The Pitch: Why You’re the One to Write the Story

Award-winning writer Kathy Widenhouse has helped hundreds of nonprofits and writers produce successful content and has gained 600K+ views for her writing tutorials. She is the author of 9 books. See more of Kathy’s content here.

An online devotional for writers

A Word From The Word

We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard. (1 John 1:3, NLT)

A Word For Writers

A pitch is an email in which you present your story idea to an editor. 

Your plan, as you pitch, is to explain your idea in such a compelling way that leaves no doubt you’re the one to write the story. 

My friend Gayle once shared with me her story of a successful pitch to a parenting magazine. Gayle used all the elements of a successful pitch to land an article contract with a leading publication.

• The email subject line: “What your teenagers are doing in the next bedroom”
• The lead: the story of a teenager who became a parent at 17
• The proposed article headline, summary, and slant: six warning signs to parents that indicate their child is sexually active – if they choose to pay attention
• The suitability: why the topic was a perfect fit for the magazine’s faith-based audience of parents 
• The call to action: when Gayle could submit the completed manuscript

But the clincher? Gayle’s qualifications. She and her husband, a pastor, had missed important signals from their son – the teen father in the story. 

While she regretted her naivete, Gayle learned from it and grew from it. Her proposed article addressed those cues for other parents. Gayle and her husband had the credibility to “proclaim what we ourselves had actually seen and heard” (1 John 1:3, NLT).

Gayle’s pitch demonstrated that was the one to write the story. And she made the sale.

A Wise Word

A pitch explains why you’re the one to write the story.

A Word To Pray

Heavenly Father,

You don’t waste anything if we let you use it. Thank you for giving me life experiences that I can learn from and share with others. Show me how to use what I’ve seen, heard, and done to impact others for you.

In Jesus’s name, Amen

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