The Agent Query Letter

I recently had the pleasure of helping one of my writers draft a query letter. His manuscript was polished, edited, and ready to seek an agent. This step is a huge deal for any writer.

Man rolling a round boulder uphill.

Ugh! The agent query letter. We all know what follows, but luck may be on your side this time. Luck? Yes, luck plays a big part in this adventure. And luck happens when preparation meets opportunity. You have full control over preparation but only limited control over opportunity. Opportunity is about timing, interest, and the odds. “What are the odds of landing a top literary agent,” you ask. A top agent receives 2,000 or more submissions a year, from which they might accept two. Yep, I said one in a thousand a year. A good agent lands a sale about 60% of the time with a top publisher. These are tough odds. You can increase your odds by submitting to more than one agent, just as agents increase their odds by submitting to more than one publisher.

But let’s not focus on the odds but on how you can maximize your advantage. What can you control? Again, it’s the preparation. Let us assume that you have completed your best possible manuscript and that it has been perfectly edited. To be sure, a poorly edited manuscript is certain death. Let us also assume that you’re not famous, infamous, or powerful, nor are you close friends with an agent’s mother. You are ready to write your first draft of a query letter. You are still an artist; this is to be creative with a purpose. You must hook the agent with your query like you hook your reader with your story.

How do you find the right agent? Select five (more if you like) books similar to yours, where a different agent represented each book. Research what these agents want in a query. Find out where these agents might appear in person or virtually. Go there, meet the agent, or at least listen to the agent. Perhaps the agent was interviewed in an article. You will use this in your query. Once you’ve determined the agents you want to query, the letter should be a single page with four parts and a subject line. Yes, the subject line is also part of your hook. Nothing in the query letter is boilerplate. It must be creative, polished, and edited.

Subject Line Examples:

* Nice talking with you in Madison. My Three chapters are attached

* The Chapters of my manuscript you requested are attached

* Thank you for your kind words at the Blackbird Conf. Your requested chapters are attached

* Check the agency guidelines for query letters. Some will request only the title and agent’s name in the subject of the email.

Woman perfecting her query.

Why This Agent?

This is the greeting, telling the agent why you are querying them. For example, it was nice meeting you at the Wisconsin Writers Conference. Your talk at XYZ inspired me. My story is similar to that of Author Smith, whom you represented. It’s vital that this opening is not a template that can be sent to any other agent.

It is imperative that you read at least one book similar to yours by an author represented by the agent you seek. Find out where this agent speaks, either in person or by video. Attend the program. Meet and talk, even briefly, with the agent. Tell her how much you enjoyed Author Smith’s book and mention the similarities with your manuscript.

My Manuscript

This has two parts. First, the details about your book (title, genre, word count, etc.); Second, a concise, at most 250-word, description of your book. This is not a cold presentation that tries to include everything in your story. Instead, it should be a compelling hook, focusing on your main character and their challenges. You don’t need to reveal the ending; that’s for your synopsis. But you must intrique the agent with your main character, what they are facing – suspense, and why we care about them. The goal is to make the agent say, “And then what happens.” A strong hook can make or break the agent's interest in your work.

Why Me

This is, at most, 100 words about you. This is not a resume. Make it interesting. Use your storytelling skills to tell the agent something about you that no other author could possibly say. Make the agent say, “That’s interesting.”

If you have published successful books, weave them seamlessly into this part. If you have an MFA from a prestigious institution, mention that. Your goal is to let the agent know why you are the right person to write this fascinating story.

Thanks

I appreciate your consideration; sign your name. That’s all. Don’t get cute, familiar, or demanding.

I recommend sending out at most five queries at a time. The agent’s website will tell you when to follow up or when to consider you’ve been rejected. If there is no information about this, I suggest waiting a month before sending a follow-up, assuming you have not heard back. Then, wait two weeks after that. If you still haven’t heard back, you’ve been rejected.

Now, send out another group of not more than five queries and start over. You will receive rejections; we all get them, but keep going. Persistence is the key.

Remember, the scars on the lion are emblems of its victories.

Nicholas Chiarkas

Nick Chiarkas is a Blackbird Writer, a Wisconsin Writers Association Board Member, and the author of nine traditionally published books: two award-winning novels, Weepers and Nunzio’s Way, and seven nonfiction books. He grew up in the Al Smith housing projects on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. When he was in the fourth grade, his mother was told by the principal of PS-1that “Nick was unlikely ever to complete high school, so you must steer him toward a simple and secure vocation.” Instead, Nick became a writer, with a few stops along the way: a U.S. Army Paratrooper, a New York City Police Officer, Deputy Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, Deputy Chief Counsel for the President’s Commission on Organized Crime; Chief Counsel for the USATBCB; and the Director of the Wisconsin State Public Defender Agency. On the way, he picked up a Doctorate from Columbia University, a Law Degree from Temple University, and was a Pickett Fellow at Harvard. How many mothers are told that their children are hopeless? How many kids with potential surrender to despair? That’s why Nick wrote Weepers and Nunzio’s Way — for them.