Silja Swaby, half Jamaican, half Finnish, is a marine biologist and author. Funded by Arts Council England, she has won competitions, and been placed in prizes and awards. She is working on a series of futuristic thrillers, featuring a female biologist whose quiet academic life takes a drastic turn. Silja has taken creative writing courses at Cambridge University and more recently Yale University, USA.

Silja tutors writers, gives workshops, and provides a critique service. She is happily unmarried and lives in deepest Somerset, UK.


Silja Swaby is pronounced Sil-yah Sway-bee.

June 20, 2008

The pitch

A verbal account of your story is called a pitch. It’s also the answer to the question what is your book about? A test to see if can pitch your story is to imagine you’ve just met an agent or publisher in a lift. They are getting off on the next floor. Can you tell them what your book is about in one minute? Julian Friedman, of the literary, TV and film agency, Blake Friedmann, recommends making an impact with as little information as you can. The legendary one sentence pitch is what everyone should be aiming for.

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