The Do's and Don'ts of Great Query Letters

Posted by Michelle Schusterman Sep 11, 2009

As someone who is trying to develop my freelance writing career and find representation for a novel, I've read about all the tips on queries there are. And there's a ton of advice out there.

What do agents and editors want to hear? More importantly, what do they not want to hear? There are so many rules and tricks, many of which contradict one another, that writing a query becomes a more daunting task than the book itself!

The thought of trying to sell your novel, your baby, your sweat and tears and the focus of your existence for the better part of a year, in just a few sentences...it's tough to grasp. And the mere thought of having it lost in the massive onslaught of queries that agents are slammed with every day makes it tempting to try and stand out.

The one thing I've learned about queries is this: the only way to really stand out is to write a great book. Period. Anything else – the bells and whistles that some writers feel compelled to include with a query – will do nothing other than maybe lower your chances of getting a request. Agents and editors are on to these tricks.

Colorful paper or fonts to be "memorable." Too much personal information that's meant to be funny and engaging but comes across as desperate and amateur. Gifts that, no matter how appreciated, will never be enough to convince an agent to put their career on the line for a book they don't feel 100% passionate about.

The only reason for an agent to want to represent you, and the only reason you should want them to represent you, is because they think your novel is as super-spectacular and special as you do. When it comes down to it, the best way to impress a literary agent is to put as much tender loving care as possible into your novel and query letter.