Finding an Agent for Your Novel, Part IV
Preparing a Query Letter
Hello again, writers. For fiction, to seek an agent for representation, you are likely going to need:
- A complete and error-free draft of your novel.
- A query letter.
Sometimes, but not often, one or both of these two things aren’t needed. But that’s the exception, not the rule.
Let’s assume you’re feeling close to finishing drafting your novel (i.e. your list of tweaks and changes is shrinking, a couple of trusted readers have given you feedback that you’ve incorporated). When I felt my novel draft was getting close, I had a very helpful conversation with a fellow writer in which she mentioned something about her submission process. She sent out her book to dozens of agents with no response. She decided to get help from a professional editor to write her query letter, and with that query letter, she received 10 requests for the full manuscript.
After hearing this, I quickly came to terms with my shoddy query letter writing skills and hired a pro. It’s hard to know what’s compelling about oneself and one’s work. The editor and I went back and forth (she didn’t need to read the entire book), and I ended up with a drafted letter to work with as I move forward with queries. Keep in mind that you will need to adjust each letter to appeal directly to the agent you’re pitching.
Here’s a rough structure for the letter, keeping in mind that I hired someone to help me with my pitch. This is the structure she molded my draft into:
- Paragraph one: why you want to work with the agent. Be specific. What about your book matches their stated interests and those implied by the authors they already represent.
- Paragraph two: the book summary, or the teaser text that would be on the back of the book jacket. Read the back jackets of your favorite books, and try to mimic them using your own book.
- Paragraph three: Why is this story important right now, at this moment, age, and/or place? And why are you the right one to tell the story?
- Paragraph four: Your bio. Include schooling when applicable, publications, compelling work history if applicable to the lit world or the book or just super interesting.
And, she emphasized, the letter should NEVER be more than a page long (12pt single-spaced, no cheating!).
Once you have your skeleton query letter and agent list, you want to have a well-drafted book ready to show, even if an agent doesn’t ask for the whole book up front. Agents and agencies have different requirements for submitting a book for representation. Some want a letter and 50 pages or so, some only a letter. But once they are interested, they will request a full manuscript, so have it ready to go!
Up next: submitting to agents. Oh boy.
Start at the beginning: Finding an Agent for Your Book, Part I
