# of partials/manuscripts requested: 1
genre of requests: general fiction
Dear Authors:
Agent Nathan posted a very handy list of Things I Don't Need To Know in a Query yesterday. I think I agreed with them all - the things he mentions just aren't relevant to the decision-making process at the query stage. And I particularly liked: "That your manuscript is completely different than anything that's ever been published" - because every week more than one author assures me of that very thing, and I wonder how they have read every single book ever published when I can't even find time put a dent in my TBR pile....
Here's my own list this week -- Things I thought of while reading queries this week....
* 40,000 words really tends to be too short for an adult novel (ymmv with YA/MG).
* When you get three queries in a row about novels featuring children being abused you have to take a break.
* Yes, I do find it sad when I realize the author didn't even use the spellchecker for their query. (Typos do happen, but 3 in the first line is just sloppy.)
* Certain kinds of email address names are really not appropriate for professional correspondence. (But sometimes they make me laugh. Or cry. And, no, they don't determine whether I ask for pages. I just notice some of the really outlandish ones when I'm drafting replies.)
* My Official Sidekick still fears staples.
* Please do not assume anything about the religious background, racial background, political bias, or sexual orientation of the agent you are querying. In particular, do not expound at length on the pro or con arguments for any of the same. This could potentially backfire. This is not to say these elements and concepts cannot inform your story. But being preached to in a query (whether you agree with the perspective or not) is a terrible distraction from ascertaining its literary worth.
* It's not helpful to apologize for how bad your query letter is...
* In the same vein, I'm pretty sure many authors believe their novel is far too complex to be sufficiently summarized in a query or synopsis but explaining how ineffective the method is doesn't remove the necessity of providing one.
With all this in mind, and many queries still to read, I invite you to ask about the do's and don't's of the query letter -- just in case these points have raised questions or there are things that you've been wondering about.
Page Summary
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metafrantic : (no subject) [+12] - (Anonymous) : rejections [+1]
- pwtucker : (no subject) [+5]
- midlist_writer : Summaries [+1]
- nattiecakes : (no subject) [+1]
- (Anonymous) : Query qara [+1]
- (Anonymous) : Staple Rage [+0]
- kmarkhoover : (no subject) [+0]
- (Anonymous) : Query letter instructions [+2]
- (Anonymous) : (no subject) [+3]
- (Anonymous) : synopsis [+1]
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katelordbrown.blogspot.com : Queries [+0] - tayefeth : (no subject) [+3]
- slithytove : (no subject) [+0]
- julie-weathers.blogspot.com : (no subject) [+1]
- (Anonymous) : (no subject) [+1]
- (Anonymous) : Word count [+3]
- (Anonymous) : queryless [+0]
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This work by Jennifer Jackson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Comments
I've seen any number of sample query letters that have no lead-in of any kind - not even a "Dear Mr./Mrs." or anything. The very first words (below name/address/etc.) are the beginning of the novel's description.
While I understand the need to capture the agent's attention, this goes against my sensibilities. Is this something agents notice or care about? Is some sort of lead-in a good or bad idea?
"Mrs." should be avoided because one does not necessarily know if the person in question is married, or (these days) kept their maiden name. (I still think it's peculiar that men get "Mr." either way.) Use of my first name without meeting me tends to strike me as forward and too familiar for a business correspondence, but YMMV on that one.
I'm a little surprised that they don't even include an addressee. It may be a query, but it's also a letter. What do you think about a "Ms./Mr. Agent" followed by the description without any sort of lead-in?
Yeah, I know, a nervous writer checking her mailbox way too often. Thanks.
Carson Flanders
And oh! A second question. Say an agent asks to see the first 50 pages, and then politely says no thanks. AND THEN you get an offer for publication directly from an editor. If you really liked the agent, should you go back for a second try, offer in hand, or find somebody new?
IMO - if you got a standardized rejection, then treat this as a new conversation and start fresh. If the correspondence was personal, or you were specifically invited to resubmit or send new projects, then definitely mention it.
Say an agent asks to see the first 50 pages, and then politely says no thanks. AND THEN you get an offer for publication directly from an editor. If you really liked the agent, should you go back for a second try, offer in hand, or find somebody new?
I have a client on my list who did that very thing. There were revisions in the mix as well. But also, agents' lists have an ebb and flow and so do their interests, and the market as well. As long as one is polite and professional, I don't see how it could do harm, and if they still aren't interested, perhaps they will be able to give you a referral.
