Pitchapalooza: The One-Minute Book Marketing Challenge

At the St. Louis Publishers Association meeting on December 11, authors will have a unique opportunity to practice their book-pitching skills and get valuable feedback from professionals. Learn how to hone your "elevator speech" at this special book marketing session hosted by SLPA past president and marketing master Bob Baker.

Make no mistake: Your ability to clearly communicate who you are and what your book is about will lead to more publicity, more readers, and more sales. As a self-promoting author, you need to learn this skill.

At the December meeting, one by one, authors will take the hot seat and have one minute to describe their books. A panel of experts will critique each pitch and make suggestions on how to make it more concise and enticing. Audience members will also be encouraged to offer feedback, as time allows.

Current SLPA members will be given preference for the author “hot seat” spots, then we'll take volunteers from the audience in the remaining time.

It's a great opportunity to polish your book pitch, whether you get direct feedback on your pitch or you simply observe the advice that other authors get. So bring your best pitch to the meeting!