As a former #PitchWars MD and current Board member, I've had first hand look at mistakes folks make when submitting. So figured I'd do a Do's and Don'ts thread that I can add to as we lead up to sub window opening on 12:01 a.m. ET on Sunday. Here we go...
#pitchwars Don't: Submit right away. I get peace of mind, but there's no benefit otherwise. Mentors can't even read their subs until the window is closed. And they'll read all subs. If anything submitting early crowds the server, giving us behind the scenes folks anxiety. 😛
Do: Read this lovely How to Prepare Your #PitchWars Submission post that Sarah (also a former MD and current board member) created: pitchwars.org/how-to-prepare…
Once you've finished reading, read it again! lol
Once you've finished reading, read it again! lol
Do: Read and re-read your submission before you hit the #PitchWars submit button. It always breaks my heart when folks email us b/c they made a mistake. Due to sheer number of subs, we can't fix this for you. Even if you try to bribe us with candy.
Do: Confirm you got a submission confirmation email after you've submitted. It'll come from no-reply@pitchwars.org. (add this to your safe senders list). It might be in spam. We've found gmail works best to submit to #pitchwars.
Do: Email us (pitchwars@gmail.com) if & only if you don't have the confirmation email. (Again, check spam) Include your email addy, age category, & title so we can confirm. DON'T wait until last minute to do this. We're all volunteers so it might take time for us to check for you
Don't: Wait until the last hour to submit to #pitchwars. It's kinda fascinating to watch how fast the subs go up during the last 30 minutes before subs close. If your sub doesn't go through (trust me, this has HAPPENED), we can't help you. Once Gail turns off subs they are off.
Do: Read mentor wishlists (don't rely just on the spreadsheet or what other people say about them.) I took WF my first year mentoring #pitchwars and ONLY mystery after. And every year I'd get someone submitting me WF. I felt bad they wasted a pick on me...speaking of...
Do: Submit to four #pitchwars mentors! Even if you found the ONE that you know will be perfect and you will ride off into the revision sunset, still choose three more for shits and giggles.
Maybe: Give permission to share sub materials with other #pitchwars mentors. I've had subs (ahem @MichaelMammay) I loved but knew I wasn't a good mentor for and still wanted to find them to become a mentee. So I'd advocate for them w/ other mentors they may not have subbed to...
Continuing my maybe: It doesn't happen often but there have been mentors who end up picking someone who didn't sub to them. (Don't worry even after you select swapping, we'll still email you to ask if it's okay if XX reads your work.)
I can't think of anything else for now but will add to this as I think of more. :-)
ooh. Anther Don't: Don't think of #PitchWars as a contest that you win. (Easier said than done.) But hopefully shifting your thinking to it as a program where you build community instead of a contest where you can get an agent, might help with the anxiety. 1/
The intent of #pitchwars was NEVER to be something that stresses people out. Seeing folks talk about #pitchwars causing anxiety (from tweets to blog posts) gives me anxiety b/c that's not our intent. But I do understand why it does (b/c all of publishing can cause anxiety.)
Having said that, Do: Take care of your mental health. It's okay to step away from the #pitchwars hashtag or anything PW related. I would say "start something new" but I was on sub for my first book for over a year and didn't write shit so...
...But I do hope you figure out best way to handle the anxiety that comes with pursuing this dream of becoming a published author from #pitchwars to what I hope will be a long ass career for you all. Be kind to yourself.
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