If querying seems like a super nebulous, ambiguous process... this page is for you!

Please keep in mind that this is all based on my own experience and knowledge, so feel free to take what resonates with you and leave what doesn't!

BASICS

First, a couple definitions:
  • Query: the pitch for your book; also called a query letter. Should include your pitch, metadata (i.e. word count, genre, age category, etc.), and your bio. Intended to hook and entice whoever is reading it. Should be less than 1 page (approx. 350-500 words TOTAL).
    ​
  • Synopsis: a play-by-play of your book's plot; should include all spoilers. Intended to show your book's plot beats and arc. Should be 1-2 pages.
So, you have a complete manuscript, utilized your critique partners, revised and polished, and now it's ready for the querying trenches!! Huzzah!!
​
But where do you start?
Querying can be enigmatic and confusing from the outside, but I promise, it's completely doable once you understand the basics.

Once you have a query-ready manuscript:
  • Take a deep breath! Don't feel like you have to rush into querying as soon as you type THE END; the only timeline you're on right now is your own.
  • Build a list of agents you want to submit to. Right now, just write down everyone you think would be a good fit for your book. The following are fantastic resources to use when you're researching agents (keep in mind NOT all of these are free, though most are; you absolutely DO NOT have to spend money if you don't want to/don't have the ability to in order to find a good agent!):
  • Once your list is built, sort them into order of how good of a fit you feel they are for your book.
    • Each agency has different policies about submitting to multiple agents at their agency. RESEARCH THESE! They should be easily found on the agency's website.
    • The most common policies are:
      • A no from one agent is a no from all (i.e. can only submit to one agent at that agency)
      • Only submit to one at a time (i.e. can submit to multiple agents, but wait for an answer from the first agent before submitting to the second)
      • Can submit to any agent at any time
    • You may have to cut agents from your list depending on that agency's policy--that's okay!​
​
  • Make sure you have notes on what each agent's submission policy is; these vary WILDLY from agent to agent, so be careful to check their sites!
    • Usually agents will either ask for queries to be emailed to them, or they'll use Query Manager (an online form)
    • If you make a mistake or mix up agent policies, don't panic; we understand things happen! It's just easier on us when things are submitted the way we ask them to be, so we can be as streamlined and as quick as possible while reading queries.
    • Note that an agent who uses Query Manager will likely NOT accept queries via email!

  • Decide what procedure you'll use to submit to agents.
    • I recommend submitting to your top 10-15 agents first, then waiting for responses on those.
    • Once you start getting responses, you can:
      • Send to a new agent for each rejection that comes in (keeping your active queries at a steady number)
      • Wait for a few rejections, then send new queries in a batch of about 5
      • Wait for all to respond, then send to another 10-15 agents (I DON'T recommend this, as it can take weeks/months for agents to respond)

  • Send out those queries!!
    • Make sure you double check each agent is open to queries before hitting that send button; sometimes agents close suddenly and unexpectedly!
    • More deep breaths, and lots of comfort activities/food!
So you've been querying for a while, gotten some requests and interest, and suddenly--you've got an offer!!

...now what??
  • Ask any and all questions you have while on the call with the offering agent. Seriously--ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING. This is your chance to get a better feel for the agent, and for you to be scrutinizing. We're selling ourselves as agents now, so ask away! Questions I recommend every author ask are:
    • What is your editorial vision for this book?
    • What is your communication style?
    • How often do you communicate with your authors?
    • How often will you keep me updated on submission news?
    • What will the submission process look like?
    • How long will you keep my manuscript on submission?
    • What presses/imprints are you thinking of subbing to?
    • If we were to part ways in the future, what would that process look like?
    • Can I chat with a couple of your current clients?
    • How do you handle future projects from clients?
    • What made you decide to become an agent?

  • When the call wraps up, DO NOT feel obligated to give an answer right then and there!
    • We know authors want to take time to make their decision--we expect it! A legit agent won't take the offer away simply because you asked for time to think it over.
    • 2 weeks is pretty standard to get back to the offering agent.

  • Notify any agents who have your query of the offer.
    • You may think the offering agent is the perfect fit (and they might be!), but it's always best to have all your possible options on the table before deciding.
    • Make sure to notify ALL agents with your query--not just ones with a partial or full manuscript!
      ​​
  • Think long and hard about the options you have, whether 1 agent offers or 10.
    • This is a business decision, one that'll shape your budding writing career. It's an IMPORTANT decision, and you should feel confident the agent you choose is a good fit.
    • Talk to other clients of the agent; ask how they've liked working with the agent, and any other questions you might have. If the agent is brand new without any clients, try speaking with their mentor's clients.
    • Research the agent's social media, look them up online, and ask other writers what they think of them.
    • Remember that just because you have an offer doesn't mean you have to take it! Sometimes an agent looks like a good fit on paper, but doesn't feel the same after talking more extensively with them. Even if they're the only offer you get, you DO NOT have to say yes. It's difficult to do so when you're excited to have gotten an offer at all, but make sure to listen to your gut. No agent is better than a bad agent!

STRUCTURE

While it can be difficult to distill your ENTIRE book into a single one-page letter, it's an important part of the process. They follow a specific structure to streamline the process; it's easiest for agents to move quickly and efficiently through queries when the information we're looking for is in relatively the same places, and is there at all. As you research you'll find some people prefer the necessary information in slightly different orders (which is totally fine), but the information itself should all be present.
Your query letter should generally be structured like this, and should in TOTAL be under 500 words:






​​METADATA
​
Dear [AGENT NAME],
​

​Introduce your book. Be sure to include:
  • Title (written in all caps; no italics, bold, or underline; i.e. BOOK TITLE)
  • Word count (can be rounded to nearest thousand (unless a picture book), no need for the exact number!)
  • Age category (i.e. picture book, MG, YA, adult, etc.)
  • Genre (i.e. contemporary, fantasy, thriller, etc.)
  • Comparison titles (if you have them, they're not required! Should be in all caps with italics; no bold or underline; i.e. BOOK TITLE​)
    ​
This section shouldn't be more than 2-3 sentences long, and is just giving the basic information about your book for the agent. You can include brief mention of themes or ideas you focus on, but you don't have to!











