Pitch

I think every entrepreneur or someone creating something has these moments where we create this fantasy in our head for how we expect things to go. We fantasize about the most magical scenarios where everything works out perfectly and our whatever is an enormous success almost instantly. It’s fun to think about these things, but the trick is not to allow these thoughts to convince you it will actually happen, or you can lose focus and feel defeated when reality doesn’t equal fantasy.

Once I started staying up late to write, I saw the progress I was making on my book, and my mind began to consider options for it once I was finished. I was a long way from being complete, but this is how my mind works. I’m always thinking about everything possible around a topic. I knew at some point I would need to consider how to publish the books. Do I look for a literary agent, or do I self-publish? I figured both had their own advantages and disadvantages, but this being the first time I’ve ever done this, I had no idea what they were.

I spent some time researching the pros and cons of each. While doing so, my mind asked a random question, “Are there any publishing events in Chicago soon?” A quick Google search led me to find out there was a seminar in June for people considering publishing a book. When I read about it, it was like lightning struck me. My mind started spinning a thousand miles a second. It was as if I had found the winning lottery numbers a day before they were announced. In a split second, I convinced myself that was the ticket to my future meteoric rise and fame. Without hesitation, I signed up for the seminar, but that wasn’t why my mind was spinning. As part of the seminar, there was an opportunity to pitch a literary agent! I looked over the options and found the perfect one, whose focus was non-fiction and business. Talking to the literary agent’s picture on my computer, I told her you are about to see my vision.

Whenever I find something I want to learn about, I dive in headfirst and become consumed until I believe I have learned all I need at that moment about it. This process usually requires ordering books, Googling, watching YouTube videos, and pretty much anything I can find. I knew I only had a few months to get ready for the seminar, so I started allocating some of my writing time to trying to understand the publishing world more. I researched how publishing a book works, what percentage the publisher takes, how to pitch a literary agent, etc. I also spent a good amount of time researching the person I was going to be speaking with. After about a week, I had put together a game plan I felt was foolproof.

The main part of my plan was the pitch itself. This is where I spent the most time researching. I only had 10 minutes to paint the simplest and most vivid picture, so I knew I had to nail it. I looked up the best way to pitch and put together an outline to start working from. Every day, I would spend a few minutes practicing my pitch, trying my best to hit the key moments with the most energy and passion. I figured if I only had one chance to nail this, I needed to be as prepared as possible. I dedicated the weeks before the seminar to every scenario I could think of while also letting my fantasy run wild.

On June 22nd at 9 am, I walked into the Hilton hotel on Michigan Avenue ready to set the literary agent’s world on fire! My pitch wasn’t until 11:15, so I spent the morning in a few of the rooms listening to the speakers talk about various topics. But, I was only there in body, my mind was only on the pitch. I ducked out of one of the rooms about 30 minutes before my pitch so I could practice it. I found a place which ended up being a terrible choice, as it was a room with vending machines, and people kept coming in. I found a new place and got myself back in pitch mode. Checking my watch, it was 10 minutes before my meeting, so I got in line and kept to myself as I ran through the amazingness that was about to happen and how it was going to change my life forever. Finally, it was my time.

The room I was to pitch in was not private. Walking in, there were about 10 or more tables set up throughout the room with a literary agent sitting at all of them with their name on the table. My person was one of the first, so I made eye contact as confidently as possible and sat down. After a few seconds of small talk, I dove into my pitch, and the words started flowing like a soothing, soft river…for about 2 minutes. I skipped over a part of my pitch and as soon as I did my mind went “oh sh*t” and blank at the same time. Just like when your phone gets overloaded and shuts off. Sensing what was happening, the literary agent started asking me a few questions. I did my best to answer, but by that time, the damage was done. As the fleeting seconds ticked away, the literary agent kindly said she would reach out if she was interested, but one look at her face was all I needed to know I would not be hearing from her. I went into another room with someone talking about something, but at that point, I was disconnected and dejected. I stayed until the end of the seminar, but I have no idea what I heard.

A day later, I reflected back on what happened and the ridiculousness of my thought process going in. I went back over my notes on publishing and decided at that moment I would self-publish instead. Now, I just need to finish my book. Oh, and an entire workbook.