We are now accepting submissions for this year’s Pitch Perfect! You can submit your pitch via this page, but before you send off your entry read some wise words of advice from last year’s winner Joseph Knobbs.  We caught up with him for a quick Q&A:

 

You’re used to making pitches: tell us about yourself in one sentence!

I’m a reader, writer and bookseller based in London, currently losing sleep and friends trying to get my first book finished.

Pitch Perfect is returning this year. What was your experience of last year’s event?

It was one of the best, strangest experiences of my life. I’d never done anything like it before and didn’t know what to expect. Hearing the applause when I finished was a great feeling, and I knew it had gone well. Then I sat back down and listened to the others, thinking: she was brilliant, he was great. I was thrilled when they announced that Sharon and I had won. I was suddenly talking to publishers, agents and authors, just trying to look grateful and not say anything stupid.

How did you prepare for the event?

I spent a tragic Saturday night on my own in a Glasgow hotel the night before. The city outside my window was exploding with life, but I was pacing up and down my room practicing my lines. The real preparation had come before that, though. Hundreds of hours at work on my book and then as many redrafts of my pitch as possible, until I couldn’t look at it anymore.

What advice would you offer to this year’s Pitch Perfect entrants?

The best pitches last year were entertaining and demanded attention. If you get up there and read out a synopsis, you’re looking at a pretty arid few minutes. Have fun with it. You’ll meet a lot of good, hopefully interested, people. Don’t be weird. It’s always really obvious who’s having a chat and who’s trying to ‘network.’

What have you experienced since winning Pitch Perfect?

It really started something for me. I’ve met with agents, publishers and even TV producers about my work. The best bit has probably been the various people who have gotten in touch about stories I’ve had published here and there, even the lady who said I was going to hell. Professionally, I’ve moved from Manchester to London. First to manage at Waterstones Piccadilly, and now to be the Crime Fiction buyer for the company. Everything’s changed.

What’s next?

Vanquish foes, scatter enemies to the wind, finish my bloody book.