Your Book's Elevator Speech

Draw attention and generate interest in one sentence.
© Kimberly Dawn Wells

The elevator speech isn't just interns anymore. Find out how 25 words or less can create the future success of your book.

Years ago, elevator speeches were given in, well, elevators. It is presumed that young, fresh employees, no doubt on their way to run a mediocre errand, were caught on the elevator with a higher-up in the company that had the clout to send them on the fast track to a better place in their career. The catch was, during that short ride in the elevator, could they convince their superior that they were a worthy protégé?

Today, elevator speeches are used much more often at networking events than in actual elevators, but the purpose is the same. In just a few seconds, using just a few words, an elevator speech is designed to inform someone about a product and capture their attention, making them want to know more. As an author, you may have one for yourself, but what about your book?

Each year, thousands and thousands of new book titles are printed and it is your job as an author to make yours stand out. One way you can do this is by coming up with a short description of your book that describes the plot and leaves a listener hanging. For example:

Young lawyer commits a crime so his client can go free
Young woman's fiancé dies hours before their wedding
Sixteen hostages overtake their attacker

How can you reduce your entire 80,000+ word book into a short sentence? Pick out the most important key words about your novel. Forget about all the side plots; ignore everyone except your main characters. Reduce your sentence until every single word has meaning and defines your book. This is your new elevator speech.

There is an old adage, "never judge a book by its cover." Sad but true, most people still do – if not the front cover, the back cover. When you only have a few seconds to make your book stand out among the millions that will be printed this year alone, it is vital to take every advantage possible to make sure yours gets noticed. An elevator speech for your book is one way to draw attention and create interest in a compact presentation.