PitMad 2020 (Sep)
- More Information on PitMad & Pitch Wars
Top 25 #PitMad 2020 (Sep) Tweets
These are the PitMad tweets that worked best as of the end of PitMad at 8 pm ET. A lot of prospective authors did very well, garnering hundreds of re-tweets, dozens of likes and substantial agent interest. Note that all stats are taken sometime after the end of PitMad (and not all at the exact same time), and may have changed since. If any substantial corrections are needed, let me know.
1 / Paulette Kennedy
Paulette crushed it, with interest from a dozen or more agents for her adult historical fiction / horror novel. Her novel is a thematic mashup of Shirley Jackson‘s (The Haunting of) Hill House and Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic with a LGBT+ twist, which does sound pretty amazing.
HILL HOUSE x MEXICAN GOTHIC
Don’t go into the south wing
Don’t walk in the birch wood
And do NOT speak to the servantsBut rules are meant to be broken and Eliza’s new husband has secrets. The kind the dead don’t like to keep. #PitMad #A #H #HF #LGBT
— Paulette Kennedy says buy WHAT'S DONE IN DARKNESS (@pkennedywrites) September 3, 2020
The interested agents included:
- Lisa Abellera of KC Associates
- Melanie Castillo of Root Literary
- Erin Clyburn of JD Literary
- Jess Dallow of Brower Literary
- Samantha Fabien of Samantha Fabien Literary
- Dorian Maffei of KC Associates
- Michelle Richter of Fuse Literary
- A.M. Rose of Prospect
- Alec Shane of Writer’s House
- Suzie Townsend of New Leaf Literary
- Hannah VanVels of Belcastro
- Andrea Walker of Olswanger Literary
- Emmy Nordstrom Higdon of Rights Factory
The day I get a dozen (or more) agents interested in any of my books is the day I buy a G6. So, well done, Paulette. Note that I’ve left out interest expressed expressed by small publishers, self-publishing companies, etc. This is true for all tweets and authors.
2 / Zachary James
Zachary killed it at PitMad, pulling in mad retweets for his YA fantasy novel inspired my Mesoamerican mythology.
After the sacrifice of Yaakuna’s father, she is taken hostage and pitted against other sinners. The lone survivor must sacrifice themselves to stop an Apocalypse she doesn’t believe in, so she fights for all she has left. Her life.
Inspired by ancient Mesoamerica #pitmad #ya #f
— zacharyjamesofficial (@zacharyjamesof1) September 3, 2020
Oddly, Zachary did not get any agent likes, though Liza Kaplan of Philomel Books/Penguin seemed at least personally interested.
3 / Lisa Kingsley
Lisa pitched a middle grade (MG) novel like Spy Kids set in the Caribbean and told from a Black / Own voices perspective. Sounds like a blast.
SPY KIDS/CARIBBEAN🌴
12 y/o Ocean, a Black prodigy hacker w/ a knack for getting in trouble, is sent to a school for misfitsThrow in:
A nemesis roommate
A plot to shut down the school
A secret spy society
A bunch of #STEM-loving Black kids
& 1 naughty goat#MG #BVM #OWN #pitmad pic.twitter.com/a0AVvXBgN0— Lisa Springer (@lspringerwrites) September 3, 2020
Interested agents include, well, just about everyone:
- Lisa Abellera of KC Associates
- Marlo Berliner of JDC Literary
- Laura Bradford of Bradford Literary
- Karly Caserza of Fuse Literary
- Heather Cashman of Storm Literary
- Gemma Cooperof Bent Agency
- Rachel Ekstrom Courage of Folio Literary
- Kelly Dyksterhouse of Raven Quill
- Samantha Fabien of Samantha Fabien Literary
- Lauren Gardner of BLM Agency
- Josh Getzler of HG Literary
- Tara Gilbert of JD Literary
- Amy Guiffrida of JD Literary
- Christa Heschke of McIntosh Otis
- Lucy Irvine of PFD Agents
- Sarah Joy of WordServe Literary
- Emily Kaitlin of Bookends Literary
- Sarah Landis of Sterling Lord
- Natascha Morris of Tobias Literary
- Jas Perry of KT Literary
- Laura Rennert of Andrea Brown Literary
- Melissa Richeson of Storm Literary
- A.M. Rose of Prospect
- Sabu Sulaiman of Talcott Notch
- Rebecca Sherman of Writer’s House
- Jennifer March Soloway of Andrea Brown Literary
- Saritza Hernandez of Andrea Brown Literary
- Suzie Townsend of New Leaf Literary
- Maria Vicente of PS Literary
There are probably more, but damn. Hopefully, this means we’ll see this book in print soon. And then the movie. And then another book. And then…
4 / Chase Anderson
Chase’s adult memoir from a Black / POC / LGBT+ perspective pulled in massive likes and a lot of RT support. No comps were offered, but this sounds like a very interesting book.
