Common Query Letter Mistakes (And How To Avoid Them)

Gary Smailes | 19 December 2025

Why Query Letters Fail from an Agent’s POV

Agents read fast, and they read a lot. The pass pile grows for the same few reasons. Fix those, and your pages get a shot.

Mistake: Writing back-cover copy instead of a clear pitch

Back-cover copy teases. A query proves the story works. Agents want the spine, not coy hints.

Back-cover style:

• Burdened by grief, Lena returns home, where secrets swirl and love waits in the most unlikely place.

Clear pitch in 3 to 5 sentences:

• After her mother dies, 17-year-old Lena returns to a Florida town she ran from. Her plan, sell the family motel and leave. A hurricane strands her with the boy she once blamed for her father’s death, now the only person who knows why the motel’s deed is missing. If Lena refuses his help, the bank takes the property. If she works with him, she risks exposing her role in the accident.

Mini exercise:

• Write one sentence for each: who, want, obstacle, stakes. Read it out loud. If a friend says, “So what happens,” the pitch dodged the point.

Mistake: Hiding key metadata

Agents need the file info to evaluate fit. Save them a search.

What to include early, first or last paragraph:

• Title in caps.
• Genre and subgenre.
• Complete word count, rounded to the nearest thousand.
• Target audience.

Example:

• THE QUIET HEIST is an 88,000-word adult thriller. Readers who enjoy tense found-family crews and high-stakes puzzles will land here.

If the project sits between categories, pick one and add a bridge phrase. Example:

• Adult upmarket novel with a strong mystery thread.

Mistake: Vague stakes

Abstractions flatten tension. Stakes need numbers, costs, and outcomes you can picture.

Vague:

• She must face her past.

Specific:

• If she exposes the whistleblower, she loses her job and her brother’s trust.

More swaps:

• Vague: He races to stop a plot.
• Specific: He has 36 hours to find a second bomber, or the FBI arrests him for the first blast.
• Vague: They overcome differences.
• Specific: She signs the divorce papers so he wins the mayoral race, then leaks proof of his fraud and risks jail.

Template:

• If [protagonist action], then [concrete consequence]. If not, [worse consequence].

Mistake: Overstuffing with subplots and character soup

One page cannot hold eight names. Limit named people to a tight core, then use roles.

Before:

• Naomi, her roommate Jess, Detective Park, Park’s partner Lewis, her neighbor Rina, and Mr. Patel from 4B attend the vigil. Park assigns Lewis to Naomi. Jess sees Rina leave with a toolbox. Naomi messages her ex, Tom, a reporter.

After:

• Naomi attends the vigil. The detective assigns his partner to shadow her. Her roommate sees the neighbor leave with a toolbox. Naomi messages her reporter ex.

Keep the protagonist, the antagonist, and one pivotal ally. Refer to the rest by role, like her sister or the headmaster. If a subplot does not change the climax or the protagonist’s transformation, drop it from the query.

Quick test:

• Remove a named character. If the pitch still makes sense, the name was clutter.

Mistake: Voice without structure, or structure without voice

Some queries sing, then say little. Others outline cleanly, then read like a police report. You want both.

Voicey but muddy:

• Nita swears she is no hero, though she rocks a mean spreadsheet and a worse attitude. When the city ticks like a bomb, she might step up. Or not.

Structured but dull:

• Nita discovers a citywide cyberattack. She teams up with a security expert. They trace the source to a rival firm and report it.

Blended:

• Nita, a grumpy payroll analyst, spots a payroll exploit linked to a citywide cyberattack. HR wants silence. A breach will wipe hospital paychecks on Friday, shut down care, and expose Nita’s undocumented mother. Nita recruits a white-hat hacker who once doxxed her. Together they trace the exploit to a rival firm run by her boss’s secret investor. If Nita reports the crime, she risks her mother’s deportation. If she stays quiet, patients go without care.

How to tune voice:

• Slip in one or two turns of phrase that match the book’s tone. Stay readable, specific, and active.
• Avoid jokes that confuse plot. If a joke replaces a beat, cut the joke.

