Queries… The Truth in Numbers

There comes a time in a writer’s life when they need to send a query to a publisher or agent to help move their published book dreams to reality. This can be an interesting and frightening time, full of angst. How do you write a one sentence hook that accurately summarizes your book and intrigues an editor/agent? How do you make your letter stand out? How do you know which no-nos to avoid? How do you allow your writer’s voice to come out in a business letter? How do you subtly add in the facts that you have garnered in your research of said agent or publisher? How, how, how?

(Four words for you on this one: research, AgentQuery Connect, and critiques.)

Once you figure you have that down in spades, you start sending the letters off. Then you wait. And wait. Your heart skips a beat whenever you open your email or see an envelope in your mailbox from an unfamiliar address. Eeek! Is it rejection or a request for more?

More often than not, it is likely a polite form letter saying ‘no.’ But then sometimes it is a ‘please send more, you’ve got my interest.’ And then you heart does a huge pitty-pitty-boom-boom that makes your heart do all sorts of funky beats and your head spin. Could this be it? Could this be the moment?

Good question. What are your odds? Folks in the industry have said that about 1 in 100 writers land an agent. Of those with an agent, about half of them manage to get their first book published. Gack! You mean it isn’t a sure thing once you’ve landed an agent. Sadly, no.

Back to queries. What is a good request rate on a good query letter? The numbers range from 10-30%. Seems like a lot doesn’t it? It is! (This number *does* vary a bit by genre.) Your query needs to be FABulous.

A little food for thought: The average agent can receive up to 100 queries a day. Every day. Sometimes more. Sometimes less. Of that 100, maybe one or two of those moves them enough to ask for a partial. If that is you, you are in the top percentile, aren’t you? And that feels pretty good.

A little more food for thought: About 70-80% of those queries you’re competing against, aren’t  that good. They aren’t serious, the queries don’t make sense, don’t talk about the book, are full of errors, or commit majorly heinous query faux pas (like bulk sends) and often are quickly and easily discarded.

So… If you aren’t snagging a request it means your query isn’t doing its job, OR your story is lacking something which shows in the query. For example, even if you have a stellar query, if you are late to a trend that is in its death throes… well, good luck and don’t expect a lot of requests.

A tip: Cold queries aren’t the only way to get an agent. Think blog contests where agents are involved, think conferences, think agent chats, think making yourself an online writerly commodity (what does that mean? Think moderator on writing sites, that sort of thing!). Find a way to make a connection with an agent. Think of a way to make yourself stand out from the crowd. Think of a way to show you are a professional. Think, think, think….

When you feel ready to query, there are lots of helpful sites (forums, agent blogs, agency websites, and a whole lot more!) out there to help you figure out how to put your best foot forward–and I urge you to make use of them. Make sure your writing is the absolute best it can be–there is no point using up your queries on the ‘best’ agents if you aren’t ready. Test that query. Do runs of 10 or so at a time. All rejections? Take a second look. Have someone else take another look. (Don’t forget to look at the first chapter you are sending along with it.) Make use of your resources and best of luck!

Query a Literary Agent Anywhere, Anytime?

Maybe you’ve friended an agent on Facebook. Maybe you have a few agent ‘friends’ over at LinkedIn. Maybe you follow and chat up agents on Twitter. Maybe you’ve followed an agent around at a conference, waiting for them to pause long enough that you can pounce–and present your query or pitch with trembling voice and sweaty hands.

Is this a fine way to go, or should you stick to sending your query via email or mail as per their agency website guidelines?

Personally, I’ve always gone with emailing/mailing as per their agency guidelines, unless, of course, the agent in question has made it crystal clear that it is okay to query via other methods.

To reinforce the idea that maybe it isn’t okay to query anywhere and anytime is a tidbit or two I found on Twitter today as per Jean Martha (AKA @TheJeanMartha–a literary agent):

“Woke up to find 8 queries in my personal email inbox via Linked In. Deleted them all.”

And just in case you thought nobody would notice:

“When someone chats me up on Twitter, I look at their stream. Full of Agent ass kissing? I discredit them in the future. Season’s Greetings!”

There you have it, clams in a bucket. Do what you will… but you can’t say you haven’t been warned.

Online Chat With Literary Agent Michelle Brower

That was a fantastic chat over on Agent Query with literary agent Michelle Brower. It was nice, homey and cozy. As chat moderator there wasn’t any juggling cats, turtles or even anything flaming last night. Just straight forward good ol’ information about queries, genres, young writers, older writers, killer titles and so much more. Yeah, you missed it. But yes, you can check out the transcripts right here.