​PITCH
This is the meat of your query letter, where you actually talk about what happens in your book. This section should be 2-3 paragraphs long (about 250-350 words), and is intended to hook the agent and make them want to read your book. This is always the trickiest part of the query letter and where the majority of issues I see appear.

DO:
  • ​Set up your character; make sure we know what they want and who they are.
  • Introduce the conflict; what's keeping your character from getting what they want?
  • Set up the stakes; what happens if your character doesn't get what they want/do what the plot is asking them to?
  • Give enough detail to set your book apart
  • Write in third person, present tense (i.e. "X character is a gamer.")

DON'T:
  • Spend too much space on world building (especially in SFF); while a little world building detail is encouraged and intriguing when given the right details, too much gets overwhelming and distracts from the central plot/conflict you're trying to sell.
  • Be too vague; we don't need to know the names of every single character, creature, or place in your book, but being TOO vague makes it difficult to see what makes your book unique. Instead of saying something like "X character has to save the world", be more specific on what that means, specifically, for them and this book!
  • Spend a lot of time going over themes; a brief mention in the first paragraph is okay and great to give a more general idea of what you're trying to do with the book as a whole, but the pitch itself is more about plot. Too much focus on themes and overarching ideas takes away from that.
  • Write in first person (i.e. from your character's perspective)

​BIO
After the pitch, give a brief bio about yourself; this shouldn't be more than 2-3 sentences long. You can give any publishing credits you have here, but if you don't have any don't worry!! You can also put a couple of things about yourself (i.e. hobbies, your location, animals you have, your day job, etc.). ​
 
Close out your letter with a quick thank you or "looking forward to hearing from you" sentence.

​

Sincerely,

SIGNATURE
  • If you're not submitting via a form (like Query Manager) that asks you for these items, be sure to include your social media handles and your author website (if you have one).
It's a lot to keep in mind, and it's why it can be very difficult to write a good query. But don't panic!
​
  • Have a few writer friends help you out, ideally some who have read your book, and a some who haven't.
    • ​For the ones who have, they'll be able to help you figure out if you're focusing on the right aspects of your book, and tell you if there's a different place you should be focusing on.
    • For the ones who haven't, they'll be able to tell you if your query makes sense, is coherent, and makes them want to read more!
  • Don't be afraid to scratch your entire query and start over if it's not working. EVERY writer I know has done this, and I do this often with pitches I write for my clients. Sometimes you have to write it wrong first to realize it's not right!
For examples of queries done well, I highly suggest checking out Eric Smith's list!

TIPS

  • Be familiar with the word count standards of your genre​​--this article is a good resource! Being a little outside these ranges generally won't be too much of a barrier, but being wildly too high or low can lead to automatic rejections.
  • If you're emailing a query, be sure to use a readable, generally accepted font (i.e. Times New Roman, Garamond, Cambria, etc.) and not one that is difficult to read or distracting (i.e. Comic Sans, Papyrus, different colors other than black, etc.)
  • Don't worry about responding to rejections; thank you's are nice, but definitely not necessary. Agents won't expect a response back, so don't feel obligated to respond to a no!
  • If you do respond, please be kind and courteous, and avoid being angry/combative. Getting rejections sucks and we know it hurts, but lashing out is never good. Vent to your writer friends instead!
  • Choose ONE age category and ONE genre for your book; show you know your audience!
    • Your book can be YA with crossover potential, but it CANNOT be YA, NA, and adult all at once.
    • Genres mix more easily, but generally pick one; if it really mixes two together, you can do something like "sci-fi with horror elements", or "fantasy with romance elements"
  • If you use comparison titles, try to avoid using big/old titles (i.e. Harry Potter, LOTR, Hunger Games, etc.)
    • Try to have at least one title that's been published within the last 5 years
    • You can use other media as well (i.e. movies, songs, TV shows, etc.) as long as you have it comped with a recent book
  • Try to query standalone books if possible; series are more difficult to sell as a debut author!
    • If your book has the potential for more but can stand by itself, you can use the phrase "standalone with series potential" to signal that
  • Be aware that if your book has been previously published (even self-published on Amazon for a brief time, or in another country), agents will likely NOT sign it. They're extremely difficult to sell to traditional publishers once they've already been on the market for readers to buy, unless they've done STAGGERINGLY well and they can provide a new audience/platform for that book that they think will buy it. Instead, submit unpublished projects!
  • If you can, make a separate email account SPECIFICALLY for querying, and don't link it to your phone. It'll save you the anxiety of jumping at every single notification.
  • Find your writer friends, and lean on them when you need to. It can be hard for people not in the industry to understand how it works, so find writers (even just one or two) you can vent to and celebrate with!
  • Take deep breaths. There's a lot of information on this page, let alone on the entire internet, and it can feel overwhelming. Just do your best, and know that the agent on the other end of the query is a human too, and we understand how nerve-wracking querying is and try to give authors grace wherever we can!
  • If this book isn't the one that gets you an agent, that's okay. It can take authors multiple books to get an agent, and multiple books to sell, and that's normal! It doesn't mean you're a bad writer; it just means that one book wasn't the right fit at that time, or that you had a little growing to do as a writer, or the market wasn't quite right for that particular genre. And those are okay!
*Art by Ameilee Sullivan*