Welcome back to our discussion on writing query letters. In Part 1, we focused on what query letters are, why they’re important, and what components every query letter should have. Now let’s move on to what should definitely remain absent from your queries. Sometimes what’s not done or said is just as important as what is.

The following are a few things to always avoid in a query letter:

• Lack of focus. Writers sometimes try to cover too many topics and convey too many thoughts or too much information in one article, and their query may reflect that. Even if you’re writing a book, it’s important to stick with one succinct theme. For articles, choose one angle and one issue of your topic to focus on. Then, when writing your query letter, be very specific as to what your article will cover and how you intend to cover it. Avoid tangents and side topics at all costs. If you’re writing a book, be sure your query clearly targets and explains your one main theme.

• Wordiness. Your query should ideally be one page. In order to present all the information you need to, brevity is essential. Write as tightly as possible, and only say what absolutely needs to be said. Avoid unnecessary adjectives, adverbs, and ramblings. Just like with any article you would submit, rewrite and revise your query letter several times before sending it off. Check for unnecessary words that don’t enhance or clarify your thoughts, and be on the lookout for simpler and more concise ways to phrase your ideas. You have a lot to pack into one letter, so every word counts! Remember, this is your only chance to get your foot in the door.

• Mistakes. This is such an easy thing to remedy, yet many writers won’t take the time to do it. Self-edit your query, checking for grammar errors (such as sentence fragments and subject-verb agreement), misspelled words, and unnecessary words or redundancies. Then, have someone else check it as well. Chances are you’ll never see all of your own mistakes. Aside from spelling and grammar errors, be careful to double-check any facts or statistics you’ve presented (and cite them with footnotes or on a separate page), along with the proper spelling of the editor’s name.

• Not doing your research ahead of time. One sure turnoff for an editor is when he learns that you have no idea what his magazine is really about, the tone it’s written in, or what kind of stories he likes to see; or, if you’re writing a book, that you don’t know what the publisher’s competing and complimentary titles are for the book you’re proposing. Do your homework, and make sure you understand the magazine’s readership, or for books, what types of books the house publishes.

Avoid queries that look like templates, where you’re just substituting the magazine’s name for another with each one you write. Your query should be tailor-made for each editor—and look like it. One of the biggest reasons articles and books are rejected is because they’re not a good fit for the publisher they’ve been sent to. By doing some simple research—such as reviewing the publisher’s website, market guide entry, writers’ guidelines, and at least three magazine issues or a sampling of their books that are similar to yours—you can avoid becoming just another statistic.

• Arrogant presentation. Your query letter should prove that you are the right person—the only person, perhaps—to write your article or book. It should not, however, spend most of its time discussing you. A quick overview of your writing accomplishments and why you can write whatever you are proposing is all that’s necessary. Too much self-promotion and phrases like “My book will be more successful than Harry Potter,” and the editors may wonder how difficult you’re going to be to work with.

• Unrealistic promises. When you’re trying to make a good first impression it’s easy to want to promise editors the world. But be careful what you promise, because they just might take you up on it, or they will immediately realize that you must be an amateur because of your lofty aspirations. Some areas worthy of a reality check include: time frames and word counts (don’t promise a 3000-word article by the end of the week), interviews with famous people whom you don’t know if you can actually get an interview with, and topics requiring too much research for the amount of time you have. Your query will stand out if you can immediately gain the trust of the editor by only making promises you know you can keep.

Avoiding these top taboos when writing queries will put you well on your way. But somehow, you’re still going to have to avoid the editor’s slush pile. Here are the Top 5 elements of a stellar query that will make it shine:

1. Professionalism. No matter what, your query must be professional. That means absolutely no typos or mistakes of any kind, aesthetically pleasing (translated as lots of white space and readable font), and written in a professional manner that lets an editor know you’re serious about the business of writing. If you’re sending an editor a hard copy of your query via snail mail, stick to white or off-white paper. Don’t assume that neon green paper will force an editor to pick up your letter! A well-written letter professionally presented and pleasingly formatted will get people’s attention.

2. Captivating lead. I realize we’ve already hit on leads, but they’re so crucial to a good query letter, I wanted to mention them again. After all, if your lead is not catchy or interesting enough, the editor may file your letter away for good.

There’s no right or wrong way to write a lead, but a good lead will quickly accomplish your main goal: catching the editor’s attention and pulling her in to your letter. Your lead needs to be quick and punchy, set the tone for your story, and creative enough to make the editor stop to read. Good leads often use humor, surprising statistics, or present a provocative question. To help you get the hang of leads, browse magazines and look at both the article leads and also the headlines. You’ll soon get a feel for what makes a great lead.

It’s also helpful to write your lead based on the tone of the magazine you’re submitting to. So, if the magazine uses a lot of humor, take your cue from that and write a funny lead. If the magazine uses anecdotes, open your letter with your own. For book queries, pretty much anything goes; however, the lead should somehow reflect the tone of the book you are presenting.

