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By Teri Rizvi

A magical moment happens when a writer takes a deep breath and launches into a passionate one-minute elevator pitch of a book concept before hundreds of other would-be authors.

"It's very touching," says literary agent Arielle Eckstut about the emotion-charged atmosphere at Pitchapalooza. "These writers are wearing their hearts on their sleeves."

Adds her writer-husband David Henry Sterry: "This is the first time some have said in public, 'I'm a writer.'"

During a virtual 8 p.m. (Eastern) Oct. 9 event held in conjunction with the 2024 Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop, 20 randomly selected writers will receive the opportunity to make a one-minute pitch — and perhaps write their own perfect ending. One winner, selected by Eckstut and Sterry will receive an introduction to an agent or publisher appropriate for the book idea. 

Welcome to Pitchapalooza, billed as the "American Idol for books, only kinder and gentler." Since 2005, Eckstut and Sterry have taken Pitchapalooza to bookstores, writing conferences, book festivals and libraries — from Cape Cod and Chicago to the far-flung states of Hawaii and Alaska. It has drawn standing-room-only crowds and captured attention from The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, NPR and other media outlets.

The event is free and open to the public, though a $25 donation is suggested. Those who make a donation will be entered into a drawing for a free registration to the April 4-6, 2024, Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop at the University of Dayton. One person will be selected randomly and announced at the end of Pitchapalooza.

Pre-registration for Pitchapalooza is encouraged. To register, visit the event site. If you’re interested in pitching a book concept, fill out this form by Oct. 2. You must be registered for the event and in the audience to be considered.

"Our whole goal is to help people improve. There's never a sense of humiliation," said Eckstut, an agent-at-large with Levine Greenberg Literary Agency in New York and the author of 10 books.

The event also illustrates the importance of tenacity. "In 2010 at LitQuake in San Francisco a woman pitched an idea for an anthology by American-Muslim women writing about their secret love lives," Sterry recalls. "You could hear the murmur throughout the room. That pitch is a book waiting to happen, but an agent had dropped the idea."

The lesson: an initial rejection doesn't always determine a book's fate.

"There's a great expression, 'Don't quit five minutes before the marathon ends,'" says Sterry, who's written 16 books himself. "I called up a publisher I knew, and it took about 10 seconds to sell that idea."

The couple came up with the idea for Pitchapalooza after co-writing The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published and trying to figure out how to creatively promote their own niche book. They're the co-founders of The Book Doctors, a company dedicated to helping authors get successfully published, as well as Can Do Entertainment, a production company that champions independent writers and artists. Using Pitchapalooza as the foundation, they’re currently developing a new television series, America’s Next Great Author.

When the couple introduced Pitchapalooza at New York's iconic Strand Book Store, "we thought it would be a terrible bust," concedes Sterry. "We show up, and there's a line out the door. We looked at each other and said, 'What's going on here?' If it's not Michelle Obama or a celebrity, it's hard to get more than 15 or 20 people at a book signing."

Over the years, Sterry says they've heard "some amazing and some horrifying pitches." One writer tried to pitch five book ideas in a minute. Another had an idea for a 30-book series. Another didn't win at Pitchapalooza, but still ended up with a book contract.

"The writer was an arborist who had an idea that took off on The Elements of Style — only for fruit trees," Eckstut says. "She had incredible expertise, and I knew just the right publisher."

The two offer these tips for making a great pitch:

1. When pitching a narrative, memoir or creative nonfiction, make sure you have a hero we can fall in love with.
2. Don't tell us your book is funny. Make us laugh.
3. Compare your book to a successful one. Show us where the book fits on the shelf in a bookstore.

And finally, "Don't say you're the next Erma Bombeck," Sterry says with a laugh.

— Teri Rizvi

Teri Rizvi is the founder and director of the Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop. By day, she serves as executive director of strategic communications for the University of Dayton.