Tag: query letter

Redoing the Query Letter


One of the most important aspects of a query, or the way you introduce a novel or other book to an agent, is the query letter.

Yesterday, I learned that my query letter sucked.

I sent it to The Query Shark, where an agent looked through it and critiqued it thoroughly. So I have an expert opinion that it sucked.

This is good news, actually, because it may be the reason that my queries are bearing no fruit. It’s not an easy fix, but an important one. The query is the introduction to the book, after which the agent will either request more pages or pass. The query letter is the first thing they will read in the query.

In a query letter, you have to accomplish several things: you have to introduce the agent to your book using a synopsis in a couple paragraphs. You must give specifics about the book such as genre and number of pages. You must provide a brief bio.

The problem with my query letter is that my synopsis wasn’t capturing the spirit of the books, nor were they involving the reader personally with the characters’ development. They were bare recitations of the plot, and they lacked the fantasy element. In a way, my query letter didn’t sell my book at all.

I am working on that blurb, and it’s completely different. I think I have the right idea this time. 

I’ve just sent about 20 queries of Prodigies (with the improved query letter and in in its publishing edited/developmental edited/diversity edits) to young adult/new adult agents, and I have the jitters.

The optimistic part of me thinks I’ve done hard work improving.

The pessimistic part of me is afraid it’s not going to be enough.

The pessimistic part of me is afraid there’s something fundamentally wrong with my stories and will keep thinking so unless I get picked up by an agent. Then the pessimistic part of me will be afraid there’s something fundamentally wrong with my stories until I have a publisher. Then …

The pessimistic part of me is a pain in the ass.

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What is the path now?

  • Send Prodigies queries to Young Adult/New Adult agents (done)
  • Wait for a couple months. 
    • Some of the agents will send generic rejection letters
    • Some notify acceptances/rejections via QueryTracker (highly recommended for agent searches: www,querytracker.com)
    • Some don’t send anything, so if I haven’t heard from them in 90 days, then they’ve rejected it
    • If I receive a request for more of the manuscript, weep tears of joy and send it. This still doesn’t mean I’ve been accepted.
  • Wait a bit longer and resend the new improved Prodigies to the fantasy agents who got version 2.0.
  • Wait for a couple of months …
Of course, I have a new improved cover letter for Voyageurs and it’s finally going through a developmental edit. Which means I will go through the process again for Voyageurs (see above).
Readers: I need your love, good wishes and prayers. I don’t ask for things like this a lot, so here I am. If you can make them non-anonymous, all the better!!
Meanwhile,