Queries

Working on my query letter. I have a basic template that I've made; I add an introductory paragraph for each agent I plan on submitting to (after dutifully snooping around the Internet and reading up on the agent), but other than that, it mostly stays the same.

AgentQuery.com has drudged up three agents who are pretty legit -- I'm going to query each of them. My goal is to submit to five agents in the first round, and we'll see what happens from there. I'm not quite yet ready to start submitting. I have to wait for my early readers to get back to me and let me know what they think about Seafear. (Already Dylan caught an error where I had "hinds" instead of "hands.")

I'm particularly worried that my query is boring and stuffy, but I don't quite know how to spice it up. I don't think I should bother spicing it up -- just let the story speak for itself. I think I have a good story, and I think it stands up on its own. Now is not the time to be wracked with enough self-doubt to... do something good and analogous to whatever self-doubt does. It's late, I can't come up with a good analogy.

I have also discovered something interesting: "I want to read your book" is one of the most flattering things I've ever been told. "I am reading your book" is one of the most frightening.