An editor friend of mine received the following email query from an aspiring author:
Dear Editors,
Please consider publishing my
book, part of which is in the attachment below.
Warm regards, Bob
What’s wrong here? First of all, it was sent to many editors
at once, and all names appeared in the TO: field, 101 in total. In addition, there
are several things the writer needs to know before contacting a publisher:
1. Does
the publisher accept query letters that are not submitted by an agent? If not,
he/she should stop here.
2. Does
the publisher accept books from first-time authors?
3. Does
the publisher accept the type of book the author is pitching?
4. Has
the publisher published a book like this already? If so, your chances are slim.
5. What
does the publisher want to see? Query letter? Synopsis? Sample chapters? All of
the above? Some of the above?
6. What
is the name of the specific editor handling that type of book?
A query letter is equivalent to the cover letter
accompanying a resume when applying for a job. A well-written one will get the
editor to request more material or read what was submitted. The query letter
above that Bob sent tells the editor one thing: He is an amateur who doesn’t
know what he’s doing, so the manuscript is no doubt just as poorly written. Since
Bob doesn’t know how to write a query, he has probably also not researched the
company to see what the requirements are for submission.
Editors are busy people. They read hundreds of queries per
week. They can’t waste time on those that aren’t properly submitted. Bob’s
query was so amateurish that it wouldn’t have mattered if he’d written the
great American novel, since it wouldn’t have been read. The conclusion would
have been drawn that the manuscript was just as amateurish.
They would have been right. Bob’s attached fiction
manuscript was certainly neither submitted properly nor of publishable quality.
For starters, it was in 26-point font rather than the required 12-point font
and contained not one sentence of dialogue. There is no point elaborating on
the numerous other problems.
My editor friend took the time to write Bob and let him know
that he needed to learn to write a proper query letter, that he needed to
research Writer’s Market for the
proper way to submit to the publishers he had in mind, and that he also needed
to learn proper manuscript format.
Did Bob heed this advice? Apparently not, for six weeks
later, this editor received the identical query from him once again!Writing a proper query letter is an art. It takes study and practice. A normal query is one page (not one sentence) and consists of four main paragraphs:
Paragraph 1 – Usually one sentence and provides a hook into
the main point of the book.
Paragaph 2 – Mini-synopsis: Write a short overview of the
plot if the book is fiction or the overall concepts if the book is non-fiction.
This could be broken into two paragraphs, if necessary.
Paragraph 3 – Your writing credits (if you have some)
Paragraph 4 – A pleasant closing
To learn to write a query letter, check out these websites:
www.agentquery.com/writer_hq.aspx
www.writersdigest.com/online-editor/how-to-write-the-perfect-query-letter
http://nybookeditors.com/2015/12/how-to-write-a-darn-good-query-letter/
http://www.rachellegardner.com/how-to-write-a-query-letter/
https://janefriedman.com/query-letters/
Also, go to www.topwritingcoach.com/querylettersamples for
great sample query letters for both fiction and nonfiction.
As with any field, showing yourself as a professional is the
first step to accomplishing your goals. Don’t be like Bob and brand yourself an
amateur before you even get out of the gate. Make sure your manuscript is the
best possible and then learn to write a query letter that will get the editor
to read your submission.