https://twitter.com/ChaseTMAnderson/status/1301496882481438723
Unfortunately, Chase’s very enthusiastic friends didn’t follow the RT only (likes for agents) protocol, so there are nearly 2,000 likes to sort through to find agent interest. I’m sure there are several in there, but I’m not sure who they are. Fortunately, Chase was kind enough to send me what he found:
- Carrie Howland of Howland Literary
- Julie Gwinn of The Seymour Agency
- Sarah Phair of Sanford Greenburg
- Rena Rossner of The Deborah Harris Agency
- Suzie Townsend of New Leaf Literary
- Carly Watters of PS Literary
- Jennifer Weis of Ross Yoon Agency
- Desiree Wilson of The Bent Agency
5 / Aldara Thomas
Another top YA fantasy contender, Aldara earned hundreds of RTs and interest from several agents. Her comps were the Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis‘ famous fantasy and Christian-allegory series, and Shadow and Bone, the first book in Leigh Bardugo‘s Grisha fantasy trilogy.
SHADOW & BONE x NARNIA
When 17yo Hannah opened a portal into another world following clues left behind by her missing best friend, she only wanted her friend back. She didn’t expect to be the reincarnated moon goddess people have been waiting for to start a war. #PitMad #YA #F
— Aldara Thomas (@aldara_thomas4) September 3, 2020
Interested agents were:
- Analieze Cervantes of Harvey Klinger Literary
- Rena Rossner of The Deborah Harris Agency
- Jackie Williams of The Knight Agency
Though, as with all entries here, more may appear tonight and tomorrow. Good luck, Aldara
6 / Jordan Gray
Jordan’s YA fantasy / fairy tale retelling of Swan Lake and Shelby Mahurin‘s Serpent & Dove drew strong interest from Twitter and agents both. These cursed mirrors are always causing trouble.
Swan Lake x Serpent & Dove
Mila has 2 weeks to seduce a prince, search a palace of ghosts, and steal a cursed mirror. Succeed and the sorcerer will gift her magic. Fail and he'll turn her into a swan.
Too bad she's falling for the prince…and the sorcerer.#Pitmad #YA #FTA #F
— Jordan Gray (@JordanStephanie) September 3, 2020
Interested agents include:
- Jordy Albert of Booker Albert
- Samantha Fabien of Samantha Fabien Literary
- Hillary Harwell of KT Literary
- Chelsea Hensley of KT Literary
- Emily Kaitlin of Bookends Literary
- Tamara Kawar of ICM
- Dorian Maffei of KC Associates
- Lynnette Novak at Seymour
- Rena Rossner of The Deborah Harris Agency
7 / Nadi
Nadi’s adult paranormal novel drew attention from several agents in addition to hundreds of RTs–possibly due to the crazy combination of Fleabag (hysterical) and Beetlejuice (goofy). Great to see more POC and mental health perspectives in the mix.
