5 Tips For Writing a Query Letter
My guess is, you’ve been dreaming about writing a book. That’s incredible! Becoming an author was one of my lifelong goals, and in 2023, it became a reality. It’s a long process, but if you’re disciplined and resilient, it might just happen for you, too.
Once you have a completed book proposal (for non-fiction) or a completed manuscript (for fiction), it’s time to find a literary agent. Unless you have tons of connections in the industry (I didn’t!), that means cold emailing people who’ve never heard of you. That can be really, really tough. That’s why it’s so important to nail your query letter.
A query letter is the email you send to literary agents pitching them your book idea. It’s your first touchpoint with the publishing industry and the first step toward landing a traditional publishing deal.
Below, you’ll find my top five tips for writing a great query letter (I’ve landed two literary agents in my career). If you want to see the actual letter I used to land my first agent, just fill out this form (nothing has been changed in the letter except for removing the names, promise).
My Five Tips:
Do your research
Don’t go in blind. Before you send a letter, make sure you’ve looked up the agent’s publishing history (are they authors, too? where have they landed deals? what books are they representing?) so you have a good idea about whether you’re a good fit for them. Not only do you want to make sure they will like you, but you want to like them as well. In the research phase, you should also look for things you have in common that might make for unique angles in your letter (alma maters, hometown, stage of life, etc.)
Find a connection point
Similar to #1, finding at least one point of connection with the literary agent you’re querying is so important. In my real-life example, my connection point was Hope*Writers and the freelance editor I hired. I used both as a way to make my letter memorable and give the agent an opportunity to see we have people and places in common.
Follow their rules
What’s unfortunate about this tip is that every agent has different rules. So if you thought you could copy/paste your query letter to a bunch of agents, think again. You can certainly adjust the same letter to fit different agent’s submission guidelines, just make sure you’re giving them everything they ask for and nothing they don’t ask for. This says a lot about your work ethic and attention to detail.
Include something unique
Find something about yourself or your book project that sets you apart. In my example, I included the fact that my book was inspired by my mother’s immigrant journey and that it included real poems my grandmother wrote.
Persist
This one is so important. Remember that writing is subjective. Just because one agent rejects your query letter or says something is wrong with your manuscript doesn’t mean all agents will agree. Now, if many agents tell you the same thing, you should probably listen in that instance. But I had one person ask me to change a bunch of things about my manuscript, but my gut told me not to change those things . . . one month later, I signed with another agent and a few months after that, I signed a book deal. Clearly, these folks felt differently! That’s why I always tell people to keep persisting—often times, what sets you apart from the crowd is gumption and grit.
Want to see the actual query letter that landed me my first agent? Just fill out the form below and you’ll get instant access!