3. Creativity. It’s okay to step out of the box a little when writing a query. You need to make your letter stand out and be different from all the hundreds of others that come across the editor’s desk. You can do this by adding various font styles, such as italicizing or bolding to emphasize phrases, blocking off quotations, or using bulleted lists. You can also do this through your writing style, by adding humor or finding an interesting way to present your material. Remember, this is your one and only shot. Don’t go overboard with the quirky stuff, which distracts from the professionalism when overdone, but also don’t be afraid to stretch yourself.

4. Package presentation. Along with your query letter, editors often ask to see either clips (your published articles) or samples (your writing that has not been published), a resume, and/or a cover letter. Be sure to give them exactly what they ask for. In other words, if they want to see three writing samples, don’t send them seven because you can’t decide. And, make sure your clips or samples are good representations of the particular magazine article or book you want to write.

Your entire package needs to properly present your professionalism and writing ability. Don’t cut corners on any of the pieces you send. Everything should be thoroughly proofed and written as well as possible.

5. Passion. I remember reading an interview with a fiction editor who said, “I can’t really put my finger on it, but I can always tell when a writer is just writing to be writing or is writing from the heart.” Your passion about what you want to write will come through loud and clear in your queries. If you’re querying an editor because you simply want to land a new magazine credit or because you need the money, your letter probably won’t have much spark.

But when your heart is engaged in your idea and you can’t wait to share it with the world, the words you write will have life and will jump off the page at an editor. The editor will know that you’re committed to this work and that you’ll do all you can to bring out the best in it. In the end, that’s what all editors are after.

If you’d like to see a sample of a query letter written for a children’s book, check out one I posted on my blog at www.awaywithwordswriting.wordpress.com/samples-templates. And, if you’d like help writing query letters, cover letters, or resumes—or a free review of one you’ve already written—please contact me at waywords@earthlink.net.

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Renee Gray-Wilburn is a freelance writer and an instructor for the Children’s Writers’ Coaching Club. For a list of her recorded teleclasses available for purchase and immediate download as an audio file, visit www.getrealresources.com

SIMON SAYS – Author Visits Part Seven – Study Guides and Classroom Resources

A weekly column from children’s author Simon Rose

Some authors offer study guides for teachers to download from their website or to purchase, for use either before a visit or just as an ongoing teaching resource. These guides often have exercises connected to certain chapters or episodes in the novel, worksheets about specific characters or may describe potential projects related to the subject matter of the author’s books.

Two of my novels, The Sorcerer’s Letterbox and The Heretic’s Tomb, are set in the Middle Ages, so teachers can plan projects about medieval life and society, castles, warfare, research the Black Death and other historical events. The plot of The Alchemist’s Portrait involves an art gallery in a museum and students can be asked to draw inspiration for some creative writing exercises by examining classic paintings and portraits.

Children can create superheroes and comic books using The Emerald Curse as a resource or even invent their own unique board game. I have word search puzzles for children to download at any time, although I also encourage teachers to make use of these before an author visit, to familiarize the children with my work.

Teachers can also access The Super Scavenger Search, where the answers to a series of mind boggling questions are hidden in different pages all over my website. Resources like these enable students to learn about the author and thus have lots of great questions on the day of the visit. 

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How to Write Query Letters That Sell – Part 1

August 9, 2010 by Writing for Children  
Filed under for children's writers

3 Comments

by Renee Gray-Wilburn

You have an amazing idea for an article, and you can’t wait to send it off to Highlights for Children, where you’re positive it’ll be published in an instant. You heard something from one of your writer friends about having to query publishers before you can send them a manuscript, but…why’s that important, and what’s a query anyway? Let’s take a look at these questions and others to discover how to write a query letter that sells.

What is a query letter? Simply put, a query is a letter you send to an editor (for either a book or a magazine article you wish to write) explaining what you want to write about and asking if it’s something that editor would be interested in seeing. The letter serves as a concise summary of your idea as well as the approach you’ll take in writing it. So, the obvious question is, Why not just write what you want to write and send that to the editor instead? There are many reasons.

Why the query is important. First, if you’re looking to write a magazine article, the chances of you writing about the exact topic, in the exact style and format, with the exact angle that the editor is looking for is probably about .01 percent. Instead of wasting time writing the entire article, query instead. Explain your idea, your slant, why you think your article is a perfect fit for their magazine, and determine if there is even an interest before you actually write your article.

You may have a great idea, but that magazine may have just bought a similar story two months ago. Or, your idea may work, but not the way you want to present it. In that case, if the editor has enough interest, she may be willing to work with you to change the format to fit her needs. It’s better to create something from scratch with the editor than give her a finished piece just to have her tear it apart to make it workable—or worse—reject it altogether.

Additionally, sending a query allows you to introduce yourself to the editor, which can have many advantages. Even if the editor may not be interested in your current article idea on “Fishing with Kids,” if you’re presenting yourself as a fishing expert, he may just want you to tackle (no pun intended) a unique idea he had but can’t find a writer for.

