Query “Do”s and “No You Didn’t!”s

Ever wonder what goes into writing a great query letter? Today, agent Barbara Poelle is here to tell you some “Do”s and “Don’t”s of submitting your manuscript. Looking for more advice? Join us on Twitter for our #NaNoAgentChat tweet chat series where you’ll be able to ask Barbara and other agents your questions!

You’ve typed “THE END”. You’ve run your manuscript through the gauntlet of critique partner lashing. The moment has come: it’s time to query! Let’s get your book’s calling card out there with confidence and professionalism. Start your query with a great opening line, like some of these pulled from my own query inbox:

“Hi Barb, Looking for your next million dollar book? Well this is it!”

“Ms. Poelle, What if it was your job to kill babies?”

“I recently read [name of current client’s novel] and while I can see what drew you to it, I think you’ll agree I do it better.” 

Oh. Hang on. Yeah, no, these are the opposite of great opening lines. You’ve worked so hard for your novel, let’s make sure you stick the landing on this, your first foray into the publishing industry: the query letter!

A query can be broken down into three easy sections: the hook, the book, and the cook. 

The HOOK should include your log line, word count, and comp titles. Example:

In the vein of Kaethe Schwehn’s The Rending and the Nest and Emily St. John Mandel’s Station 11, I am proud to offer for your consideration my 90K word post-apocalyptic novel, The Ash Circus.

Boom, see? I get everything I need from that line — almost to the point where I might just skip to the pages. However the next section, the BOOK — five lines of premise, not plot — is going to be helpful for me as well, to understand the players and the world. Example:

Twenty-nine year old Nance Underwood lives in the world of ashes. After the catastrophic events of 10/17/2023, Nance’s world, along with the other 2 million survivors in the US, is one of day-to-day survival. But when strange fliers start to appear on buildings in her dilapidated New York City neighborhood advertising a one night only circus performance, and her 11 year old charge, Ghiz, begs to attend, she acquiesces, unsure if this is some new hope or some new horror against a backdrop of never-ending horrors. Nance finds out that it might be a bit of both. 

So we get the characters, the atmosphere, setting, stakes. Premise, not plot. 

And finally the COOK — that’s you! Doesn’t matter if you have an MFA or wrote this out long hand while on maternity leave, this section should just answer three main questions: why this book, why me, why now. 

Ta-da! Queried! Now you try. When you’re ready come find me at Barbara.queries@irenegoodman.com . 

(Also, oh my goodness, can someone please write me The Ash Circus?!)

Barbara Poelle began her publishing career as a freelance copywriter and editor before joining the Goodman Agency in 2007, but feels as if she truly prepared for the industry during her brief stint as a standup comic in Los Angeles. She has found success placing thrillers, literary suspense, Young Adult and upmarket fiction and is actively seeking her next great client in those genres, but is passionate about anything with a unique voice. Barbara is also the author of Funny You Should Ask: Mostly Serious Answers to Mostly Serious Questions About the Publishing Industry (Jan, 2020) based on her Writer’s Digest column of the same name.

Top photo by Gary Chan on Unsplash.