(Host) Commentator Mary McCallum is a freelance writer and retired
prison librarian who says that surveys show eighty percent of Americans
dream of writing a book, but only about five percent of submitted
manuscripts actually get published. Recently, she was among a group of
Vermont writers who attended an event designed to help them get on the
publishing highway.
(McCallum) It was advertised as American
Idol for Books, and it tours around the country under the name
Pitchapalooza – an opportunity for undiscovered authors to pitch their
book ideas to a panel of judges before a listening audience.
The
marketing brainchild of a couple of writers from New York, the event
sells their book, The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published ,
while encouraging would-be writers to hone their pitching skills to
publishers. They call themselves the Book Doctors.
The events
are held at bookstores, surrounded by thousands of new books that have
made the grade – the brass ring nearly every writer reaches for. The
gathering I attended was at Manchester’s Northshire Bookstore, a
readers’ haven in southern Vermont.
Vermont is home to more
writers per capita than any other state in the nation, so it’s no wonder
that more than one hundred of them showed up that day, hoping for a
chance to do their literary song and dance. The lucky twenty whose names
were randomly chosen got to stand up and pitch their product in 60
seconds or less. One syllable over the minute mark and they were cut
off.
I was struck by the breadth, depth and richness of ideas,
the diversity of genres, and the range of ages among the hopefuls. Their
ability to boil down and distill their visions into One Vermont Minute
made for great theater.
We listened raptly while a distinguished
retiree pitched a comic memoir of his experience as a dean of a Jesuit
and Catholic University. Next up was a woman who described her memoir as
"the Eat, Pray, Love of an American Peace Corps volunteer in the
1960s." A young hopeful pitched her College Graduate’s Guide to the
Kitchen , followed by a woman who extolled her book, called Surviving
Your Husband’s Retirement , as required reading.
Judges advised
competitors to tout their books on YouTube videos, to Tweet about them
on Twitter, and to blog them on Tumblr. "We want you to get published!"
was their mantra. No surprise, as the promoters are not only writers
themselves, but agents too, ever on the lookout for the next bestseller.
It was a marketing feast, not to be confused with a literary one.
When
one young man described his novel as literary fiction, the Book Doctors
told him, "Remember, the more literary it is, the fewer copies it’s
going to sell." A sad new truism, as real as the demise of the bricks
and mortar bookstore in our brave new digital world.
One plucky author ultimately won the grand prize of an interview with an agent, hopefully her kickstart to publication.
Afterward,
it was heartening when the judges reminded the audience of what
treasures bookstores are. "Make sure you buy something here today so
that this community gem stays in business," they advised.
And I for one, couldn’t agree more with that kind of marketing.