Today is #PitDark on Twitter, which means a hoard of writers are pitching their stories in hopes of catching the attention of literary agents and acquiring editors, which just might lead to the magic unicorn of a traditional publishing deal.
I've participated in pitch parties over the years and managed to collect a handful of likes, none of which have yet led to that magic unicorn. But I've made some great friends out there, and you've got to shoot your shot, right?
Pitch party etiquette says RT's and comments are welcome, but likes are supposed to be reserved for industry professionals so the writer knows they're interested in the story. (Full rules, hashtags, and a list of participating agents and publishers can be found on the PitDark Website.)
Part of the fun of these little soirées is squeezing the premise of a full-length novel into a pitch.
It's a teaser. A tasty morsel to lure the reader in for a bigger bite.
Like so...
Pitch poem fun...
Today's PitDark pitch party inspired this little ditty. I took a pitch I'd used previously and started revising the first line, and by the time I'd finished it rhymed quite nicely, so I broke it up into lines and called it a poem.
After a failed revolt against a tyrant king,
An executed rebel queen
Carries a sword within her soul and
Navigates the paths between.
Reborn, her past is the key
To win a prince's trust and free
The kingdom from ancestral greed.
Yes, I'm proud of myself. Tickled, really. Even if I don't lure in the magic unicorn this time around, I made a pretty bit of poetry out of my story's premise.
Twitter Writers Rock
The great thing about pitch parties, for me, is discovering other writers and stories that intrigue me. If you scroll my Twitter feed today, you'll see pitches I RT'ed with stories I'd love to read.
There are so many stories that deserve a ride on that magic unicorn of publishing dreams! ✨💫🦄
Soul Sword: The Eternal Library Book One
Soul Sword, the story I'm pitching today, is a 90,000-word dual-POV adult fantasy with camaraderie, forbidden love, and a castle that possesses secrets of its own.
If you liked the pitch, here's a bigger bite:
Sneaking into the library of souls is a bad idea, but Rowenna risks it, descending to the heart of the castle for a ritual that gives her the skills of her warrior ancestor and a mission that spans lifetimes. When the king is killed, Rowenna fights at the side of scholarly trickster Prince Collin, whose magical abilities are a guarded secret. In the aftermath, she joins his rogue team of advisors, along with a librarian, a sorceress who specializes in fashion design, and a battle-ready secretary. Together they must reform the kingdom, prepare for war, and stop members of the old king’s court who will hire assassins and commit treason to keep a sorcerer prince from taking the throne.
Soul Sword is a planned duology, and I love this story so much, even if it makes me cry every time I read it. It's beautiful, and heartbreaking, and hopeful, with a slow-burn romance and delightful side characters.
Go Write, Katrina.
I have so much writing to do this weekend. So. Much.
Soul Sword is one of the manuscripts I've set aside for the time being, while I focus on an interactive fiction game I'm writing for Heart's Choice, and also get the sequel to Falling Through the Weaving ready for publishing.
I'm grateful to have so many stories to keep me company. And now, to avoid obsessively checking my Twitter notifications, I will go focus on one of my WIPs.
If you're on Twitter, please follow me and say hello! 😇
Thanks for reading! 💖
Peace @Katrina-Ariel / @LeiaTalon
I hope that a unicorn arrives for you! I hear that they're pretty, if nothing else.
Your poem is pretty epic. I know I want to read that story.
Oh! Thanks so much! That makes my writer's heart happy. 😊
Here's to unicorns! They are indeed beautiful creatures. 🦄
!pimp
You must be killin' it out here!
@enginewitty just slapped you with 5.000 PIMP, @wwwiebe.
You earned 5.000 PIMP for the strong hand.
They're getting a workout and slapped 2/3 possible people today.
Read about some PIMP Shit or Look for the PIMP District
Hey ya! Always good to see a post from you-I hope you find that needle in a haystack, I really do. Good Luck!
