Vote for it: Would You Buy it? The pitch for “Symbiosis” is ready for slaughter…

Care to take a stab? Votes are anonymous and there’s no requirement to comment. 

We’re beginning something new this week! After you read the 25 words and before you vote, listen to the 30 second audio pitch. Do you think the spoken pitch is compelling enough to sway your vote? Any feedback will be appreciated!

What we are measuring in this experiment is reader interpretation. What does someone think of your book when they read this short blurb? Does it make them want to buy it or at least read further? Editors and publishers may look at these blurbs differently, but ultimately, they’re readers too.

So this is how it works. Read and listen to the pitch/blurb below and then vote as to whether you’d buy the book and tell your friends about it. If you have constructive crit to offer, do so in the comment section.

A caveat.

Don’t vote ‘No’ because you don’t read or want to read the genre. If the genre is a negative bias for you, please refrain from voting unless you are able to be objective about the quality of the blurb.

***

Vote for it:

Title: Symbiosis Author: Madison Woods

Genre: Fantasy

The Tree of Life needs souls from willing human sacrifices. For 4500 years Ki evaded the Tree’s calling to serve as priestess. Her time’s up.

 

.

.

***

***

What about you?

If you want to put your 25 words to the test, email me your pitch/blurb (25 words or less) at the addy over there on my right hand side-bar.

I’m also taking 30-second audio pitches. If you’ve already sent your written pitch and want to also send an audio, just email it to me and remind me your 25 word pitch is already here.

Be forewarned. 25 word summaries are difficult! I struggled with mine for days. Okay. I’ll be honest. I’ve struggled with mine for a while now…months, even. But I think I finally have one that’ll work and when there’s a lull in the pitches I’ll throw mine out there to be slaughtered, too. (I said this last time, too, haha.)

You’ll be welcome to run yours again later when everyone in queue is done, and you’ll especially want to do this if you’ve made changes. Plus, as the campaign runs for while, word will spread and we’ll get more views and votes.

At the end of the week I’ll email you with the results.

The poll will stay active indefinitely, so if you want to direct people to your link to cast their votes, you’re free to do so.

If you need some ideas on how to distill your large blurb down, the canaries at The Canary Review are as good as it gets. Canarythefirst *helped* me once a while back when I was working on my longer pitch here on my own blog. I need to read this post every once in a while for a refresher. You should read it too. It’s pretty funny!

Here’s what Canarythefirst had to say about my recent 25-word pitch:
http://thecanaryreview.com/2012/06/01/pitch-slapped-you-only-get-three-seconds-to-make-a-first-impression/

Also, here’s a great link from David B. Coe (fantasy author published by Tor):
http://www.magicalwords.net/david-b-coe/on-writing-and-publishing-refining-your-elevator-pitch/
He took pitches one day and gave feedback to a bunch of us.

Open Mic Tuesday – Today’s guest is Anthony J. Rapino

So today’s blog post is really open mic. In an interesting departure from the usual written format, we have Anthony telling us about how music influences his writing… via audio file.

Anthony takes it from here.

***

I am very proud to announce the release of my debut novel, Soundtrack to the End of the World.  Pre-orders are currently available for a signed limited hardcover, and trade paperback.

Who knew the end could sound so good.

A suicidal nudist strolls into traffic.  An eccentric Buddhist claims he can occupy other people’s bodies.  All the while, whispers of a new form of entertainment blow through town.  Prompted by these strange occurrences, Marty Raft, a not-so-gentle giant, investigates and discovers underground clubs peddling music that induces an out-of-body experience.   Marty and a wannabe comedian, Corey, set out to prove these special frequencies are nothing more than a hoax, or at worst, a mass-drugging.  Instead, they uncover a secret with world-ending possibilities.

If you can hear the music, it’s already too late..

***

Anthony J. Rapino resides in Northeastern Pennsylvania, somewhere between the concrete of the city and the trees of the forest.  On occasion, you’ll find him moderating the feverish battles between the creatures of these two arenas.  Whose side he’s on is anyone’s guess.

His newest fiction can be found in Black Ink Horror, On Spec, Arcane Anthology, Electric Spec, A cappella Zoo, Space Squid, TQR Stories, and carved inside a variety of autumn gourds.  His short story collection, Welcome to Moon Hill, is currently available, as is his first novel Soundtrack to the End of the World.  Proof of his psychosis can be found on his website: 
http://www.anthonyjrapino.com