Quick checklist from an agent’s desk

• Does the first paragraph name the protagonist, goal, obstacle, and stakes?
• Do I see title, genre, word count, and audience without scrolling?
• Are stakes specific, with a real cost for action and inaction?
• Do I meet only the key players, with others by role?
• Does the voice feel like the book, while the structure stays clear?

One more pass before you send:

• Highlight every sentence with a verb like learns, realizes, begins. Swap for a visible action with an outcome.
• Count names. Three to five total. Fewer is fine.
• Read the pitch to someone who does not know your story. Ask them to say, in one line, who wants what and what stands in the way. If they stumble, tighten.

Agents want a reason to say yes. Give them a clean roadmap, a smart taste of voice, and stakes that bite. Then let your pages do the rest.

Formatting, Length, and Mechanics Missteps

Agents skim. Your pitch lives or dies on clarity. Clean presentation buys attention before the story even begins.

The wall of text problem

A query is an email, not a brochure. Keep it lean and breathable.

• Aim for 250 to 400 words in the body.
• Single spaced, with a blank line between short paragraphs.
• Paragraphs of two to four sentences. No bricks.

Quick test:

• Paste the draft into a plain-text editor. Remove bold, colors, and fancy bullets. Rebuild clean. If the page feels dense, split a paragraph or cut a beat.

Attachment rules:

• If an agency invites an attachment, use a professional font like Times New Roman, Georgia, Garamond, or Arial, 12 pt, black text, left aligned. Standard margins. No images or color.

Greetings that miss

Names matter. Spelling and pronouns show respect.

• Use: Dear Ms. Rivera. Dear Mx. Chen. Dear Jordan Patel.
• Confirm spelling and pronouns on the agency page or Twitter bio.
• Avoid: To Whom It May Concern. Greetings. Hey there.

Two quick notes:

• Writing to a team inbox, pick one agent or use the team label they provide.
• Unsure on honorifics, use full name.

Subject lines and filenames that help, not hurt

A tidy subject line sorts you into the right queue.

• Subject: Query: THE QUIET HEIST (Adult Thriller, 88,000) - Jordan Lee
• If guidelines ask for pages noted in the subject, mirror their language.

Filenames should read cleanly on any screen.

• Lee_TheQuietHeist_Query
• Lee_TheQuietHeist_Pages_1to10
• No spaces, no version soup, no jokes.

Submission guidelines are rules

Agencies set systems for a reason. Follow them word for word.

• If a form, use the form. Do not email unless invited.
• If the page says paste 10 pages below the query, paste 10. Not 12. Not 3.
• If no attachments, do not attach.
• Keep italics by using underscores if email strips formatting. Example: The ship Odessa lists in the storm.
• Preserve paragraph breaks when pasting. Most email clients paste clean if you use Paste as plain text.

Before sending, check:

• Required materials listed on the agency page match what you prepared.
• File types allowed. PDF or .docx only if requested.
• Page count starts where the story starts. No title page, no acknowledgments.

Clean copy, every time

Typos and inconsistencies signal rushed. Agents read for flow first, but glare at errors.

Run a tight final pass:

• Read the email out loud.
• Change the font and read once more.
• Use spellcheck, then search for names and places one by one.

Match your package:

• Character names match across query, synopsis, and pages. Jon or John, pick one.
• Timelines align. If the query promises a road trip, page one should not open in a bunker without context.
• Word count aligns across all documents.

Mini checklist:

• Title in caps once. No smart quotes around it.
• One space after periods.
• Straight quotes, not curly, if your email client garbles them.
• No emojis, gifs, or colored text.

Example layout

Subject: Query: THE QUIET HEIST (Adult Thriller, 88,000) - Jordan Lee

Dear Ms. Rivera,

THE QUIET HEIST is an 88,000-word adult thriller. It will appeal to readers who like tense found-family crews and high-stakes puzzles.

After a museum accountant spots an error in a donor ledger, she learns her mentor is planning a theft, not a gala. Her goal, stop the heist and clear her name. The obstacle, a citywide blackout and a security chief who wants a scapegoat. If she fails, her crew takes the fall and her brother loses parole. If she succeeds, the real mastermind targets her family.

