Query Letter VIBES

querying is a pain, but writing the query letter is actually rewarding af

I have begun the process of writing a query letter for my third book!!

The editor I want to work with requires a similar application as a literary agent, he wants a synopsis and most of what is included in a query letter, sooooo I just made myself do the whole package lol

Here is what my query letter package contains!!

• Pitch

  • Of the elevator variety, so 1-2 sentences introducing the concept and capturing the reader's attention. Easy right?!

• Query letter

  • This has a bunch of parts which require the utmost attention. My query letter keeps me up at night…

  • The nitty-gritty important info = title, word count, age group, genre

  • 2-3 comps (comparable titles) published in the last 5 years

  • Hook / Plot description (~200 words)

  • Bio

• Synopsis

  • 1 page of what happens in your book (include spoilers!!)

  • (you can also write a 2 page synopsis, but that’s rarely what agents ask for so I never do)

• Sample Pages

  • I include the first 50 pages of my novel in my query package because that’s typically the highest number agents ask for. The range is 5 pages to 50 so it makes it a lot easier to just copy/paste everything from the same doc:)

Working towards getting published is a whole full time job lol. Not only do you have to write the book, you need to do your own edits, send it to (and pay!) an editor, craft a query package, and after all that work I have struck out with two books:) much fun. (I'm being a lil sarcastic but it actually is kinda fun!) Not the querying process tho… it’s called the query trenches for a reason, but I enjoy everything else, even making the query package.

Writing a pitch, a hook, and trying to entice an agent to read my pages helps me know my book better. I have a better answer for strangers when I get asked what my book is about after working on an elevator pitch for a week.

It’s fun to isolate the influences that made me excited to write this book in the first place. In my query letter, I get to express how much I love Ghibli movies and how the manga I obsessed over as a teenager, Tokyo Ghoul, snuck its way into this book. These aren’t within 5 years, but Piranesi is, which I also comp and if an agent reads my pages and agrees that my book is similar I’d die of happiness.

Wish me luck in getting that editor! Hopefully it goes better than getting an agent lmao