What should you query? By reading the submission guidelines for the magazine or book publisher you want to write for, you’ll discover which markets require query letters. Typically, children’s manuscript editors ask for query letters for nonfiction articles and, usually books. The exception to a book publisher asking for a query is if you’re writing a picture book. Often, editors will want to see picture books in their entirety, and even if you gave them the best query letter they’ve ever read, it’s still no guarantee to them that you can write a picture book. Other exceptions include fiction for magazines. Some publishers want to see a query first; others would rather see the entire manuscript. If you’re writing humor, poetry, or essays, you would generally never query but send the completed manuscript instead.

What should a query letter look like? Query letters should be formatted just like any other professional business letter. There are certain components, however, that all queries must possess. By the way, these rules apply whether you are sending your letter snail mail or email. If you are emailing (and you need to double-check to make sure that’s okay with the editor), send your letter as an attachment so it can remain in a professional, letter format. Sometimes editors may require that all information is placed within the body of the email to protect from potential computer viruses, but if that’s not specifically requested, send it as an attachment.

All query letters should contain the following, in order:

• Contact information. As with other business letters, put the editor’s contact information in the top left corner. This goes without saying, but make sure all the components are spelled correctly, especially the editor’s name! Take the time to actually get the editor’s name so you’re not addressing your query to “To Whom It May Concern.” And, don’t forget your contact information. This can either go above the publisher’s contact info or you may put it at the bottom of your letter under your signature. Be sure to include a mailing address, phone number, email, and website if you have one.

• Clever lead. In a query, you’ll only have a few seconds to make a great impression. Get right to the heart of your article or book idea in the first couple of sentences. Take your idea and turn it into a creative hook that will force the editor to keep reading.

• Story idea. Now that the editor is captivated with your lead, continue to explain, as briefly but completely as possible, what your article or book is about. Also tell why you’re writing it—what benefit will you be serving their audience through your work?

• Slant. Explain how you’re going to present your material. The more common of a topic you have, the more creative you’ll need to be in using a unique angle to tell your story. Instead of discussing the differences between the Japanese and American cultures, for instance, walk your reader through a typical day in the life of a Japanese child—from that child’s point of view. You can easily make your article or story stand out through a unique point of view, use of lists or how-to format, or Q & A if it’s an interview.

Since you’re discussing how your piece will be formatted, this is also a good place to tell the editor how your piece will be organized. Along with the type of article or format (personal experience, interview, etc.), you can list your main sections (or a few of them) and tell what each section will include (“each subheading will contain specific steps to…” or “each chapter will open with an anecdote”). This helps the editor visualize how your article or book will be structured.

• Compatibility. Next, tell why you believe your article or book is perfect for their magazine or current book line. How does it fit with their readership, the magazine’s style and format, a certain theme their magazine is publishing, or a current book series? If you don’t know these answers yourself, you’ve got some research to do!

• Special Features. What special features does your book or article have that can serve as selling points? For articles, perhaps you can propose sidebars, or if you’re submitting to an electronic magazine, you can add links to websites within the article. For a book, additional features may include a list of related resources in your back matter, or special age-appropriate drawings or activities.

• Why you? Finally…you get to talk about yourself! Let the editor know why you…and only you…can write this article or book. What expertise qualifies you? What inside information do you have on your subject? Why can you present this information in a way that no one else can?

It’s okay to add in some of your writing credits (make sure they’re as relevant as possible for the market you want to write for), but don’t go overboard. For a query letter, you want to focus more on why you qualify to write the particular piece you are proposing instead of listing everything you’ve written in the past five years. If you’re writing a query for a book, it’s generally acceptable to spend a little more time on your background.

• Closing arguments. This is your final chance to convince the editor that your article or book is exactly what he needs and that you are the person to write it. Use a short, one-paragraph summary to restate your article idea, tell why it’s a must-have for their publishing house, and why you’re qualified to write it. Give the editor no reason to say no and every reason to say yes!

This is also a good place to add in the estimated word count and completion date as well as the rights you’re offering. It’s assumed that you’ll be offering first rights unless you state otherwise. Also let the editor know if your submission will be a reprint from a previously published article and if it’s a simultaneous submission (if you’re sending your query to other publishers as well). If you can find a way to subtly work in some of these elements elsewhere, that’s fine too.

Now that you know everything that belongs in a query letter, in Part 2 we’ll take a look at those things that should always be avoided, as well as discover the Top 5 elements of query letters that sell. In the meantime, if you’d like to see a sample of a query letter written for a children’s book, check out one I posted on my blog at www.awaywithwordswriting.wordpress.com/samples-templates/.

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Renee Gray-Wilburn is a freelance writer and an instructor for the Children’s Writers’ Coaching Club. For a list of her recorded teleclasses available for purchase and immediate download as an audio file, visit www.getrealresources.com

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