FLEABAG x BEETLEJUICE
Mal ruined her own life. Then she died. But death is a fresh start. Between a mansion full of partying ghosts, and a medium willing to help with her unfinished business, she could fix the mess she left behind—or blow it off and party.#PitMad #A #P #POC #MH— Nadi Reed Perez (@nadireedperez) September 3, 2020
The interested agents include:
- Melanie Castillo of Root Literary
- Amy Elizabeth of DGB Literary
- Jolene Haley of Marsal Lyon Literary
- Tamara Kawar of ICM
- Lynnette Novak at Seymour
- Rena Rossner of The Deborah Harris Agency
- Katie Salvo at Metamorphosis
8 / Carolyn A. Drake
Carolyn pitched an adult paranormal fantasy inspired by Constantine (presumably, with Keanu Reeves) and The Hollows. Nothing worse than sloppy resurrection spells.
CONSTANTINE x THE HOLLOWS
When a work-obsessed pharmacist is killed & then resurrected by a bumbling witch, he has 3 objectives: 1) Conceal his new undead-ness, 2) Find the witch before her sloppy resurrection spell wears off, & 3) Don’t die. Again.#f #p #a #LGBT #own #PitMad
— Carolyn A. Drake (@Carolyn_A_Drake) September 3, 2020
Unfortunately, a great concept does not seem to have yielded agent interest just yet.
9 / Daniel DeVita
Daniel’s adult fantasy sounds like a great premise for epic warfare. Steel armor bolted to your bones? Send it.
On Eyorath, the feuds of Gods and Goddesses shape the rise and fall of nations. When an exiled God teaches his people to bolt steel armor to their bones, he ignites a brutal war of progress…one where the bond between humanity and nature itself is at stake.#PitMad #A #F
— Daniel Roman (@RomanWriting) September 3, 2020
While no agents had liked his post as of the end of Pitmad, Daniel did give me this update on Sep 4th: “I got a like on the tweet in your article from an intern at the Seymour Agency, who invited me to submit materials to Julie Gwinn (the agency’s VP). The query has been sent, and now it’s all to crossing fingers and waiting!” Good luck, Daniel!
10 / Gabi
Gabi’s young adult novel about a murdered Black casino owner is pitched from a Black and Own voices perspective, and looks like a great concept.
https://twitter.com/query_queen339/status/1301495498096943106
Agents interested include:
- Lisa Abellera of KC Associates
- Lynnette Novak at Seymour
11 / Erin L
Erin pitched a YA fantasy novel that combines elements of Hayao Miyazaki‘s Spirited Away (based on Japanese folklore) and The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Sounds like a scary ride…
SPIRITED AWAY x NIGHT CIRCUS
Stolen as a child and trapped in the Spirit World, Lira spends her days as a vengeful witch’s pied piper. Yet, when her music lures Owen to her carnival prison, his resolve to escape may free them both. Or cost her everything. #PitMad #YA #F
— Erin L (@ErinL1121) September 3, 2020
Interested agents include:
- Marlo Berliner of JDC Literary
- Karly Caserza of Fuse Literary
- Kelly Dyksterhouse of Raven Quill
- Christa Heschke of McIntosh Otis
- Dorian Maffei of KC Associates
12 / C.L.C. Hasz
C.L.C. is not afraid of periods or great YA pitches. Her novel is a mashup of Clueless (fun!) and The Fault in Our Stars (sad!), and the stars seemed to have aligned because interest is…out of this world. So many puns, but seriously, it sounds like a good read.
CLUELESS x FAULT IN OUR STARS When a NY socialite is caught shoplifting, she is sentenced to serve community service at a Hospital, cramping her plans for senior year. But when she forms a bond w/ an 8yo cancer-patient, her priorities shift to things money can’t buy. #Pitmad #YA
— C.L.C. Hasz (@life1ntroverted) September 3, 2020
The interested agents were:
- Sam B. Farkas of Jill Grinberg Literary
- Jennifer Herrington of HK Literary
- Jemiscoe at Andrea Brown
- Lynnette Novak at Seymour
- Katie Salvo at Metamorphosis
- Ann Leslie Tuttle of DGB
13 / Mckayla
McKayla combines the opulence and corruption of the Borgia‘s with the drug-based self improvement of Brave New World...with alien drugs. How can that go wrong?
