The Complete Guide to Query Letters

This station is regularly updated pinch caller information.

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The query missive has 1 purpose, and 1 intent only: to seduce nan supplier aliases editor into reference aliases requesting your work. The query missive is truthful overmuch of a income portion that it’s rather imaginable to constitute 1 without having written a connection of nan manuscript. All it requires is simply a patient grasp of your communicative premise.

For immoderate writers, nan query will correspond a wholly different measurement of reasoning astir their book—because it intends reasoning astir one’s activity arsenic a merchandise to beryllium sold. It helps to person immoderate region from your activity to spot its salable qualities.

This station focuses connected query letters for novels, although nan aforesaid proposal applies to memoirists, because some novelists and memoirists are trading a story. Nonfiction book queries are addressed here.

Before you query

Novelists and astir memoirists should person a vanished and polished manuscript earlier they statesman querying. However, immoderate whitethorn beryllium tempted to statesman early because it tin return truthful agelong to person responses from agents and publishers. The reasoning goes: Well, nan supplier astir apt won’t respond immoderate earlier than a period anyway, and I’ll beryllium done by then, truthful why not get a jump connected it?

But what if nan supplier responds correct away?

Or what if you’re not done successful a month? What if you recognize your manuscript needs a batch much work?

You’ll wish you hadn’t started querying. You whitethorn extremity up rushing your penning aliases editing process (undesirable to opportunity nan least), aliases admitting to nan agent/editor that it will return you X weeks aliases months to travel up, by which point, their enthusiasm whitethorn person waned.

To debar creating a high-pressure aliases awkward situation, I urge you hold until you consciousness nan manuscript is wholly done—the champion you tin make it. That doesn’t mean you person to prosecute freelance editors aliases copyeditors aliases proofreaders, but it does mean fixing aliases revising thing you cognize needs attention.

4 elements of every query letter

I urge your query include these elements, successful nary peculiar bid (except nan closing):

• The housekeeping: your book’s genre/category, connection count, title/subtitle
• The hook: nan explanation of your communicative and nan astir captious query element; 150-300 words is capable for most communicative works
• Bio note: thing astir yourself, usually 50-100 words
• Thank you & closing: astir a sentence

I see personalization aliases customization of nan query optional. More connected that later.

Some agents and publishers require that you mention comparable aliases competitory titles. You tin study really to research your comps successful this post.

In its entirety, nan query shouldn’t tally much than 1 page, azygous spaced, if printed, aliases location astir 200 to 450 words. I recommend brevity, particularly if you deficiency confidence. Brevity gets you successful little trouble. The much you effort to explain, nan much you’ll compression nan life retired of your story. So: Get in, get out.

Opening your query letter

Put your champion ft forward, or lead pinch your strongest trading point. Here are nan astir communal ways to statesman a query:

• Maybe you’ve been vouched for aliases referred by an existing client or author; mention nan referral correct away.
• If you met nan agent/editor astatine a convention aliases transportation event, and your worldly was requested, past put that upfront.
• Starting pinch your communicative is a classic opening—and my preferred opening—when you don’t needfully person a bully civilization aliases personalized opening for nan personification you’re querying.
• Some queries commencement successful an informational manner, which is besides fine: “[Title] is an 80,000-word supernatural romance…”
• Published aliases credentialed writers mightiness commencement pinch their successes, particularly if they’ve won awards aliases received an MFA from a well-known school. However, fewer fabrication writers statesman their query by talking astir themselves because astir are unpublished. (This isn’t a problem, though.)

Many writers don’t person referrals aliases convention meetings to autumn backmost on, so the communicative becomes nan lead for nan query letter.

Personalizing nan query letter: yes aliases no?

Your query is simply a income tool, and bully salespeople effort to create a rapport pinch their target. It tin beryllium adjuvant to show you’ve done your homework and that you’re not blasting indiscriminately. It tin besides group you apart from nan ample mostly of writers querying—if it’s done meaningfully.

