Writing a query letter to an agent can feel like trying to crack some secret code. If you can only say the right words in the right order, you’ll finally break through and get representation.
But publishing isn’t about incanting magic words. It’s a human activity fraught with all the unconscious and intangible qualities of any human activity. Your query letter has to be good, but there’s no way to guarantee it will land you a contract.
Of course, there are some things you can do to set your query letter up for success. At The Muse and the Marketplace 2022, Kaitlyn Johnson of Belcastro Literary Agency debunked a slough of publishing myths, including many regarding query letters, and I was there taking manic notes.
If you’re considering traditional publishing at some point in your writing career, here are a few query letter myths you should be aware of:
Top Query Letter Myths
If an agent spends her valuable time collecting her top query letter myths, that tells you something—to wit, that these are the ones she encounters most often and that rankle her the most. Authors would be wise to take note.
Myth: The query letter must be perfect
Reality: The query should be neat and professional.
Agents are humans and understand that authors are humans, too. They will overlook a typo or two without beginning to think you shouldn’t have passed sixth-grade language arts. Johnson admitted she has even forgiven getting her name or the agency name wrong. In other words, agents know you’re querying a bunch of people and using a template.
So, you don’t need to pull a query if you later discover a tiny error. Of course, it may not hurt to follow up if the error had to do with the agent’s name or something of real substance. In that case, you could simply say, “My bad, I wasn’t as careful as I should have been. Here’s an updated query to replace the old one.”
Takeaway: Make your query as neat and professional as possible, then breathe and accept that some things are out of your hands.
Myth: Agents don’t want to see pages
Reality: Some do, some don’t, so it’s best to include them.
I’ve not heard this one, myself, but apparently some folks get it in their heads that agents want to take you on based on you having a book that simply sounds interesting in a 500-word synopsis. Agents take on writers, not ideas. Why not send a sample of what you do.
Johnson acknowledged that she won’t always read pages. She has her niches, so if it’s clear the book isn’t in her niche, she’ll simply pass and move on to the next query. As a former editor of a literary magazine, I know how this goes. You have so many things to weed through. You’d love to give each submission your full attention, but the reality is that many, even most, won’t be a good fit, and you simply don’t have time in the day to spend on all the bad fits.
That said, occasionally Johnson will find a query that isn’t an obvious fit but still intrigues her. She may, then, peek at the pages to see if the author’s style grabs her attention and if there’s perhaps something worth pursuing.
Takeaway: In short, it’s worth including 5—10 pages of your book. The beginning of the book if it’s fiction, and either the intro or the first chapter for nonfiction.
Myth: Agents will want to use their own editors
Reality: It’s best to show an agent the best you’ve got.
The truth here is a little more complicated. It’s true that some agents can get a little more editorial and help an author tidy things up. That may be going the way of the Palm Pilot, though, since most agents are super busy and have less time for that. An agent might be able to hook you up with an editor, but it’s probably not true that she only wants books that her editors can dig into.
There is the chance that an agent will send a book back with a “Revise and Resubmit,” which is what it sounds like. Something had to really catch her eye, though, to take that extra step.
Takeaway: In other words, there’s no disadvantage to editing your book prior to querying it out. In fact, given how busy agents are, it’s probably better to show them that you’ve put in some work and tried to get it into reasonably good shape. They may still want more editing, but that’s better than rejecting something that hasn’t been edited enough.
Myth: I’ll get an agent for my first book
Reality: Many authors don’t get agents until their second or third book.
We can put a lot of pressure on ourselves when we write that first book. Not only is it important and the result of hours upon hours of work, but we want it to be actually good and for people to want to read it. Maybe there’s a chance we could have the next breakout bestseller, who knows?
Likewise, we put a lot of pressure on the book, wanting it to be capable of things it may not be capable of. Writers mature as they write, and few people who have multiple books look back on their first as anything nearly as special as it seemed when they were writing it.
A book that gets shelved isn’t necessarily trash. You just may need to come back to it later—and if an agent likes your third book, say, he may ask what else you have, and then maybe you can go back to those shelved books.
Takeaway: Go ahead and query your first book, but don’t sit around waiting to get picked up and sold and for you to become famous. Instead, keep writing.
If I could sum up Kaitlyn Johnson’s position on query letters, it would simply be this: Worry less about cracking the code and more about communicating clearly and authentically.
Need help on your query letter? Or just want to skip traditional publishing and get your book out on your own terms? Contact me today to find out how I can help you write a book worth reading.
Photo by Ashkan Forouzani on Unsplash
Pingback:Publishing Myths Debunked: Working with a Literary Agent