Bio sentence with relevant credit or expertise.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Best,
Jordan Lee
City, ST
email@example.com | 555-555-5555 | jordanlee.com

Notes:

• Four short paragraphs. Room for skimming.
• Title, genre, word count, and audience early.
• Specific stakes.

Quick fixes before you hit send

• Count words. Trim to 250 to 400.
• Read on mobile. If you scroll past two screens, tighten.
• Check the subject line. Title in caps, category, word count, your name.
• Confirm the agent’s name and pronouns.
• Verify guidelines one last time on the agency page.
• Attach only what they request, or paste pages exactly where they want them.
• Rename files with your last name and title.

Treat the email like a storefront window. Clean glass, clear labels, strong lighting. Then the story pulls them inside.

Pitch Content Problems (Hook, Stakes, and Mini-Synopsis)

Agents look for story, not a scrapbook of lore. Lead with the moment everything tilts, then show where the trouble goes next.

Don’t open with backstory, theme, or worldbuilding

Backstory weighs down momentum. Theme winks without context. Lore belongs in the book, not in line one of a query.

Open on the spark and the current problem.

• Weak: Raised on the salt flats of Kameda, Lina wrestles with heritage and grief while tides shape a harsh life.
• Strong: On the morning Lina steals the governor’s seal, guards flood the market. She needs to vanish by sunset or her father goes to prison.

Notice the order. Action first, consequence second, minimal context. Sprinkle one or two anchoring details later for coherence, nothing more.

Quick exercise:

• Highlight the first two sentences of your pitch.
• Cross out origins, beliefs, and history.
• Replace with the inciting incident, the immediate goal, the obstacle, and a concrete risk.

Skip rhetorical questions and clichés

Rhetorical questions hand work to the reader. Clichés blur unique edges. Give a statement with conflict and a result.

• Weak: What happens when a quiet librarian meets a ghost with unfinished business?
• Strong: A quiet librarian meets a ghost who demands help solving a murder. Refusal brings nightly hauntings. Agreement risks arrest for tampering with evidence.
• Weak: She must face her past before time runs out.
• Strong: If Naya names the smuggler who raised her, she loses her crew and her harbor. Silence sends her sister to trial.

Use plain speech. Use pressure points a stranger can picture in two seconds.

Replace passive phrasing with agency and cause

Passive phrasing hides who acts. Readers need choices, pushes, and consequences.

• Weak: The village is threatened, and Mara is forced to flee when betrayal is discovered.
• Strong: Mara exposes the traitor, which turns the village council against her. She flees with the ledger, then returns to steal proof before soldiers burn the fields.

Chain events with cause and effect.

• Weak: The ship is sunk, and aid is requested.
• Strong: Pirates sink the ship, so Ren signals a passing freighter, then bargains passage with stolen patents.

Mini pass:

• Circle forms of be. Is, was, were, been.
• Rewrite with a subject who acts and a verb with teeth. Finds, chooses, breaks, betrays, risks, saves.

Reveal the core conflict and twist

Agents do not want a coy tease. Hold back only late-game spoilers. Reveal the engine that drives the story.

Give three beats in three lines.

• Who wants something specific.
• What blocks progress, person or force.
• What failure costs, in concrete terms.

Example:

• Want: Dara needs the missing audit files to clear a client before Friday.
• Block: Her former boss controls the archive and wants silence.
• Cost: Without those files, the firm fires her, and the client loses custody.

If a mid-book twist shapes the premise, include it.

• Soft: After a break-in, Eli uncovers secrets.
• Clear: After a break-in, Eli learns his mother runs the burglary ring. Helping her saves their house. Turning her in saves a kidnapped girl.

Match word count and genre to market norms

A query doubles as a market signal. Label and length need to fit reader expectations for the shelf you want.

Current ranges, broad guidance:

• Adult fantasy: 90,000 to 120,000.
• Adult thriller or mystery: 75,000 to 100,000.
• Adult romance: 70,000 to 95,000.
• Young adult contemporary: 55,000 to 80,000.
• Young adult fantasy: 75,000 to 100,000.
• Middle grade: 35,000 to 55,000.