Here’s an illustration of a meaningful personalization: “The acknowledgments of The Ideal American mention you pinch praise, and F. Scott’s masterful activity partially inspired my ain novel.

If you personalize nan query by saying, “I recovered you successful Writer’s Market,” aliases “I spot from your website that you’re seeking mystery,” and you adhd thing else, that’s not terribly meaningful. Try to opportunity thing that can’t beryllium repeated by different writer aliases utilized successful different query. Here I remark further connected whether to personalize your query.

Identifying what you’re selling

Your book’s title, connection count, and genre tin beryllium stated upfront, though often it’s amended to hold until nan extremity of nan query to connection this housekeeping information.

• Title. Everyone knows your book title is tentative, truthful you don’t person to explicitly authorities nan title is tentative.
• Word count. If your novel’s connection count goes beyond 120,000 words, you person a situation up of you. Eighty 1000 words is nan manufacture modular for a debut novel. See this station for a definitive database of due connection counts by genre. If you person an off-putting connection count, immoderate agents urge withholding this truth until nan extremity of nan letter, erstwhile you’ve perchance hooked them. Minimum connection count for astir novels is 50,000 words.
• Genre. If you’re unsure of your genre, you tin time off retired immoderate mention of it. However, if you do, beryllium judge to tie a comparison betwixt your book and different caller title published wrong nan past 5 years. You tin opportunity that your book is written successful nan aforesaid mode aliases style arsenic different book or author, aliases that it has a akin reside aliases theme. Two comparisons are sufficient; nan much thoughtful nan comparison, nan better. Comparing yourself to a existent New York Times bestselling writer tin travel crossed arsenic arrogant aliases excessively easy. Instead, show a nuanced knowing of wherever your book falls successful nan literate landscape. Agents and editors will salary person attraction if it appears you are good read, because that increases nan chances your book is good written. (Again, you tin study astir comp titles here.)

Describing your communicative (the hook)

For astir queries, nan hook does each of nan activity successful convincing nan supplier aliases editor to petition your manuscript. Here are a mates formulas that tin thief you get started.

Here’s an illustration of a little hook for The DaVinci Code:

Robert Langdon is an American world and an master successful nan symbols of nan ancient world. While connected business successful Paris, he’s summoned to nan segment of a grisly execution successful nan Louvre wherever he’s nan main suspect. He must title crossed Europe, 1 measurement up of nan constabulary chasing him, to lick nan execution and beryllium his innocence. In nan process, he uncovers arcane messages hidden successful nan world’s best-known artworks, solves ancient puzzles, and yet discovers secrets astir Jesus that could bring down nan Catholic Church.

As portion of this hook, you whitethorn request to found nan mounting aliases clip play correct away; this is particularly existent for authors of humanities fabrication aliases subject fabrication and fantasy. For example: “My novel, SCI-FI EPIC, is group successful nan distant early wherever humans person abandoned world and now unrecorded connected nan rings of Saturn.”

A bully hook balances characteristic and plot. By nan extremity of nan query, nan scholar should person an thought of why we attraction astir nan main character(s) but besides nan communicative problem aliases hostility that keeps america turning pages.

While nan hook look looks simple—and it is—your communicative whitethorn sound alternatively boring erstwhile it’s boiled down to these elements.

When a hook is good written but boring, it offers nan aforesaid aged look without distinction. The protagonist feels one-dimensional (or for illustration each different protagonist), nan communicative perspective is thing we’ve seen excessively galore times.

The champion hooks person immoderate benignant of twist aliases an constituent that helps your activity guidelines out, that makes it uniquely yours. That is: nan thought doesn’t consciousness derivative of existing bestsellers. For example: Every clip an supplier comes crossed a query featuring a YA protagonist pinch typical powers acquired connected his birthday, and he must fig retired really to power these powers astatine an unfamiliar school, there’s a bully chance nan supplier is going to walk unless there’s a melodramatic twist.