BORGIAS + BRAVE NEW WORLD: Earth’s divided between the allure of a spiritual resurgence and an alien drug. When a spaceship carrying the Pope is commandeered by a drug lord, five Knights must decide to liberate it, or join the mutiny. #pitmad #A #SF #AD
— Mckayla | Litany of Lore (@litanyoflore) September 3, 2020
While there were no agent likes as of the end of PitMad, Mckayla did let me know )(see comments, below) that interest was expressed by John Baker of BLM Agency. Good luck with your novella!
14 / Angelica Monai
Angelica’s YA fantasy combines a melanated Katniss (from The Hunger Games, I assume) and the Japanese manga thematics of Attack on Titan for what sounds like good violent fun.
BLACK KATNISS+ATTACK ON TITAN
As her city's wall threatens to fall, demons wait to devour all souls. Lilou is chosen by her goddess to save the realm, but that doesn’t mean people agree. Not when her father cursed everyone to this hell in the first place #PitMad #OWN #BVM #YA #F
— Angelica Monai (@AngelicaMonai) September 3, 2020
Interested agents include:
- Marlo Berliner of JDC Literary
- Lisa Abellera of KC Associates
- Karly Caserza of Fuse Literary
- Heather Cashman of Storm Literary
- Tara Gilbert of JD Literary
- Christa Heschke of McIntosh Otis
- Amanda Leuck of Spencerhill
- Dorian Maffei of KC Associate
- Jas Perry of KT Literary
- Rebecca Strauss of DeFiore
- Saritza Hernandez of Andrea Brown Literary
15 / Marisa
Marisa pitched another great YA fantasy contender featuring illegal magic and trickster trials. How can that be bad?
https://twitter.com/marisasalwrites/status/1301491658417213440
The interested agents were:
- Lisa Abellera of KC Associates
- Marlo Berliner of JDC Literary
- Tara Gilbert of JD Literary
- Christa Heschke of McIntosh Otis
- Howland Literary
- Lynnette Novak at Seymour
- Suzie Townsend of New Leaf Literary
- Ann Leslie Tuttle of DGB
16 / Manuia
Manuia’s YA fantasy novel inspired by Moana and Ghostbusters, and reflects her Own Voices French Polynesian perspective.
MOANA x GHOSTBUSTERS
On the French Polynesian island of Ana’a, a ghostly curse plagues women. To break it, 18 y/o Sawyer joins forces w/an annoying, hot doctor-to-be & his friends, all of whom believe she’s the missing link to a world she never knew existed #Pitmad #YA #OWN #F— Manuia (@HeinrichManuia) September 3, 2020
Interested agents include:
- Lisa Abellera of KC Associates
- Marlo Berliner of JDC Literary
- Laura Bradford of Bradford Literary
- Melanie Castillo of Root Literary
- Analieze Cervantes of Harvey Klinger Literary
- Karyn Fischer of Bookstop Literary
- Mollie Glick of ???
- Chelsea Hensley of KT Literary
- Jennifer Herrington of HK Literary
- Christa Heschke of McIntosh Otis
- Jemiscoe at Andrea Brown
- Emily Kaitlin of Bookends Literary
- Tamara Kawar of ICM
- Janine Le of Sheldon Fogelman
- Kaitlyn Johnson of Belcastro
- Dorian Maffei of KC Associates
- Andrea Morrison of Writer’s House
- Lynnette Novak at Seymour
- Jas Perry of KT Literary
- A.M. Rose of Prospect
- Rena Rossner of The Deborah Harris Agency
- Saritza Hernandez of Andrea Brown Literary
- Hannah VanVels of Belcastro
- Jackie Williams of The Knight Agency
And probably more to come…
17 / Catherine Downen
Catherine’s YA fantasy combines Jumanji and The Chronicles of Narnia? I can only assume the animals run amok, but talk while doing it.