Choose a precise label when possible. Psychological thriller, rom-com, historical fantasy, space opera. If a hybrid, pick the lane a bookseller would use.

If word count sits far outside norms, signal awareness in the bio line once revisions bring it close. If the story demands a longer range, the sample pages must earn trust.

A quick template you can draft in five minutes

• Line 1: Protagonist name, role, and the spark. When X happens, Name chooses Y.
• Line 2: Goal versus obstacle. To achieve Goal, Name must do Action, but Antagonist or Force blocks progress.
• Line 3: Stakes. If failure, Consequence A and Consequence B. If success, Price or new risk.

Example fill:
When a donor dies during his gala, museum accountant Lila pockets a key from his cuff to protect her brother. To stop a planned theft, Lila must break into the vault before sunrise, but the security chief tracks every step. If she fails, her brother returns to prison and Lila loses her job. If she succeeds, the real mastermind targets her family.

Final checks before sending

• First line delivers the inciting incident, not history.
• No rhetorical questions. No clichés like face her past or time runs out.
• Active verbs drive every sentence.
• Core want, block, and stakes on the page.
• Genre label and word count match current norms. Subgenre signals tone and audience.

Clarity persuades. Specifics hook. Give agents a sharp snapshot of a story in motion, then let the pages close the deal.

Personalization and Market Positioning Errors

Agents read hundreds of pitches. Show fit in one clean line, then prove you know where your book sits on a shelf.

Personalize with proof, not flattery

"Big fan of your agency" smells like a mail merge. Give a reason you wrote to this person.

Use one sentence up top, tight and specific.

• Strong: Dear Ms. Ortiz, your PubTalk Live interview on slow-burn thrillers mentioned interest in rural settings and women leads. My Ozarks mystery features a Black game warden who uncovers a bribery ring.
• Strong: Dear Mr. Huang, you rep novels with found-family dynamics and high-stakes heists. My adult fantasy centers on a con crew that steals memories.
• Weak: Dear Agent, I think you will love my book.

Sources for a quick hook:

• A wishlist note that mirrors your premise or tone.
• A client title near your lane.
• An interview or podcast where the agent states taste in clear terms.

One line is enough. No biography of your reading life. No jokes about stalking. Respectful, specific, done.

Mini task:

• Write three personalization lines for three target agents.
• Keep each under 30 words.
• Verify names, pronouns, and recent wishlists.

Choose comps that position, not boast

Comps show audience, tone, and where a bookseller shelves your work. Recent, relevant, reachable. Two or three is plenty.

Good patterns:

• For readers of Nita Prose's The Maid and Kellye Garrett's Like A Sister, a locked-room mystery with a blunt, funny voice and a working-class sleuth.
• Fans of T. J. Klune's The House in the Cerulean Sea will recognize the gentle humor and found-family heart, with the small-town politics of Tracy Flick Can't Win.
• Think Legendborn meets Iron Widow in a near-future academy with mecha battles and ancestral magic.

Avoid:

• Megastars or cultural monoliths. Harry Potter. The Da Vinci Code. The Hunger Games.
• Old titles from a decade ago.
• Off-genre comps that confuse audience. A middle grade comp for an adult thriller.
• Empty "X meets Y" with no bridge.

Add one phrase explaining the link. Voice, structure, trope, audience. Not plot summary.

Quick fix steps:

• Pick books from the last three to five years.
• Check genre match and age category.
• Add a short clause naming the shared element.

Query people who rep your lane

An agent who reps only picture books will not take your grimdark epic. Save time. Build a list with intention.

Verify with:

• Agency pages with active wishlists.
• Recent sales news or client lists.
• Interviews where the agent describes taste and what they seek now.

If an agent says no YA, believe them. If closed to queries, wait. If a junior agent seeks exactly your subgenre, move them to the top.

Sample opener when fit is clear:

• I'm querying you for The Tallyman, adult historical mystery, complete at 88,000 words. Your list includes regional crime and blue-collar leads, which aligns with mine.