How do you cognize if your thought is tired—by an agent’s standards? Well, this is why everyone tells writers to read and read and read. It builds your knowledge and acquisition of what’s been done earlier successful your genre, arsenic good arsenic nan conventions.

In Laurie Scheer’s The Writer’s Advantage, she good demonstrates nan quality betwixt a boring communicative hook and an breathtaking one:

I person heard an eternity of pitches featuring women arsenic victims, survivors, azygous mothers, etc. If personification pitches maine a communicative astir a 43-year-old unmarried female who has had a successful profession successful advertizing aliases rule aliases pharmaceuticals aliases whatever, and decides astatine nan past infinitesimal that her biologic clock’s ticking and she wants to person a kid … I will hold for nan writer to show maine nan remainder of nan story.

And location is nary remainder of nan story, because successful their mind, that is their story.

To which I say, “Who cares?” Seriously, who will attraction astir that storyline? No one. We person seen galore stories about women wanting to person children later successful life. I could nutrient a database astatine slightest 2 pages agelong consisting of books and movies with this crippled line.

However, if 1 of nan main characters is simply a 43-year-old azygous businesswoman having her first kid and, astatine nan aforesaid time, her 22-year-old niece is besides having her first child—because nan niece does not spot nan use of having a profession and only wants to beryllium supported by a rich | husband—I abruptly spot immoderate conflict here.

Whenever I thatch a people wherever we critique hooks, conscionable astir everyone tin constituent retired nan hook’s problems and talk astir really to amended them. Why? Because erstwhile you’re not nan writer, you have distance from nan work. When you do travel crossed a awesome caller hook, it feels truthful earthy and easy—like it was effortless to write.

Examples of little communicative hooks

Every day, PublishersMarketplace lists book deals that were precocious signed astatine awesome New York houses. It identifies nan title, nan author, nan publisher/editor who bought nan project, and nan supplier who sold it. It besides offers a one-sentence explanation of nan book. These sentences are inevitably well-crafted, and tin thief you amended understand what is presently breathtaking to agents and publishers.

There are trends and fashions successful publishing, and if you were to publication nan one-sentence explanation of each caller that sold successful your genre successful nan past six months, you would spot definite themes emerge.

While your query hook would get into much item than nan pursuing 2 examples, these hooks thief exemplify really overmuch you tin execute successful conscionable a statement aliases two.

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Bridget Boland’s DOULA, an emotionally arguable caller astir a doula pinch a sixth sense [protagonist] who, while pursuing her calling, has to face a acheronian and uncertain early erstwhile opinionated proceedings for nan decease of her champion friend’s baby [protagonist’s problem] [a doula pinch a sixth sense? cool.]

John Hornor Jacobs’s SOUTHERN GODS, successful which a Memphis DJ [protagonist] hires a caller World War II seasoned to find a mysterious bluesman whose music [protagonist’s problem] — broadcast astatine ever-shifting frequencies by a phantom power position — is said to make surviving men insane and dormant men rise [twist]

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Check for reddish flags successful your hook

How to show if your hook could beryllium improved:

• Does your hook tally longer than 300 words? You whitethorn beryllium going into excessively overmuch detail.
• Does your hook uncover nan ending of your book? Only nan synopsis should do that. However, erstwhile supplier and editor Mary Kole says you mightiness request to uncover nan ending successful your query. It’s not my preference, but I’ve worked connected projects wherever it becomes necessary, for reasons that Kole explains.
• Does your hook mention much than 3 characters? Usually you only request to mention nan protagonist(s), a romanticist liking aliases sidekick, and nan antagonist.
• Does your hook get into insignificant crippled points that don’t impact nan choices nan protagonist makes? Do you really request to mention them?
• Does your hook talk about nan story, alternatively than telling nan story? Don’t get bogged down successful really you wrote nan book aliases what its themes are. Focus connected what happens instead.

Writing the bio successful your query letter

For novelists, particularly unpublished ones, I deliberation it’s OK to time off retired nan bio if you can’t deliberation of thing worthy sharing. But it’s bully to put successful something. 

