Budding authors are being invited to use Twitter and ‘tweet their pitch’ in order to secure a book deal.
The call to action came from XpoNorth Digital, a creative industries festival which takes place on Friday 20 January 2023.
Writers will be able to put their ideas forward to a panel of literary agents by using a maximum of 280 characters on the social networking platform.
On the day, they will have from 9am to 9pm to express themselves using the hashtag #XpoNorth to be in with the chance of a book deal.
Open to all genres of work, fiction, non-fiction and children’s writing will be accepted, and the only stipulation is that it must be unpublished.
Last year’s event saw TweetPitch trend throughout the day with a record number of direct pitches received. It has turned multiple participants into published authors in recent years, including picture book author and illustrator, Corrina Campbell; author of This Golden Fleece – A Journey Through Britain’s Knitted History, Esther Rutter and Leonie Charlton, author of Marram.
Peter Urpeth, XpoNorth Digital’s specialist advisor in writing and publishing and founder of the TweetPitch, said: “Over the last eight years, the XpoNorth TweetPitch has become the best way for writers to kick-start their new year. Make 2023 the year that you make that move and find the right agent and/or publisher for your work.
“Twitter as a platform has undergone a change of ownership and with that a change of approach which to many of its users has been a challenge. However, for Scottish writing and publishing, the first 15 years of Twitter has for many been a very positive experience, a source of community, interaction and information, and we are proud of the tweet pitch’s highly positive impact and as a platform for success for so many participants, whether be writers, agents or publishers. For now, we push on and continue to share that aim and message.”
XpoNorth Digital, Highlands & Islands Enterprise’s mechanism for supporting creative industries in the region, is producing the event in association with ASLA – the Association of Scottish Literary Agents.
Prior to Tweet Pitch, three of Scotland’s leading literary agents, Jenny Brown, Caro Clarke and Louise Lamont, will also be part of a dedicated information session taking place online on Wednesday January 11.
The trio will set the scene around the current marketplace for books, look at this year’s growing trends and offer their perspective on what publishers and readers are seeking – a great opportunity for writers to get some top tips to hone their pitches.
Literary agent Jenny Brown of ASLA said: “The top new year resolution for many new writers will be getting attention for their writing. Although some writers prefer the traditional methods of submitting their work, our experience shows that many others enjoy the direct opportunities that social media offers to engage with agents and publishers. Constructing an enticing pitch in 280 characters is a hard task, but if you know your work inside out and really understand its core purpose and storylines, then the tweet pitch is for you. It’s fun, it’s free, it’s fast – and it works.”