Ending in Cadence is a dual-POV novel told through Ash, a drummer from Earth, and Emma, an engineer from Pintura
When JUMANJI meets NARNIA
Play the game, unlock the portal
Try to get home, don't get attached
Fight to stay alive, never forgetLove Friends Family#PitMad #YA #F
— Catherine Downen (@CatherineDownen) September 3, 2020
Agents expressing interest include:
- Lisa Abellera of KC Associates
18 / AT Geiger
AT Geiger pitched new adult woman’s fiction.
At 19, I didn't expect my senior year to be so dangerously beautiful. I fell in love with not two, but three people. I managed to veer off a road that would've lead into an abyss. And, my bitter boss may be a murderer whose dark secrets changed our fate forever. #PitMad #NA #WF
— atgeiger (@atgeiger11) September 3, 2020
Agents expressing interest:
- Ann Leslie Tuttle of DGB
19 / Kiana Krystle
Kiana offered up YA fantasy and paranormal romance inspired by Persephone and Shakespeare’s tragic Romeo & Juliet.
PERSEPHONE x ROMEO & JULIET
Every 7 years on Luna Island, the angels must sacrifice a bride to the Devil of the Deep. Only, Lila thinks the angel visiting her dreams is falling in love with her—not planning on making her the next sacrifice.#PitMad #YA #F #PR #POC
— Kiana Krystle ♡ (@kiana_krystle) September 3, 2020
Likes from agents include:
- Analieze Cervantes of Harvey Klinger Literary
- Samantha Fabien of Samantha Fabien Literary
- Karyn Fischer of Bookstop Literary
- Jolene Haley from Marsal Lyon
- Jennifer Herrington of HK Literary
- Rena Rossner of The Deborah Harris Agency
- Maria Vicente of PS Literary
20 / Steph Jones
Steph was among the most successful in terms of agent interest in her young adult novel from a Black Voices perspective. Wakanda Forever!
Yas has a plan. Spoiler alert: its not college. W/ bills stacked & bro locked up her family needs💰 NOW not 4yrs of more debt. She sets her sights on a social media brand ambassador gig. It better work & fast b4 Mom finds out she just turned down Harvard #PITMAD #YA #BVM
— Steph B. Jones (@SJwritesLit) September 3, 2020
The interested agents include pretty much everyone. Go, Steph!
- Marlo Berliner of JDC Literary
- Heather Cashman of Storm Literary
- Melanie Castillo of Root Literary
- Tara Gilbert of JD Literary
- Hillary Harwell of KT Literary
- Jemiscoe at Andrea Brown
- Emily Kaitlin of Bookends Literary
- Tamara Kawar of ICM
- Janine Le of Sheldon Fogelman
- Megan Manzano of D4EO
- Natascha Morris of Tobias Literary
- Lynnette Novak at Seymour
- A.M. Rose of Prospect
- Saritza Hernandez of Andrea Brown Literar
- Stephanie Winter of PS Literary
21 / Alexander James
Alexander’s adult horror was popular with both RTs and agents, taking inspiration from The Chill and The Twisted Ones.
A mountain town where no one’s smile touches their eyes. Hikers vanishing, fresh from the trail. Hunted by ghosts, Josh must find the monster lurking in Bedal—before he winds up another missing person poster, fluttering in a window.
The Chill x The Twisted Ones #PitMad #A #H— Alexander James (@DrunkScribe) September 3, 2020
Interest came from:
- Erin Clyburn of JD Literary
- Jemiscoe at Andrea Brown
- Lynnette Novak at Seymour
- Alec Shane of Writer’s House
- Ann Leslie Tuttle of DGB
22 / Michelle Stoddard
Michelle’s young adult historical fiction combines The Three Musketeers with Mulan? There better be some crazy battles, and swords and..polite ninjas?