The cardinal to each item successful your bio is: Will it beryllium meaningful—or possibly charming—to nan agent/editor? If you can’t confidently reply yes, time off it out. In bid of importance, these are nan categories of pertinent info.

• Publication credits. Be circumstantial astir your credits for this to beryllium meaningful. Don’t opportunity you’ve been published “in a assortment of journals.” You mightiness arsenic good beryllium unpublished if you don’t want to sanction them. If you person no fiction penning credits, you don’t request to authorities that you’re unpublished. That constituent will beryllium made clear by truth of omission. If you person a agelong publishing history, conscionable database nan ones you’re astir proud of aliases nan ones astir applicable to what you’re pitching. I don’t urge including world aliases waste and acquisition journals, since they don’t convey storytelling ability.
• Self-published books. Lots of group person self-published, and a self-publishing history doesn’t wounded your chances pinch a new, caller project. However, if you’re trying to get an supplier aliases patient for a book aliases series that’s already been self-published, my proposal is to not fuss trying. (If you must, here’s really to transportation an supplier pinch a self-published book.) Do not make nan correction of reasoning your self-publishing credits make you someway much desirable arsenic an author, unless you person unthinkable income success, successful which case, mention nan income figures of your books and nan mean prima rating.
• Your profession. If your profession lends you credibility to constitute a amended story, by each intends mention it. But don’t spell into lengthy detail. Teachers of K-12 who are penning children’s/YA often mention their school acquisition arsenic a credential for penning children’s/YA, but it’s not, truthful don’t dainty it for illustration 1 successful nan bio. (Perhaps it goes without saying, but parents should not dainty their genitor position arsenic a credential to constitute for children either.)
• Writing cred. Mention immoderate writing-related degrees you have, immoderate awesome master penning organizations you beryllium to (e.g., RWA, MWA, SCBWI), and perchance immoderate awesome events/retreats/workshops you’ve attended to thief you create your profession arsenic a writer. 
• Special research. If your book is nan merchandise of immoderate intriguing aliases different investigation (you spent a twelvemonth successful nan Congo), mention it. These unsocial specifications tin drawback nan attraction of an editor aliases agent.
• Major awards/competitions. Most writers should not mention awards aliases competitions they’ve won because they are excessively mini to matter. If nan grant isn’t wide recognizable to nan mostly of publishing professionals, past nan only measurement to convey nan value of an grant is to talk astir really galore group you hit out. Usually nan introduction number needs to beryllium successful nan thousands to impressment an agent/editor.

If you person nary meaningful publication credits, don’t effort to invent any. If you person nary master credentials, nary investigation to mention, nary awards to your name—nothing notable astatine each to share—don’t apologize for it. Perhaps opportunity thing little astir yourself—where you live, your education, your time job, hobbies. Remember: Even if you’re unpublished, you’re still wholly respectable. You’re chiefly getting judged connected nan communicative premise, not your bio.

On nan different extremity of nan spectrum: Don’t talk astir starting to constitute erstwhile you were successful 2nd grade. Don’t talk astir really overmuch you’ve improved your penning successful nan past fewer years. Don’t talk astir really overmuch you bask returning to penning successful your retirement. Just mention a few highlights that beryllium your seriousness and devotion to nan trade of writing. If unsure, time off it out.

If your bio tin uncover thing of your sound aliases personality, each nan better. While nan query isn’t nan spot to digress aliases mention irrelevant info, there’s thing to beryllium said for expressing thing astir yourself that gives penetration into nan benignant of writer you are—that ineffable you. Charm helps.

Novel queries don’t person to reside marketplace concerns

Don’t beryllium tempted to elaborate connected nan assemblage aliases marketplace for your novel. This is often misunderstood since nonfiction writers do person to talk astir marketplace concerns. However, erstwhile it comes to trading fiction, you don’t talk astir nan trends successful nan market, aliases astir nan target audience. You waste nan story. I often promote memoirists to travel nan aforesaid rule and time off retired readership information—save it for nan book proposal if it’s requested.

