Search Results: query

Query Critique: Carey On

The Query:Katie Carey’s husband has a mistress and her name is heroin. From the moment she met British guitar god Jay Carey, Katie lived a fantasy life. They were one of the superstar rock and roll couples of London in the 1970s with the big houses, the cars, phenomenal success and a love that seemed…
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Query Critique: Halfway to Anywhere

The query: After three days of lying in bed with her life crumbling around her, college freshman Stephanie Miller needs to get out of her room before she goes insane. She decides to go to the One Force House; a guy she’d met recently had told her she could come there if she ever needed…
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Query Critique: Dealers of Light

The Query Dear Ms. Gardner: Moira is a nurse practitioner with a hidden talent, one she knows little about- the ability to send healing energy she calls “Light” into others to augment healing. When one of her patients dies in her arms passing along not only a powerful gift, but a dire warning of doom,…
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Query Critique: Circle of Reasoning

The Query: Hello, Ms. Gardner, I am seeking representation for A Circle of Reasoning, a 77,000 word women’s mainstream novel. Catrine Teddi and Austin Sanchez have been separated for over four years because of a misunderstanding. They are reunited by the disappearance of their child because of someone’s mistake. Between the anger and blame, romance…
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Query Critique: Iron Makeover

(This is the first of the query critiques I’ll be doing over the next few weeks, probably one or two a week. Look for them on Wednesdays and sometimes Thursdays. Please bear in mind that these will be longer than my typical posts. ) The Query: Hi there! I’m seeking representation for my 60,000-word non-fiction…
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Q4U: Does the Query System Work?

Over the last couple of years, I’ve noticed one of the refrains popping up around the blogosphere every now and then is the idea that the “query system” is inadequate. There’s got to be a better way, people say. This system is inefficient and unfair and just doesn’t work. I actually think the query system…
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Agent Query Policies: Stop the Griping!

Ever since I’ve been an agent, I’ve listened to writers complain about the unpleasant aspects of the publishing industry. Part of my job is helping authors navigate these difficult waters. I try to talk my clients through the hard parts of publishing; and on this blog, I do the same for many writers who aren’t…
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Querying Multiple Agents

Catherine M wrote: “I know you can send out multiple queries, but what if there are three agents who have asked to see your manuscript after a verbal pitch at a conference? Do you send to all three?” The protocol is always the same. If you’re querying multiple agents at once, simply mention that fact…
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Two Things That Don’t Help a Query (Part 2)

“My mother [best friend, husband, Great Aunt Matilda] told me I needed to write my story.” “For years, all my friends have been telling me I should try to get my work published.” “God told me to write this book.” Believe it or not, none of this is relevant in a query. It doesn’t help…
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Two Things That Don’t Help a Query (Part 1)

“I got up today and decided to wear purple socks.” Now, I’m sure you can see how a line like that wouldn’t help your query. Does it tell me something about you? Yes. Is it relevant to your book? No. Does it help an agent make an informed decision about whether to represent your book?…
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Query via Email or Wait for Conference?

Jill asked: Say I’ve been doing the research, investing an agent’s website and following the blog for a while and I’ve decided I want to query that agent. Would it be better to do a cold query (following all the submission guidelines, of course) or wait for the possibility of an appointment at a conference,…
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Anatomy of a Winning Query

Have you noticed that agents tend to talk a lot about what not to do in a query, but less about what makes a great one? It think it’s because the good ones are each unique; it’s hard to come up with a formula that makes a terrific query. But the unexciting or badly composed…
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My Tweets from QueryDay

As you know, Friday was QueryDay on Twitter. I think it went exceptionally well. Lots of great questions from authors, lots of agents and editors chiming in with answers. An incredible wealth of information was passed around! Several people asked me to compile my tweets from the day. So here they are. Just a whole…
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QueryDay… and a Q4U

Okay, now that we’ve all had sufficient time to totally deconstruct QueryFail and AgentFail (and hopefully recover), I wanted to let you know that today is QueryDay on Twitter… and yes, I’m participating. Why, oh why, would I do such a thing? Well, here’s why. In the interest of grace, and second chances, and the…
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