What happens when your pitch doesn’t win… but still kinda does? A tale of near-disaster, hidden wins, soggy cereal, and surprise hope. Here's what went down at Pitchfest 2025.
Thanks for sharing and congrats on the positive feedback! I didn't participate in pitchfest this year after having a lot of similar feelings from two years ago. I think it's an awesome event and BIG shout out to the KCU team for putting it together! That said, I get the sense that all the judges have some very specific boxes to check and if you don't tick enough of those you aren't considered.
I think the publishing industry is suffering from the same mentality that plagues the film industry. Big studios and publishers are pretty entrenched in their formulaic models and if you don't fit in then they don't consider your project. I had a very candid editor tell me he thinks my project will sell well and has mass market appeal but most publishers will pass because the format is non-standard (A4 dimensions) or it doesn't match their current slate of projects' art styles. They aren't willing to risk it. Well, he was right because I self published and it's been going really well, albeit with a lot of its own challenges.
My advice is to cut the publisher out. It'll be challenging but there are more and more options for doing it indie! Run a kickstarter, build a small loyal audience, and when the time is right work with a 3rd party distributor or one of the non-traditional publishers out there! That way your energy goes into your work and not trying to fit someone else's agenda!
Thanks!!! I'm glad self publishing has been going well for you! One of my favorite quotes is something like "Don't expect people to understand your purpose when God didn't give them your vision" and I'm just gonna' follow that. I'm done seeking validation from industry insiders and gatekeepers. Just gonna' do it my way and see where it takes me!
Exactly!! And the market is so risk averse right now that they aren't taking swings at anything outside the norm (or so it seems to me based on lots of conversations with people in the industry). I really like your idea and the art I saw on KCU for Taggin' Quest! Projects like that should get made! If you ever want to talk indie-publishing strategies drop me a line at joshuapaulharper@gmail.com. I've spent so much time this year learning about it and feel insane sometimes since there are so few people to chat with about it haha! I definitely don't have it all figured out (especially distribution channels) but I've picked up some good tips along the way!
Oh for sure!!! Totally worth it. It was also worth it just looking at the top five and seeing what they had that mine lacked. One thing I noticed was lots of expressive character acting and more character interaction. I’d originally planned to submit 8 pages, but only had time to finish four. It’s actually for the best because I rewrote the four missing pages into something better. Just jazzed in general to see where I can take this thing. Thanks for taking the time to read! 🤘🏽
Yooooooooooo! Love this. So many thoughts. So many of the same feelings. Ima hit you up offline. Your project is sick, keep fighting for it!
Gracias, hermano!!! Gonna keep on pushing!
Thanks for sharing and congrats on the positive feedback! I didn't participate in pitchfest this year after having a lot of similar feelings from two years ago. I think it's an awesome event and BIG shout out to the KCU team for putting it together! That said, I get the sense that all the judges have some very specific boxes to check and if you don't tick enough of those you aren't considered.
I think the publishing industry is suffering from the same mentality that plagues the film industry. Big studios and publishers are pretty entrenched in their formulaic models and if you don't fit in then they don't consider your project. I had a very candid editor tell me he thinks my project will sell well and has mass market appeal but most publishers will pass because the format is non-standard (A4 dimensions) or it doesn't match their current slate of projects' art styles. They aren't willing to risk it. Well, he was right because I self published and it's been going really well, albeit with a lot of its own challenges.
My advice is to cut the publisher out. It'll be challenging but there are more and more options for doing it indie! Run a kickstarter, build a small loyal audience, and when the time is right work with a 3rd party distributor or one of the non-traditional publishers out there! That way your energy goes into your work and not trying to fit someone else's agenda!
Thanks!!! I'm glad self publishing has been going well for you! One of my favorite quotes is something like "Don't expect people to understand your purpose when God didn't give them your vision" and I'm just gonna' follow that. I'm done seeking validation from industry insiders and gatekeepers. Just gonna' do it my way and see where it takes me!
Exactly!! And the market is so risk averse right now that they aren't taking swings at anything outside the norm (or so it seems to me based on lots of conversations with people in the industry). I really like your idea and the art I saw on KCU for Taggin' Quest! Projects like that should get made! If you ever want to talk indie-publishing strategies drop me a line at joshuapaulharper@gmail.com. I've spent so much time this year learning about it and feel insane sometimes since there are so few people to chat with about it haha! I definitely don't have it all figured out (especially distribution channels) but I've picked up some good tips along the way!
I'm so glad it was an overall great experience! And Chris Duffy gave you SOLID wisdom on all counts! Best to you on next steps!
Oh for sure!!! Totally worth it. It was also worth it just looking at the top five and seeing what they had that mine lacked. One thing I noticed was lots of expressive character acting and more character interaction. I’d originally planned to submit 8 pages, but only had time to finish four. It’s actually for the best because I rewrote the four missing pages into something better. Just jazzed in general to see where I can take this thing. Thanks for taking the time to read! 🤘🏽