#book query

[the-melissa-mckinnon]

Manuscript Wishlist

Before we jump into how to query, let’s talk about finding the right agent and where to look for one. 

Yes, there are tons of websites out there that say they have the surefire way to find the right agent, but one size does NOT fit all in this situation. An agent is going to be the one who shops your book around to publishing houses, gets the deals started, and generally is a cheerleader for your book. You need to make sure you’re querying the absolute best people for that job. This is the #1 reason I loathe cold querying. It isn’t helpful and very rarely gives you a good idea of your marketability. Sure, the agent you query could have a stellar reputation, amazing clients, and be representing your exact genre, but if they aren’t looking for new manuscripts, you’re gonna come up empty every single time. 

This is where Manuscript Wishlist comes in. 

It’s a website dedicated to helping authors find agents that are looking for them. I’m honestly a little shocked to see how many authors do not know this even exists. Now, before I go any further, please do not go on there and see what people are looking for and try to write those things. Writing to market is a terrible idea. I promise. It shifts too quickly. By the time you’re finished and have something worthy of querying, more than likely the market has moved on completely and it’s flooded again. Seriously, do not do this! 

But I digress. 

MSWL is an amazing tool for writers that are ready to query. You go on there, click on ‘Find Agents & Editors’ and you’ll see a list of agents currently looking for manuscripts. You can even narrow it down by genre. 

When you click on their names, you’ll find something that looks like this: 

It lists that she’s an agent right under her picture, the types of genres she’s interested in (ps. there are more, but I just clipped this section out so you could see what I was talking about), and then a link to her submission guidelines. Oh, and you can favorite the ones you like to go back and check out later. 

Most agent profiles look like this and underneath the genres, a lot of the time anyway, it’ll say things like “I’m looking for the next To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” or whatever the case may be. They give you comp titles right on the page! 

I could seriously gush about this website forever, but I won’t. This is already pretty long, but one more thing before I sign off. 

They also have a new section that allows you to purchase consultations with some of the agents to get personalized feedback. I haven’t tried this feature just yet, but I do plan to check it out and report back when I have some time. Their main page will have events and info, so it’s definitely worth bookmarking!

Overall Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 stars

[ill-take-you-dreaming]

It’s done. Heart of the Empire is ready for querying. I’ve been trying to write this book for so long, made so many mistakes, put my heart into it. I’ve learned so much and I know I’ll be able to avoid so many mistakes in my future writing ventures.

I’m scared about the querying process, but so excited! Hopefully it doesn’t take a super long time before my book is picked up and published! We’ll see though...

[piecesofachaoticmind]

Literary Agent Question...

I honestly don’t know if I’ll get any answers or opinions on tumblr, but I thought I would send a post out there in the hopes a fellow writer (or even a literary agent) might be able to answer.

Basically, I live in the UK and my book in based in the UK, but it’s from the Urban Fantasy genre and trying to find a UK agent that represents such works is pretty difficult. I have found a small selection of possibles, but I wouldn’t know how to relate my story toward them and their current authors and I was always told ‘start your query by why you chose them’ but ‘You represent fantasy and I hope you’ll enjoy my story’ just doesn’t seem like a good enough reason.

Anyway, whilst searching through pages and pages, I stumbled across a couple of agents that made me go ‘Oh my god! You like this, this and this, so you might really enjoy my novel, especially since the first this has been a major influence on this story’. Then I find out they’re from the US... and now I’m stumped. Do I query them anyway and hope for the best? Or am I setting myself up for failure?

On a side note - this particular genre seems to be a lot more popular in the US than the UK, so that’s a plus right? But would people from the US be put off by UK settings?

TLDR: What are your opinions on a UK writer querying a US agent?

[theauthorencounter]

Quelling Your Query Conundrums

Quelling Your Query Conundrums

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[tsfennec]

I am hooooome. And my brain is fried. But it was a very productive vacation/writing retreat. 

I basically spent the first two days helping @rlparker get the current draft of her book in order and figure out what major revisions still need to get done. (Also helped her brainstorm on a new, related project! Yay!)