So. I'm still waiting for the sequel to Falling Through the Weaving. Patiently, but I need you to remember that I am old-don't wait too long. 😂
Ha! It's coming. Soon! I just got it back from the proofreader. I have to catch up with a deadline on another project, then dive into formatting and cover tweaking for Dragons in the Weaving. I can't wait to send it out into the world. Thank you for the encouragement and for reading my stories! 💖
!pimp
You must be killin' it out here!
@enginewitty just slapped you with 1.000 PIMP, @bigtom13.
You earned 1.000 PIMP for the strong hand.
They're getting a workout and slapped 1/3 possible people today.
Read about some PIMP Shit or Look for the PIMP District
Sounds up my dark alley as 500 year old Vampire assassin. 🦇
!LADY
View or trade
LOHtokens.@kerrislravenhill, you successfully shared 0.1000 LOH with @katrina-ariel and you earned 0.1000 LOH as tips. (1/10 calls)
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!pimp
You must be killin' it out here!
@enginewitty just slapped you with 10.000 PIMP, @kerrislravenhill.
You earned 10.000 PIMP for the strong hand.
They're getting a workout and slapped 3/3 possible people today.
Read about some PIMP Shit or Look for the PIMP District
YES! I love that image, and the 500yr old vampire assassin profile. Yay for epic, dark fantasy!
The rewards earned on this comment will go directly to the person sharing the post on Twitter as long as they are registered with @poshtoken. Sign up at https://hiveposh.com.
Damn. I almost forgot-alright, I did forget and had to come back.
!PIMP
You must be killin' it out here!
@bigtom13 just slapped you with 1.000 PIMP, @katrina-ariel.
You earned 1.000 PIMP for the strong hand.
They're getting a workout and slapped 1/1 possible people today.
Read about some PIMP Shit or Look for the PIMP District
For sure, @katrina-ariel !
Thank you! 💖💖💖
You received 1 LADY(LOH) token for posting in Ladies of Hive!
We believe that you should be rewarded for the time and effort spent in creating articles. The goal is to encourage token holders to accumulate and hold LOH tokens over a long period of time
!LADY
View or trade
LOHtokens.@silversaver888, you successfully shared 0.1000 LOH with @katrina-ariel and you earned 0.1000 LOH as tips. (1/30 calls)
Use !LADY command to share LOH! More details available in this post.
Sounds intriguing! Thanks for sharing and good luck! Take care!
Thanks for reading! Hope you have a lovely day. 💖
You are welcome! Take care!💜🤗
The way I read the #pitdark tweets, they both rhymed 😁 Enjoy the solace and writing time! Soul Sword sounds killer - especially the adult part 😝😍 Why does it make you cry?
Ha! Not that kind of adult, though all my other stories are. This one has a slow-burn romance. It was like a challenge to make myself keep the two forbidden lovers apart until the end of the book, and then they get barely a kiss. They'll have to wait until book 2 for more.
Why does it make me cry? Because it's an emotional story with some dark, ancestral grief over horrors in the past that the main character remembers and has to deal with again in this lifetime. It's a beautiful story, though. I'm looking forward to writing book 2 whenever I finish up my current WIPs. Thank you for always encouraging my creative side! 💖
Beautiful pieces! All the best to you and perhaps, that unicorn will find its way to you :)
Thanks so much! 💖
I know exactly where you are coming from. Trying to get noticed in this literary jungle is like pulling teeth. I will send up some positive energy for you. Hope it all works out.
Right?! Good luck to you as well. Thanks for the kind comment.
Dear @katrina-ariel, we need your help!
The Hivebuzz proposal already got an important support from the community. However, it lost its funding few days ago and only needs a few more HP to get funded again.
May we ask you to support it so our team can continue its work this year?
You can do it on Peakd, ecency,
https://peakd.com/me/proposals/199
Your support would be really helpful and you could make the difference! Thank you!