Tonya Preece
More Than Meets the Eye by Tonya Preece
Seventeen-year-old Cordelia never lets anything get her down, but when the anniversary of the explosion that killed her dad triggers nightmares and panic attacks, her mom insists on counseling. The diagnosis: PTSD. Treatment: eye movement therapy. Cordelia’s opinion: absurd. Therapy does have a bright side, though—a hot guy named Gino she meets in the waiting room. Gino’s pop-punk style and sense of humor grab her attention.
As they bond over music, the discovery of why he’s in therapy softens her tough exterior but sharing her own tragedy with him raises questions surrounding her dad’s death. While she isn’t entirely sure she wants to find answers, eye movement therapy begins to defy her expectations. Repressed memories surface that could hold the key to what’s causing her pyrophobia and nightmares.
Cordelia’s recovery hinges on allowing certain walls and pedestals to crumble. First, she must face painful truths, not only about herself, but also the father she idolized. If she isn’t careful, her avoidance habits may push everyone away, including Gino, the musical soulmate she’s always hoped for.
MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE is contemporary YA fiction and was selected as a finalist for the Joan Lowery Nixon Memorial Award at the 2018 Houston SCBWI conference. It will appeal to fans of Carolyn Mackler and Emery Lord and delivers a surprising twist like Tamara Ireland Stone’s Every Last Word. I consulted a therapist trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and drew on my own experience with the treatment as well.
Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).
Click here to listen to our feedback on this pitch.
Malavika Kannan
All The Yellow Suns by Malavika Kannan
Vincent Van Gogh was an incurable artist. He couldn’t help eating yellow paint. Fifteen-year-old Maya Kaimal is an incurable idealist. She couldn’t help falling for Juneau Zale the day she immigrated to the United States.
A human tidal wave and Renaissance masterpiece combined, Juneau is the de facto leader of the Pugilists: a merry band of highschool mischief-makers who right the wrongs of the world each Friday. Immediately, Maya finds herself drawn to Juneau and her boundless way of living. They forge a friendship over trips to the Metropolitan Museum, crusades for social justice, and life-or-death escapades in the colorful inner-city neighborhood of Columbia Heights.
But as their bond grows stronger, Maya begins to suspect that there’s a whole different person beneath Juneau’s painted-on facade. The harder she looks, the farther she finds herself from the girl she once idealized. Because without meaning to, she’s allowed Juneau Zale to steal a piece of her heart. Now, she will never be the same.
All The Yellow Suns is written by an Indian-American teenage activist, exploring Gen-Z themes of race, womanhood, and justice with refreshing candor and depth. Told through poignant and philosophical vignettes, it follows Maya’s journey to Find The Truth in Juneau’s mysterious, mixed-up world. The girl she loves is counting on her.
About the author
Malavika Kannan is an 18-year-old Indian-American student activist, writer, and speaker. She’s written about topics like race and feminism for the Washington Post, Huffington Post, Teen Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Broadly, and VICE, among other places. Her writing has also been recognized by organizations including the National YoungArts Foundation, Scholastic Art & Writing, Library of Congress, and the J.F.K. Library. Malavika is passionate about progressive politics, serving on the national Women’s March Youth Cohort and March For Our Lives to amplify youth power in politics. She is also founder and executive director of the Homegirl Project.
Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).
Click here to listen to our feedback on this pitch.
Ninth Annual NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza
You wrote your 50,000 words (or got pretty close!). You’re a winner. You felt the high. Now what are you going to do with your precious manuscript? That’s where we, The Book Doctors, come in.
For those of you not familiar with Pitchapalooza, here’s the skinny: You get 250 words to pitch your book. Twenty pitches will be randomly selected from all submissions. We will then critique the pitches during a live webinar on March 16, 2019 at 12PM PT / 3PM ET, so you get to see what makes a great pitch. At the end of the webinar, we will choose one winner from the group.
The winner will receive an introduction to an agent or publisher appropriate for his/her manuscript.
Beginning February 1, 2019, you can email your pitch to nanowrimo@thebookdoctors.com. PLEASE DO NOT ATTACH YOUR PITCH, JUST EMBED IT IN THE EMAIL. Include your title and your name at the top of your pitch. All pitches must be received by 11:59PM PST on February 28, 2019.
