How do I write a book elevator pitch?
- An elevator pitch is a short, spoken description of your book.
- It conveys genre, hook, and appeal in one or two sentences.
- It is for conversation — natural, not memorized-sounding.
- It differs from a query hook in being verbal and reader-facing.
- Every author needs one ready for the "what's it about?" question.
Write a book elevator pitch as one or two sentences you can say naturally when asked what your book is about. Convey the genre, a compelling hook, and why a reader would want it — without summarizing the plot. Keep it conversational, not a recited blurb, and practice it until it comes out easily. It is the spoken, reader-facing cousin of your query hook, used at parties, events, and anywhere someone asks.
Chapter i·Why it matters
Authors are constantly asked "what's your book about?" — by readers, at events, in casual conversation — and fumbling the answer wastes a marketing moment. A ready elevator pitch turns that question into an instant, compelling sell. Because it happens in real time and out loud, it needs to be natural and short, which is a different skill from writing copy. Having one prepared means you are never caught flat when interest appears.
Chapter ii·What to include
- Genre signaled clearly.
- A compelling hook, not a plot summary.
- The reader appeal — why they'd want it.
- One to two sentences, conversational in tone.
- A natural delivery, practiced until easy.
- A version that invites a follow-up question.
Chapter iii·Example
Asked about her book at a dinner, an author says: "It's a domestic thriller about a grief counselor who starts to suspect her dead husband faked his own death — basically Gone Girl in a small coastal town." Genre, hook, and appeal in one natural sentence, and the listener immediately asks to know more.
Chapter iv·Related questions
WriteLoom's Market studio keeps your pitch, hook, and positioning together, so the "what's it about?" answer is always ready.
See the Market studio