Also pulled together agent information and sent out my first Official Batch of queries to agents (a thing which I have been dreading... because as long as I don’t really throw myself into trying, I can’t actually fail XP). 

Annnd I got a very satisfying chunk done on my newest novel. I’ve reached the point now where I need to slow down and do research - a lot of research - but I’m really getting a feel for the characters and world now. :D

[pswgear]

Query Letter Example #1

A 5-Part Series

Querying Agents

Finding Agents

Query Letter Example #1

Contacting Agents

As I said in my Querying Agents post, I used this query as the basis for my letter. It’s concise and polite, which I think will go a long way for most agents. These folks get a ton of representation requests – so it’ll go a long way if short and sweet defines your submission.

I wrote my first letter in about five minutes, pushing through all doubt. It was terrible, but what did that matter? I had a beginning. From there, I probably rewrote the letter between 25-30 times over the course of two days. After each “finish” I read the letter out loud and noted what worked and what didn’t.

It wasn’t perfect and after sending off the first round of queries, I’m getting ready to redo the letter for a second round of queries. When I get done with the second go-around, I’ll be sure to post it.

In the meantime, here’s the first letter. Have some fun and good luck!

Dear Ms./Mr. [for Pete’s sake spell their last name correctly]:

What if Stonehenge was a prison? Who would’ve been imprisoned there? Why? The answers begin in CHARLOTTE GNOLL, my first novel. A Young Adult fantasy set in both modern-day Wales and an old Celtic world, the manuscript is complete at 85,000 words. {There’s some debate as to where the genre and word count of your book appears in the query list. I will likely move this technical information later in the letter when I send it to more agents. However, always include it along with the statement that your manuscript is complete. For fiction, it’s a must.}

{Describe your book. Honestly, this could be another post on its own. Write, rewrite, and rewrite about 50 times more. Let it percolate…this is your best chance to sell your book with a clear and efficient description.} Charlotte Addo’s life turned upside down the day her dad disappeared. Before she was fearless, yet now she’d rather bury her head in the last book they read together. But when she stumbles into a world where reality bests her imagination, will Charlotte remember her courage? Her new friends are counting on it. So is her dad.

{As you can see, my description is broken into two pieces, which makes sense with my particular book because there’s Charlotte and then there’s the other world.} A witch, bent on destroying the world, was defeated 5,000 years ago and locked away. Yet no prison lasts forever, not even Stonehenge. Charlotte, a last hope, must learn to control a magic she never knew existed and stop the witch. It’s a lot to ask of an eight-year old.

{Why did you choose this agent? If you’ve done the work recommended in the Finding Agents, you should know exactly why. Let them know; connect with them.} I am submitting this novel to you after I read that you represented [a book I have found similar to my own that liked]. [Compare your book to that book]: e.g., I see Charlotte as strong and vulnerable as Katsa, though we meet Charlotte long before she masters or even understands her power.

{A little about yourself} I quit my job as an Economic advisor in Baltimore last October and ran away to Germany with my fiancé so we could explore Europe and I could finish CHARLOTTE (plus other stories). You can read some of those other stories on my website, www.pswgear.com. {Do you have a website or any presence on the net? You should, if only to show that you are willing and able to engage peoples with some rudimentary knowledge of how. Increasingly, publishers are relying on their authors to get the good word out. This is a start.}

Thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you. {Professionalism and politeness! But don’t be afraid to make your sign-off a little more casual. Just never forget to thank them for reading.}

Sincerely,

p.s.w. gear

[phone number]

[email address]

Query Letter Example #1 was originally published on p.s.w. gear - i write things

[halfscribed]

Is there anything that actually explores the age gap in vampire/human relationships?

[lainecunningham]

The Most Important Thing I Learned as an Author

Very early in my writing career, I attended a large conference on the West Coast. One of the panels lined up representatives from 5 publishers, some of the largest houses in the world beside some of the most highly regarded smaller houses. One question came up from the audience about pitches. The attendee said, “I’ve heard I’m supposed to put sales information and comparisons in my pitch. But what…

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