Half the scoop: Yes, you need to polish your writing before getting it out there. Generally the setting can distinguish the genre, but many some twists on a story such as a story set in elfland, NOT being about elves would be good. (The ideas are endless when you think like that! Wahoo!) Some titles rock more than others and yes, a killer title can help set your query apart. Yes, Michelle likes the one sentence hook, but definitely the story hook to be obvious in your query. There was so much great info, you need to read the transcripts yourself. It won’t take long and I promise you will learn a lot.

And did you know that landing an agent and getting the book sold and printed can be compared to having a baby? I kid you not. (Another reason to check out the transcript–I wouldn’t want to spoil the reason for the comparison for you. It surprised me. It might surprise you too.)

Michelle Brower, literary agent with Wendy Sherman Associates.

(A big thanks to Michelle for spending time with us over on AQ.)

Michelle is also blogging over at her agency website. Go check it out.

Be An Agent for a Day

Holy Poop!

I had forgotten. Literary agent Nathan Bransford is holding a ‘Be An Agent for the Day’ contest where folks try to pick the 5 queries that are from published authors and which are not.

Well, not only did I forget that I had zipped off my query for his contest’s slush pile, but I actually got picked. A friend over at AQ brought it to my attention and by the time I got over there, guess what? 109 comments on my query!

Wow! Amazing!

I will let you know which one it is when the contest is over as the queries are to be anonymous.

Good Links, February Edition

There have been some great blog posts online this month, so I thought I’d share some of the one’s I’ve enjoyed the most(and can actually remember at this moment in time).Today I donated 99 cents ($1.30 Canadian) to help a writer replace his GPS. Seriously. The story sucked me in. Pulled at my heartstrings, made me laugh. All that good stuff. I even navigated around my computer’s security software to make my donation. And then, guess what? I discovered I got something for my $1.30. Huh. I was actually a little disappointed in that my goodwill was going to get me something directly (not karmically). But I got over it quickly because I got a book. Shot of Tequila by JA Konrath. Uh, huh. So there you go. Check out the story and get a PDF of the book. Woo!

In other news, JA Konrath also has a nice checklist for writers. Are you delusional about your abilities as a writer? Maybe confident? Unsure, check it out. It is a good attitude check if nothing else.

Over at Bookends Literary blog, I discovered a fab querythat really helped me with my own. (The post is actually from January, but I only discovered it this week.) The query also wants me to buy the book which is part of the Gray Whale Inn Bed-and-Breakfast mysteries. This is the sentence that made me sit back and go ‘cool’: “But she’s barely fired up the stove when portly developer Bernard Katz rolls into town and starts mowing through her morning glory muffins.” Good stuff! Voice and all that jazz. Plus, her query packs in the protagonist’s stakes in the story. Good job!

If you are working on your synopsis, Kristin Nelson has five helpful things to keep in mind when creating that summary masterpiece over on her Pub Rants blog.

Nathan Bransford (literary agent with Curtis Brown) has a post on characters. He discusses sympathetic and unsympathetic characters and the issue of redeemability. “We’ve all read moments where this happened: a character did something so horrible and shocking and irredeemable that there was no going back. We’re officially done with that person.” That’s pretty much what happened with a book I’m reading right now (but I won’t disclose which one it is). But it has to do with these twisted, evilish little kid twins. And freakishly enough, it isn’t the first instance of twisted, evilish little kid twins that I’ve encountered in a story this year. So, if you think you know which book I’m talking about, think again. It seems to be a popular subject, but sadly for me, not enough conflict to keep me engaged in a story.

And news of my own: I finished the website It’s All Kids’s Play (dot ca) last week and have been listing activities on the blog. Be sure to check them out. There are over 700 activities waiting for your kids to try out!

If you are looking at an easy, fun way to improve your writing, check out RWA’s list of online classes. There are a handful of great, helpful classes being offered each month for reasonable prices. And they are great. I’ve taken two and am signed up for two more. You don’t have to be an RWA member, nor do you have to write romance to get something out of their classes. Very recommended!

And last but not least, some depressing news if you were ‘delusional’ as Konrath would say, and thought you’d make a mint being a writer. Thanks to Nathan Bransford for breaking it down for us aspiring-in-the-dark writers. Now I know I’m really going to have to work hard to sell those books when I get published!

Okay, I can’t really leave you on that depressing note! Let’s think of something fun, like make your own superhero! Yay! Thanks to agent Kate Schafer Testerman and her blog followers for this one.

Enjoy!