The Writer-in-the-Know Guide to Query Letters

What is a query letter, and what should it do?

Agents sell a wide variety of rights to your novel (not just hardcover, paperback, and ebook), and they don't get paid until you get paid. Follow the money in this lecture and learn who sells what to whom—and why a good pitch is important at every step.

All writers write better when they know their audience. Here's an overview of what agents see when they read their query letters.

In this video, we'll break down the myth that agents are just looking for reasons to reject you. We'll also look at the numbers. How many queries does an agency receive in a year? Of those, how many result in offers of representation? Of those, how many get published?

This video covers some correspondence hygiene you should conduct before you begin to query, including making a targeted list of agents appropriate for your project, noting submission guidelines, and preparing your email account.

Before we break down the query letter into its four parts in the next section, here's a list of common query-letter mistakes to avoid.

Figuring out how to open your query letter can be tough. It's like making small talk with a stranger at a party, but with much higher stakes! Here are some tips to make introducing your query letter a little easier.

There are five pieces of information that should be included in your query letter's project summary. This video covers the first three: title, genre, and word count.

There are five pieces of information that should be included in your query letter's project summary. This video covers the fourth and fifth: comparables and accolades.

This is the introduction to the main event: the pitch! I'll introduce you to the bookstore exercise, which will help you get the voice of sell copy in your head before you write your pitch. You'll learn the Five W's and the Six Signal Words and wrap up with an exercise.

What should your pitch say about your character(s)? How do you pitch a multiple-point-of-view novel? How much of your hero's backstory should you include, or how much of their personality should you convey? This video will reveal all!

This video covers internal goals, external goals, ordinary-world goals, plot-driving goals, and goals that come pre-packaged in their genres. Who knew there were so many types of goals? Which types should your pitch focus on?

It's not enough for your character to have a goal. What's motivating that character to want that goal is often far more interesting, with far more impact on both plot and character development. Learn a deep-dive story-development exercise that will help you peel back the layers of your hero's motivation.

Review the six classic dramatic conflicts. Identify which type drives your story's plot (there might be more than one), and then learn how (and how not) to present conflict in your pitch.

Writers, in their query letters, often omit what's at stake for their characters. Yet stakes are arguably the most important part of story development. Stakes are what makes readers care! Learn how to zero in on your story's stakes and how to pitch with those stakes in mind.

Learn to identify the mistakes writers often make in their pitches related to character, goal, motivation, conflict, and stakes. I'll also give you a long list of clichéd, vague, and gimmicky phrases to avoid.

This lecture presents a concrete exercise you can do with your pitch right now that will, within minutes, help you (a) cut unnecessary clutter and (b) avoid making your pitch read like a synopsis or a book review.

What should you say about yourself? What shouldn't you say? What if you're brand new at this and don't feel like you have any worthy credentials...or what if you have a ton of credentials? Never fear! Here's how to write a brief, professional bio with which to close your query letter.

You're ready to send out your query letter...are are you? This final video covers how to set up a tracking system, timelines for sending followups, and what to do if you receive a revise-and-resubmit, an offer of representation, or (better yet) multiple offers of representation.