THREE MUSKETEERS x MULAN
A 17th century London girl masquerades as a swordsman to find the killer who framed her brother for murder. However, things are not as they seem, and she becomes entangled in the espionage preceding the English Civil War. #PitMad #YA #HF
— Michelle Stoddard (@MK_Stoddard) September 3, 2020
Interested agents include:
- Laura Bradford of Bradford Literary
- Howland Literary
- Ann Leslie Tuttle of DGB
23 / Sara Seitz
Sara offers up the only top-rated sci-fi pitch as adult speculative fiction. No bias here, but I hope she wins the prize money. If there is prize money. Which there is not. So, giant publishing contract?
On a dying Earth ruled by the wealthy 1%, orphaned and destitute Sindri joins a secret resistance plotting to overthrow the genetically enhanced elite. But when she learns she’s the president’s lost gen-e daughter she must choose: family or revolution. #PitMad #A #SF #SPF
— Sara Seitz (@penpostwriter) September 3, 2020
Interest was expressed by:
- Lisa Abellera of KC Associates
- Hillary Harwell of KT Literary
24 / Emily Rae
Emily’s adult fantasy made the top 25 and attracted some agent interest.
Cursed with immortality by a reckless god, 4,000yo Amasis craves death. When he learns he’s one of five pawns in a deathmatch set by the gods, he has a choice: kill the pawns and be rewarded with afterlife or stop the gods and save humanity, staying cursed forever.#PitMad #A #F
— Emily Rae (@By_EmilyRae) September 3, 2020
Agents interested include:
- Sam Morgan of Lotts Agency
25 / Brittany Kelley
Brittany’s adult contemporary romance sounds funny and scary, but the agents weren’t scared.
https://twitter.com/WhattheKell6/status/1301492135380660225
Interested agents include:
- Tara Gilbert of JD Literary
- Jolene Haley of Marsal Lyon Literary
- Dorian Maffei of KC Associates
- Shannon Snow of CMA
- White Lion Literary
- Emmy Nordstrom Higdon of Rights Factory
Observations about PitMad 2020 (Sep)
Just some casual notes and observations from the day.
More Black / POC / LGBTQ+ / Own Voices
At least, it seems like it’s more. Hopefully moving in a good direction.
Lots of YA Fantasy
The plurality of books were YA fantasy (at least in the top pitches), which tells me there’s a strong demand there at least among twitter RTs and agents.
Little Science Fiction?
Maybe #SFFPit wasn’t an aberration? Among the top 25+, there were only two SF novel pitches, and I don’t remember seeing that many throughout the day. Except mine. I saw that a lot.
RTs Don’t Really Correspond to Agent Interest
At the top, sure, lots’a RTs correlate to agent interest, but from what I can tell by looking at agent likes, they’re searching for tags or keywords of interest–and a lot of their likes are on very low RT pitches. This makes it feel like the #PitMad is less about social engagement than agent time & focus (they are looking at pitches on this day on Twitter).
Just by way of an example, here’s a pitch, with very few RTs, and one agent like. It’s great that she found this pitch, but it wasn’t because it was being socialized extensively during PitMad.
THE BUREAU OF RETIRED SPELLS & BROKEN MAGIC—Inspectors Contiga & Smith work to clear their names and uncover who is using magic to murder people and collect items to create an unknown spell. #PITMAD #BVM #A #MR #SF #POC #writerslift
— Imana Sole (@GeraldRice) September 3, 2020
This means PitMad is great for those who are noticed for whatever reason, but actually pushes everyone else who goes through the regular query process down further in the slush pile. I think. It’s like reading tea leaves, honestly.
