Elevator Pitch

Be prepared. Know what your book is about, and be able to ‘sell’ it to a publisher within sixty seconds if you find yourself riding the same lift at a Writer’s conference. 

That’s what I was advised when I went to such a conference a couple of years ago. I worked hard to hone the subject matter of the two books I had written. I practiced delivery, and each time I waited for a lift, my palms began to sweat as I imagined who might be in the lift when it finally came. 

I never did ride an elevator with a publisher. I did ride it with a girl even more nervous than I was, and we became friends during the course of the conference. 

I googled elevator pitch last night, expecting to find definitions relating to writing. Instead, all the entries I saw pertained to business ideas and marketing. 

Peter wrote to his readers, that they should always be prepared to give a reason for the hope they lived by. They should live exemplary lives that made people question their motivation, and then, when given the opportunity, they were to have their elevator pitch ready.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the reason for the hope I live by. People in these days don’t want to be preached at. They don’t want to have anyone push the Bible at them. 

But if I can live out my life, selflessly, sacrificially, lovingly, and with a positive, hope-filled attitude, people will notice. They will wonder. 

They will ask what impels me to live life like that.

I must get to work on my elevator pitch, but then again, Jesus counselled that we were not to worry what to say ahead of time, but that he would fill our mouths with the right words when we have the right opportunity. 

Mainly, I need to be connected to Jesus, so that when the chance comes, it’s his words that come out of my mouth, his words which are powerful and full of life. 

A well-crafted elevator pitch is just so many words. A living relationship with the King of Kings, well, that’s something to pursue.