I suspect there are many exceptional manuscripts sitting in computers all over the world which will never see the light of day. Of those that do get published, most will probably not achieve the level of readership they deserve.

​One of the biggest reasons good books remain relatively obscure is this: With the exception of high-production series in a tiny range of genres, successfully promoting books requires more manpower than their authors can muster alone. A book needs a champion, capable of taking it to the largest possible audience. This may be an agent, an editor or an influencer. But acquiring a champion is, in many ways, more difficult than writing a full-length manuscript.

​I won’t go into all the reasons a brilliant manuscript might get turned down. Frankly, that would involve far more guessing than knowledge on my part. One reason, though, may be that authors are pitching their projects to the wrong people. So, how do you find the right people? It may just be as simple as asking. A one-sentence question copy/pasted within emails or repeated over the phone could save massive amounts of wasted submission time and immeasurable frustration.

​Thus, the Concept Pitch. For example, I write humorous novels bordering on literary fiction. My concept pitch goes something like, “Quick question: Do you have any interest in quasi-literary, humorous novels?” Short, sweet and just a little bit sneaky.

​Why sneaky? Well, what exactly constitutes a ‘quasi-literary, humorous novel’? I’m not entirely sure myself, and I write them! But the phrase makes its readers and hearers stop and think for a second; or, that’s the idea, anyway.

​Some will ignore that quick question. Others will respond with a usually polite version of “no”. Still others, however, will reply with some variation of “yes” or “maybe”. I am more likely to find the right person among the yeses and maybes, and can avoid wasting everybody’s time by passing on the others.

​Your own concept pitch will obviously reflect your own concept. It might be along the lines of “…a story about ____, as told through ____.” Or, if non-fiction, “…a novel perspective on ____, written in a light, narrative and reader-friendly prose style.” You get the idea.

​An added bonus of starting with a concept pitch is that the preliminary exchange of communication may help your submission stand out a little from the rest of the pile. And even a relatively small edge can make a pretty big difference when it comes to getting your book noticed.​

Joel Bresler is the author of

Bottomless Cups

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Amazon:

USA – UK – CA – AUS – IN