My MoodPitch Experience

Earlier this month, a new pitch event came to Twitter in the form of MoodPitch. The premise was similar to other Twitter pitch events, like the dearly departed PitMad, with one minor twist: aesthetics like moodboards would be highly encouraged. I wasn't planning to participate, mostly because I had no idea what a moodboard was or how to make one. It turned out to be much easier than I thought it would be, and also a lot of fun. I created my moodboard on Canva, a website I had never heard of three weeks ago, using nothing but their stock images.

The end result is captured above, perhaps not the most dynamic piece of literary art ever assembled, but good enough to capture the essence of the manuscript I was pitching, THE MOST BEAUTIFUL WOMAN I'VE NEVER MET. Each of the pictures in the moodboard is significant in some way to the novel, which is a story of love and loss, parents and children, visions and dreams. Some of the images are obvious: the central premise of the story involves a man who meets the love of his life after dreaming of her death, so we have a crystal ball and a man sleeping in the center of the board. Some of the images apply to setting, on a macro level like the Florida palm trees, or a micro level like a bar where many of the key scenes of the novel happen. A ticking clock symbolizing the race against time for the novel's protagonist to change the fate he's foreseen before it's too late. A beautiful brunette bride, a blonde taking a selfie, a man holding hands with a little girl. All of these pictures should be meaningful to anyone who has beta read the novel.

Whether it was a more finely tuned pitch, or the moodboard, or both, I received two agent likes from the MoodPitch event. Despite the ultimate outcome, my sentiments echo a phrase repeated often, sometimes mockingly, in THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA: "the real treasure was the friends we made along the way." My heartfelt thanks go out to the founders of MoodPitch, who created a fun and inclusive event. I'd like to hope I'm not eligible to participate again when it comes back in November but, if I don't have an agent before then, I can't wait to do it again.