Welcome to this week’s Master Your Craft post! Each Wednesday we’ll discuss writing a new book from the BIG IDEA to QUERYING. Last year, we walked you through every step from getting the big idea through polishing your finished novel. Last week, we tried to answer the question Are you ready to query? So if you answered “YES!” this week, we aim to help you get your query drafted.
Queries are hard to write. In fact, I know very few writers who don’t struggle with them at least a little bit. Most of us write dozens of versions and continue to refine even after we’ve started sending queries out. After all, this 250 word (or so) pitch can greatly increase your chances of getting your book in front of an agent’s gaze.
But there are a few tricks to help make the query-writing struggle a bit less daunting. Here are a few tips from Pennies who’ve endured the query trenches.
Richelle: The last query I wrote using a blog post that Penny Marty Mayberry sent my way. The formula was super helpful and I came up with a solid query in less than 20 minutes — amazing! However, I do think part of why I was able to compose a query so quickly is that I had a strong understanding of my story and the stakes before I sat down. Often times when I’ve struggled to write a query, it’s because there are big holes in my manuscript that still need filling. I also really try not to stress about things like the bio or the personalization or even comps — if I have a good approach, I’ll use it, but in the end it’s the story that has to sell itself. (Although if I can’t find good comps, that’s another indication that maybe my story isn’t quite there yet…). Finally, details do matter — I try (and struggle) to stay away from vague descriptions and lofty language and get right down to the nitty-gritty of the characters and story because those will help an agent see it.
Marty: I agree. This “formula” is easy if your story has solid stakes/consequences. I advocate for writing your query partway through writing the MS to help you define goal/stakes/consequences.
Halli: I may be in the minority here, but I write the query when the manuscript is out with critique partners. It may be because I’m so excited about jumping into writing the book, but I know it’s also because I’m not sure how much the story will change. I know I can revise it throughout, but I guess that’s just the panster part of me.
Mark: I start by stabbing myself in the face with a sharpened fork a bunch of times. Then calm down, bandage myself, and finally get to work.
In all honesty, I do tend to do an early summary of the book so I at least know where I’m going. I revise the “query” summary later in the process and then when I’m “done” I rewrite it. It keeps me somewhat on track and challenges me to know what the story is actually about early on. I learned that hard lesson in my first books. A couple times I’ve even written a short, medium, and long summary midway through a draft. It’s nice to have them to revisit midway through a revision to keep me on track.
Kristi: I write a query after many, many drafts! Nathan Bransford’s site was what I used to help me.
Gita: I read a ton of back-cover/flap copy and once I had the feeling of that in my head, I wrote my query, which sounds a lot like…flap copy.;) I liked this approach because it encouraged me to focus on stakes and voice. After that, I added comps, genre and length, as well as a short bio.
Julie: I run ideas by my agent before I write them using a short pitch that includes the bones of the query–a hook, brief synopsis, comp titles, and genre. That eventually gets fleshed out a bit into the pitch that goes out to editors. I like sending it out to critique partners and beta readers for feedback as they read the story just to make sure I’ve captured all the key elements of the story.
Rebecca P: If you have written a novel that might be dubbed “quiet” (though I don’t believe any novel is), it can be difficult, without a lot of big external events, to know what to highlight in a query. So I work backward. First, I think about how the MC changes at the end, what their big aha moment is. Then I list the elements that are most crucial to that change taking place. It can be a person, a place, an event, a thing, etc. I rank them in order of most importance and use the top three-ish. Now I go back and note how those elements were introduced to or became meaningful to the MC (at least one should have had some part in the Inciting Incident). What this does is get me out of the weeds, so I can see the forest. Now I have the pieces I need so I can use a resource like Marty’s excellent post on queries!
Additional Resources
Need more info? Check out what other experts have to say on this topic:
- Here’s a great overview by Jane Friedman
- Like information in infographic form? Check out this post.
- Need examples to get inspired? Check out these 23 successful query letters from a variety of different genres.
- For kidlit-specific help, check out this post from KidLit411 with a huge list of resources.
- And don’t forget to take a look at the Twitter #querytip for advice, pet peeves, and important tips from agents!
Ready for more craft advice on writing middle grade or young adult fiction? Head back to our Master Your Craft page where you’ll find dozens of more topics to choose from!