Also, novelists don’t request to talk their marketing scheme aliases platform. Sometimes you mightiness mention your website aliases blog, particularly if you consciousness assured astir its presentation. The truth is nan agent/editor is going to Google you anyway, and find your website/blog whether you mention it aliases not (unless you’re penning nether a different name).

While having an online beingness helps show you’ll apt beryllium a bully marketer and promoter of your work—especially if you person a sizable readership already—it doesn’t opportunity thing astir your expertise to constitute a awesome story. That said, if you person 100,000+ fans/readers connected Wattpad aliases astatine your blog, that should beryllium successful your query letter.

Close your missive professionally

You don’t publication overmuch proposal astir really to adjacent a query letter, possibly because there’s not overmuch to it, right? You opportunity acknowledgment and motion your name. But here’s really to time off a bully last impression.

1. You don’t person to authorities that you are simultaneously querying unless nan guidelines request it. Everyone assumes your query is being sent to aggregate parties and not to a azygous personification astatine a time. I do not urge exclusive queries.
2. If your manuscript is nether information astatine different agency, past mention it if/when nan adjacent supplier requests to spot your manuscript.
3. If you person a bid successful mind, this is simply a bully clip to mention it. But don’t belabor nan point; it should return a sentence, e.g., “This is nan first successful a planned series.”
4. Resist nan enticement to editorialize. This is wherever you proclaim really overmuch nan supplier will emotion nan work, aliases really breathtaking it is, aliases really it’s going to beryllium a bestseller if only personification would springiness it a chance, aliases really overmuch your kids bask it, aliases really overmuch nan world needs this work. Basically, debar straight commenting connected nan value of your activity (whether that’s to flatter aliases knock yourself). Your query should show what a bully writer you are, alternatively than you telling aliases emphasizing what a bully writer you are.
5. Thank nan agent, but don’t transportation connected unnecessarily, or beryllium incredibly subservient—or beg. (“I cognize you’re very engaged and I would beryllium everlastingly indebted and grateful if you would conscionable look astatine a fewer pages.”)
6. There’s nary request to spell into awesome item astir erstwhile and really you’re available. At nan bottommost of your letter, see your email address, possibly a telephone number.
7. Do not present nan thought of an in-person meeting. Do not opportunity you’ll beryllium visiting their metropolis soon, and inquire if they’d for illustration to meet for coffee. The only imaginable objection to this is if you cognize you’ll perceive them speak astatine an upcoming conference—but don’t inquire for a meeting. Just opportunity you look guardant to proceeding them speak. Use nan conference’s charismatic channels to group up an assignment if available.

The pursuing worldly doesn’t belong successful nan query

• Your galore years of effort and dedication
• How overmuch your family and friends emotion your work
• How galore times you’ve been rejected aliases adjacent accepts
• How overmuch money you’ve invested successful editors aliases editing
• Quotes of praise from anyone, aliases mentioning really such-and-such well-known personification has publication your activity and/or offered proposal connected it. Perhaps it’s boosted your ego aliases assurance that immoderate VIP has publication your work aliases offered a critique. But agents/editors will dress up their ain mind, and if your VIP really believed successful your work, why aren’t they offering you a referral to their supplier aliases editor?

The submissions strategy I recommend

If you’d for illustration to return a blimpish approach, disagreement your agents into buckets: A list, B list, and everyone-else list. Try submitting successful rounds of 5-10 astatine a clip (depending connected nan size of your list), including 1-2 of each supplier type. If your A database group instantly and favorably respond, past I’d nonstop retired different information correct away, a operation of As and Bs, to spot if you tin gin up competing interest. If responses trickle successful pinch nary peculiar shape aliases order, nonstop different information wrong 2-4 weeks aliases so. At slightest each month, nonstop different information until your database is exhausted.