We will also crown a fan favorite who will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250). On March 17, 2019, the 20 random pitches will be posted on our website, www.thebookdoctors.com. Anyone can vote for a fan favorite, so get your social media engine running as soon as the pitches go up! Connecting with your future readers is a vital part of being a successfully published author today. And this is a great way to get some practice. Voting closes at 11:59PM PST on April 1, 2019. The fan favorite will be announced on April 2, 2019.
If you purchase a copy of our book, The Essential Guide To Getting Your Book Published, by April 2, 2019, we’re offering an exclusive one-hour webinar where you’ll get the chance to pitch your book. Just attach a copy of your sales receipt to your email and we’ll send the link to the webinar dates.
Important NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza dates
Friday, February 1, 2019–Pitch submission opens
Thursday, February 28, 2019–Final day to submit pitches
Saturday, March 16, 2019–NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza live on YouTube
Sunday, March 17, 2019–Voting for fan favorite begins
Monday, April 1, 2019–Final day to vote for fan favorite
Tuesday, April 2, 2019–Fan favorite announced
NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza success stories
It’s been a great year for past NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza winners. Gloria Chao’s novel American Panda (Simon Pulse/Simon & Schuster) released to multiple starred reviews. Read Gloria’s winning NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza pitch.
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- Gloria Chao
Cari Noga’s novel The Orphan Daughter (Lake Union Publishing) published in May. Read Cari’s winning pitch.
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- Cari Noga
May Cobb’s novel Big Woods (Midnight Ink) came out in July. Read May’s winning pitch.
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- May Cobb
Stacy McAnulty is now the award-winning author of 19 books for young readers. She launched her middle grade novel The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl with multiple starred reviews and a spot on the Indie Next List. Read Stacy’s winning pitch.
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- Stacy McAnulty
“Winning Pitchapalooza gave me confidence and the courage to keep fighting. It also helped bring my manuscript to the next level.”
–Gloria Chao
Are you feeling a little unsure about exactly how to craft your pitch?
10 tips for pitching your novel
- A great pitch is like a poem. Every word counts.
- Make us fall in love with your hero. Whether you’re writing a novel or memoir, you have to make us root for your flawed but lovable hero.
- Make us hate your villain. Show us someone unique and dastardly whom we can’t wait to hiss at.
- Just because your kids love to hear your story at bedtime doesn’t mean you’re automatically qualified to get a publishing deal. So make sure not to include this information in your pitch.
- If you have any particular expertise that relates to your novel, tell us. Establishing your credentials will help us trust you.
- Your pitch is your audition to show us what a brilliant writer you are, so it has to be the very best of your writing.
- Don’t make your pitch a book report. Make it sing and soar and amaze.
- A pitch is like a movie trailer. You start with an incredibly exciting/funny/sexy/romantic/etc. close-up with intense specificity, then you pull back to show the big picture and tell us the themes and broad strokes that build to a climax.
- Leave us with a cliffhanger. The ideal reaction to a pitch is, “Oh my God, what happens next?”
- Show us what’s unique, exciting, valuable, awesome, unexpected, about your project, and why it’s comfortable, familiar and proven.
NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza FAQs
Q: May I submit more than one pitch?
A: Yes, you may submit multiple pitches. Please include your book’s title and your name at the top of each pitch.
Q: How long is a pitch?
A: You get 250 words to pitch your book.
Q: How are the 20 pitches selected?
A: The 20 pitches are randomly selected; however, we read all the pitches.
Q: Are the choices for fan favorite also randomly selected?
A: Yes. They are the same 20 pitches that we read during the webinar.
Q: If I buy a copy of The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published, how does the one-hour webinar work?
A: We limit each webinar to 20 people, which gives everyone the chance to pitch and get feedback.
Q: Where can I learn more about writing my pitch?
A: We offer resources on our YouTube channel. We recommend that you watch “The Art of the Book Pitch”, last year’s NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza, and our Pitch Tips playlist. Hungry for more examples? Check out our Pitchapalooza playlist.