Query letters: what are they and do I need one to become an author?
To determine the answer, here are the questions you need to ask yourself first: Do I want to traditionally publish my book? Do I want a literary agent? Do I want to know how to pitch my book so I am prepared the next time someone asks, “What do you write?”
If the answer is yes, or I think so, or even I haven’t even thought that far ahead but I guess it’s something I might want to know… then read on. Because…
You need a poppin’ query letter! 🎉
Query letters are what you send to a literary agent in hopes they love what they see and what to read more. This is your book pitch, but most importantly: your first impression. Agents/agencies have specific requirements when it comes time to pitching them your book, but the one thing they ALL require is a query letter.
Crafting a compelling query letter is one of the harder aspects of selling your book. But it is the most essential. If you can’t pitch your book properly, then you’ll struggle to convince anyone to read it.
A query letter is a book pitch with a few essential extras. In your query, you’ll do four things: greet the agent, pitch your book, show you understand the genre/audience of your book, and introduce yourself. All this leads to one result: convincing an agent to go on to read your opening pages (which hopefully leads to them requesting the full book for potential representation).
[Read here for 15 dos and don’ts to writing your query.]
I’ve read hundreds upon hundreds of queries in my career, so I’ve seen every variation out there.
To help make this one aspect of your writing career a little bit easier, I’ve crafted a Poppin’ Query Letter Template for you! It’s totally free, and you can download it and fill in the blanks MadLibs style. Although there is no one size fits all for query letters, this template will give you the tools and confidence to write a poppin’ pitch and expand upon it with your amazing writing voice.
Need help after filling in the template? I offer query letter feedback as a service year-round with a 1-3-business-day turnaround. Contact me to get started.
Let’s grow your best query!
[Get your downloadable copy of the Poppin’ Query Letter Template here!]
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