If you instantly spot a shape successful nan consequence that indicates something’s amiss, you tin set your attack for nan adjacent information of queries. The logic I urge this blimpish attack is it tends to beryllium easier to negociate psychologically. But there’s thing incorrect pinch sending retired your materials to everyone connected your database astatine erstwhile aliases sending successful higher volume. It conscionable intends that you don’t get that “next chance” aliases opportunity to set your transportation later. (Once a rejection, ever a rejection—or that should beryllium your assumption.)

What is nan champion timing for a query?

In nan penning community, you’ll perceive a batch of myths astir “good” and “bad” times to query. There really isn’t a “good” clip aliases “bad” time. If nan supplier aliases patient is unfastened to queries aliases submissions, and your worldly is ready, past spell for it. There is nary measurement you tin clip your submission perfectly; excessively galore variables are retired of your control, including nan person’s temper nan infinitesimal they unfastened nan query.

Some opportunity you shouldn’t query successful August aliases adjacent nan holidays because agents will beryllium connected picnic aliases not paying attraction to submissions. This isn’t universally existent and you aren’t giving yourself a amended chance by avoiding August aliases nan holidays. Again, if nan agent/publisher is unfastened to submissions, they’re unfastened to submissions. Full stop.

But if you insist, here is my sentiment connected your query’s chances by almanac month.

Query missive illustration for a novel

Special proposal connected email queries

Email queries and queries submitted done online forms thin to get publication and rejected much quickly than snail message queries (which are seldom accepted these days, successful fact). Depending connected your situation, you whitethorn extremity up creating two abstracted versions of your query letter, 1 for email and different for printing/mailing.

Here’s the formatting process I urge for email queries specifically:

• Write your query successful Word aliases TextEdit. Strip retired each formatting. (Usually location is an action nether “Save As” that will let you to prevention arsenic elemental text.)
• Send nan query without immoderate formatting and without immoderate indents (block style).
• Don’t usage address, day headers, aliases interaction accusation astatine nan opening of nan email; put each of that worldly astatine nan bottom, underneath your name.
• The first statement should read: “Dear [Agent Name]:”

Email queries use from shorter paragraphs and/or much paragraph breaks—unless nan supplier insists everything beryllium contained wrong 3 large, outsized paragraphs. That is simply a very backward request that only makes things harder for everyone, but travel specified guidelines if you must.

If you person an email reside for an editor/agent who doesn’t judge email queries, you tin effort sending your query connected a dream and a prayer, but you astir apt won’t person a response. In fact, I’ve heard galore writers kick that they ne'er person a consequence from email queries. (Sometimes soundlessness is nan caller rejection.) This is simply a arena that must beryllium regrettably accepted. Send 1 follow-up to inquire, but don’t support sending emails to fig retired if your query was received.

You’ve sent your query—now what?

If you don’t perceive back, travel up aft nan stated response clip utilizing nan aforesaid method arsenic nan original query. If nary consequence clip is given, hold astir 1 month. If querying via snail mail, see different transcript of nan query. If you still don’t perceive backmost aft 1 follow-up attempt, presume it’s a rejection, and move on. Do not telephone aliases visit.

If an agent asks for an exclusive publication connected your manuscript, that intends nary 1 other tin publication nan manuscript while they’re considering it. I don’t urge granting an exclusive unless it’s for a very short play (maybe 2 weeks).

In non-exclusive situations (which should beryllium astir situations): If you person a 2nd petition for nan manuscript earlier you perceive backmost from nan first agent, past arsenic a courtesy, fto nan 2nd supplier cognize it’s besides nether information elsewhere (though you needn’t opportunity pinch whom). If nan 2nd supplier offers you practice first, spell backmost to nan first supplier and fto her cognize you’ve been made an offer, and springiness her a chance to respond.

Additional resources connected query letters

• Agent Eric Smith freely shares query missive examples
• QueryShark: tally by an supplier who critiques queries (dormant, but still helpful)
• QueryTracker: excavation for examples of successful queries (look nether “success communicative interviews”)

Looking for more?

• Start Here: How to Get Your Book Published
• Start Here: How to Write a Book Proposal
• Writing a Novel Synopsis