Great Way to Gauge Potential Agent Interest
Just at what they liked during PitMad. If you do this before any query, at least you’ll have some idea of what they really like (specifically) vs. general interests shown on #MSWL and related sites. I think. Again, just a thought.
More Information on PitMad & Pitch Wars
More information on the sponsors of Pitch Wars can be found here, including the regularly updated schedule of Twitter and other events. THANK YOU to them for sponsoring this great and educational event.
If you have any corrections or updates, please let me know in the comments below or on Twitter.
Peace.
Mckayla
Thanks for this list, Shawn, this is fantastic! 🙂 I did get a like from an agent, John Baker (@JJBker) who is really awesome because his agency doesn’t normally accept novellas but he is kind enough take a peek at mine anyhow.
Thanks again for the article, a great resource for writers looking to see what pitches are successful!
ShawnAdmin
This is great news! Good luck, and thanks for the updated. Let us know how it goes…
Mabel
This is such a great summary and analyses of #pitmad—thank you! It can be hard to make sense of it for a newbie like me :0)
ShawnAdmin
Thanks, Mabel. How did it go for you?
Jan Thompson
Thanks for this commentary Shawn . Being a first time #pitmadder () I wasn’t at all sure what would happen next . So this helps get over the initial low spirits after the nerves and adrenaline of taking the chance on it .
Laird Harrison
This is a really helpful and insightful analysis. Thanks so much for doing it!
ShawnAdmin
Of course. Glad it was helpful.
Kaitlin Sikes
I didn’t see many PBs getting hearts.
ShawnAdmin
No, I saw one or two doing pretty well in the AM, but they trailed off quickly as time went on. Here was one, but few agents seemed to like them:
https://twitter.com/Becca_Dupuis/status/1301546956934836224
Paulette
Thank you so much for this helpful article and the kind remarks. Congratulations to everyone who participated and best wishes out there in the post-PitMad trenches!
ShawnAdmin
Of course, and good luck! Let us know how the process goes…and when you’re agented / published!
C.L.C Hasz
Thank you so much for the shout out!
I am beyond excited, and still riding the high of the epic reaction to my pitch ♥️
Rina
Congratulations, that’s so amazing!
C.L.C Hasz
I’m so exited to have made this list! Huge thank you to the writing community for the absolutely EPIC retweets.
Best of luck to everyone in the querying process!
Rina
I had no idea #SFFPit was a thing as I would have used it in my tweets. I write YA Sci fi. Is it every time there is a pitmad event that you use the hash tag #SFFPit?
ShawnAdmin
Rina, it’s actually a separate event and I’m not sure it’s even related to PitMad. Here is the website for it:
http://dankoboldt.com/sffpit/
For PitMad, the #SF hashtag was the only thing that mattered (other than sub-genres, of course).
Carly Spade
Loved seeing this list Shawn thank you! I was one of the other SFF pitchers. We are indeed the few lol. I agree with your RT vs agent likes. I got nearly 400 RTs and a like from Suzie Townsend and an SFF publisher, so I still call it a win and met a lot of great people!
ShawnAdmin
Good luck with your query. Your book sounds really interesting.
AJ Super
Super uncool to frame PitMad as a competition. This is a supportive community and we don’t need your “This was better than” take. Plenty of people who aren’t on this list had success… and even more don’t need to be told that they were something less than by some armchair commentator.
ShawnAdmin
Ok. Thanks.
Emmy Nordstrom Higdon
Hi Shawn,
I’m not sure why you didn’t click through to get my full details, but my name is Emmy Nordstrom Higdon, and I’m a literary agent with the Rights Factory. You referenced me under Paulette Kennedy’s post. I’ve included my MSWL in the website field below, and coincidentally I adjusted my Twitter handle today, so I can now be found at @emmy_of_spines.
ShawnAdmin
Oh, thanks! I completely forgot to confirm that. My apologies. Updated, and appreciated.
Emmy
Thank you!