Over the past several weeks, I have been attending the IIBA Authors Business Builder classes, a program that helps authors think beyond the book and build a sustainable, intentional business around their message. Through those sessions, I began to understand speaking not as a separate path from writing, but as a natural extension of the same purpose: sharing a message in ways that can serve others.

This week, I sent out my first pitch emails for speaking engagements. For an emerging author, advocate, or storyteller, that step can feel both exciting and vulnerable. It also becomes a moment of clarity: an opportunity to define your message, understand the audience you hope to serve, and begin positioning your story as something that can offer value beyond the page.

1. Start With Your Message, Not Your Resume

Before sending a pitch, it helps to become clear about what you want to say, not simply how you want to introduce yourself.

Your message is your anchor. It is what event organizers connect with first. In my case, the IIBA classes helped me articulate the themes that shape my work:

• The Power of Being Seen — Belonging as the strongest anti-bullying tool
• Healing From Silence — Why kids don’t speak up, and how adults can help
• Resilience Through Storytelling — How narratives rebuild confidence and identity
• Identity, Visibility & Courage — A bullied LGBTQ+ Filipino American kid finding his voice
• Creating Safe Spaces — Practical frameworks for schools, families, and communities

Your topics should be:

• clear
• specific
• emotionally resonant
• easy for organizers to understand at a glance

If your message isn’t clear, your pitch won’t be either.

2. Define What Audiences Will Walk Away With

Event organizers are not looking only for a compelling story; they are looking for the impact that story can have on the people in the room.

Your pitch must include concrete takeaways. These are the tools, frameworks, or insights your audience will gain. Mine include:

1. Belonging Skills — Helping kids feel seen, valued, and safe
2. Emotional Literacy — Language for fear, shame, courage, and identity
3. Resilience Tools — Steps to rebuild confidence after bullying
4. Silence Awareness — Recognizing quiet forms of bullying
5. Support Frameworks — How adults can intervene early and effectively

These takeaways transform a pitch from “Here is my story” into “Here is how I can help your audience.”

3. Craft a Pitch Email That Is Clear, Short, and Human

A pitch email should be:

• brief
• warm
• professional
• easy to skim

Here’s the structure that worked for me:

1. A one-sentence introduction Who you are and why you’re reaching out.

2. A short paragraph about your message Not your whole story — just the part that matters to the event.

3. Your signature topics Presented as a clean, scannable list.

4. Your audience takeaways This is where organizers decide if you’re a fit.

5. A simple call to action “Would you be open to discussing this further?”

A strong pitch email does not need to be long. It needs to be clear, relevant, and easy for an organizer to understand quickly.

4. Pitch Before You Feel Ready

Most new speakers wait too long to pitch because they think they need:

• more experience
• more followers
• more confidence
• more proof

Pitching is not about perfection. It is about readiness.

You’re ready when:

• your message is clear
• your takeaways are defined
• your purpose feels rooted
• your voice feels steady

You do not pitch when you feel big enough. You pitch when your message feels strong enough.

5. Let Your Healing Guide Your Professional Growth

Everyone comes to writing with different goals. For me, the work was never only about money or professional growth. It was also about healing—for myself, for my family, and for anyone who might recognize part of their own story in mine.

Pitching wasn’t a business milestone for me. It was a healing milestone.

It was the moment I realized my story could help others feel seen, safe, and understood. That clarity made pitching feel less like marketing and more like service.

If your speaking work is rooted in something meaningful, your pitches will reflect that — and organizers will feel it.

6. Build Your Brand as You Pitch

Pitching is not the end of the process. It is one of the first places where your message, your voice, and your professional identity begin to take shape in public.

Every pitch helps you refine:

• your message
• your audience
• your voice
• your confidence
• your professional identity

The IIBA community has been a place where I’ve learned from others, gained clarity, and found the courage to step forward. Pitching is simply the next chapter.

The First Pitch

Your first pitch email is not a request for permission. It is a statement of purpose: a clear, respectful step toward sharing the message you have been preparing to offer.

If you have a message that can help people, you are already more prepared than you may realize. The next step is to share it with clarity, humility, and purpose.