(1) Why are you still working? (Because I'm not making enough money to replace my salary. What, you think I work here for fun?)
(2) What's your book about?
"It's about 350 pages."
I grok in fullness the feeling that My Novel Is Too Complex to summarize, but Summarize We Must. Having to summarize for a query letter is good practice for what you're going to tell your maiden aunt (who lives in Northumbria) what your book is about.
Respectfully submitted,
Moderately Successful Midlist Writer
...Because what they wrote for the back cover copy was NOT the book I had written, in any way, shape, or form. I rechecked the summary I wrote...and I still couldn't figure out how they got from point A to point 3.14159. (Seriously, the only things they got right were the characters' names.)
I didn't have consultation rights with that contract, but my editor didn't think the back cover copy was quite right, and gave them to me at that point, very nice lady...and I got the consultation rights put into the next contract. Not quite the same thing as having the final say, but at least it's a stop-gap measure against the wrong back cover copy going out.
Thankfully, she's accepted my rewritten version of the back cover copy--for all of my books, not just that one, but book 4 was particularly bad. The back cover copy is exactly like a summary, except the summary gives away the end of the plot. Both have to be interesting, even gripping, and make the reader/editor/agent want to know the rest of the story.
If you want to get good at writing summaries, start practicing writing the back cover copy. Browse the bookstore shelves in your genre/category, see how other books have done their back cover and fly leaf blurbs, and see how the summaries for the stories are put together so that it catches the readers' attention, making them want to buy that book.
Once you've got that hook practiced (which doesn't usually give away the ending)...you can write a summary (which usually does).
...Mind you, I'm very tempted to use your "It's about 350 pages" answer for my next novel, because I still hate writing summaries...but I think my editor would kill me.
~Lotm
(If anyone's curious, www.JeanJohnson.net)
If that's right, what if it straddles two genres and you're not certain where it goes? For example, The Time Traveler's Wife I would normally think of as science fiction, but it got published as general fiction. A story I have been working on seems to be in the same position as far as genre goes, and I'm not sure how to say that without sounding presumptuous; an agent would know much better than I where to put it. If I were to say, "It is science fiction, but possibly also general fiction," does that sound okay?
I have to admit that I don't always remember the lists from months ago, and some of the entries on them are composed by the other agents, so I'm not sure that I could commit to that and be sure to keep up. Plus, since every author is different, two approaches to the same idea might still be of interest to one or more agents at DMLA.
-Rolli
www.rolliwrites.blogspot.com
Lol, funny! I can't believe some of the things you get in the mail. Thank you for sharing. :)
Nancy D'Inzillo
http://www.mightypenediting.com
There are probably some rare exceptions to that rule.
Sorry I'm late to the party today. Along the lines of the opening I have a question on "Women's Fiction" with your example above:
Since I can't follow "fiction" with "novel" how would I write the opening sentence? What I've been doing is this:
Dear Ms. Jackson:
I have written a 100,000 word women's fiction for which I am seeking representation."
Is that right or are agents laughing at me?
Thanks and have a wonderful weekend!
Amy
I have written a 100,000 word novel (women's fiction) for which I am seeking representation.
I have written a 100,000 word novel in the genre of women's fiction, and I am seeking representation.
Perhaps the result of the wild success of Ender's Game?
First off, how on earth do you plow through nearly two hundred queries a week?
I guess what I am asking is how many do you know very quickly you aren't interested? I have to think there are a lot of people out there who just don't have a clue, but from watching these blogs, I am also guessing there are a lot of talented writers searching for agents.
You mentioned what is too short, but what do you consider too long?
Sorry if you have answered this before.
Julie
I'm taking crazy pills. Er... seriously. I just do as many as I can fit in around other things. Sometimes I don't get through nearly that many. The amount of time each one takes is variable.
As for the word length issue, as I said above, it's more of a guideline than a hard and fast rule. A brilliant writer trumps everything. And it also depends on the genre. Fantasy and science fiction can be much more forgiving, than, say, cozy mysteries.
I'm going to show my ignorance of current Internet lingo, but what does YMMV stand for?
In a query, which do AGENTS want, the actual freaking word count according to MSWord or the old NY 250/page Courier font deal. It does make a difference if you have a lot of dialogue.