Skip hedging. No "if this is not for you, please pass to a colleague." Your job is to send to the right person, not to assign homework.

Pitch a series the smart way

Agents want a clear win on book one. Series potential helps, but the first book needs an ending.

Do:

• Present book one as complete with a full arc.
• Note series potential in one brief clause.
• Use words like duology, companion, or continuing cases if that matches structure.

Sample lines:

• Complete at 95,000 words, The Black Salt Heist stands alone with series potential following the crew through new cons.
• This mystery wraps the central case, with future books following Detective Reyes in the same coastal town.

Don't:

• Promise eight books with a cliffhanger and no resolution.
• Break book one into parts to pad length.
• Pitch a prequel or side novella as the first entry.

Quick examples that hit all marks

Personalization plus comps, clean and short.

• Dear Ms. Patel, you seek upmarket mother-daughter stories and workplace intrigue. For readers of The Paper Palace and Maame, this novel pairs domestic tension with a newsroom setting and a biting, hopeful voice.
• Dear Mr. Rivera, your wishlist mentions queer rom-coms with foodie angles. For fans of The Charm Offensive and Rosalind Palmer Takes the Cake, Mine for the Night mixes rivals-to-lovers with a televised bake-off.
• Dear Ms. James, you rep grounded space opera with high stakes. For readers of A Memory Called Empire and The Spare Man, this book blends courtly politics with a locked-ship murder.

A short checklist before you hit send

• One sentence proves fit with this agent, not praise in general.
• Two or three recent comps, same audience, same lane, with a phrase on similarity.
• The agent reps your category today. Website and wishlist confirm.
• Book one stands alone. Series potential sits in one clean clause.

Personalization signals respect. Smart comps show you know your shelf. Together they tell an agent you write with intention, and you understand the market you want to enter.

Bio, Tone, and Professionalism Pitfalls

Agents skim the bio to gauge credibility and voice. Give useful facts in two or three clean lines. Save personal history for a memoir, not a query.

Keep the bio lean and relevant

Lead with publishing or subject expertise. Skip childhood anecdotes, pet names, and family drama.

Strong inclusions for fiction:

• Short publications in known venues. "Stories in One Story and The Missouri Review."
• Prizes or shortlist mentions. "Winner, Claymore Award, 2023."
• Industry membership. "Member, SFWA and Sisters in Crime."
• Professional expertise tied to the book. "Former ER nurse, experience informs the medical scenes."

Strong inclusions for nonfiction:

• Credentials that prove authority. Degrees, licenses, job titles.
• Platform numbers with context. "Newsletter, 12k subscribers, 45 percent open rate."
• Speaking or media. "Talks at APA conference, 2022 and 2024."

Trim or cut:

• "Mother of three and proud dog mom." Cute, not useful here.
• "Writing since age six." Universal, not persuasive.
• "Friends say the book reads like a movie." Subjective, not proof.

Two quick models:

• Fiction: "Stories in Lightspeed and The Sun. MFA, Iowa. Former park ranger, research informs this eco-thriller."
• Nonfiction: "Licensed therapist, fifteen years in community clinics. Host of The Quiet Mind Podcast, 20k downloads per month."

If lived experience shapes the work, keep the link short and respectful. "Syrian American journalist reporting on diaspora communities. Experience informs the novel's setting."

Confidence beats chest thumping and self‑sabotage

Agents look for steady partners. Sound like one.

Swap these:

• "Future bestseller, you would be lucky to have me."
  Try: "Completed at 92,000 words. I would value your consideration."
• "Debut author, probably not good enough."
  Try: "Debut novel. I bring two years of revision with a critique group."

Other tone tips:

• Avoid blurting on insecurities or past rejections.
• Skip ultimatums and jokes at the agent's expense.
• Use plain gratitude. "Thank you for your time."

Keep the pitch voice clear and specific. Let sample pages carry ambition. A measured tone reads professional, not timid.

Skip gimmicks, let the writing stand

No gifts. No mood boards. No Canva headers. No pink fonts. No GIFs. No multiple colors. No attachments beyond requested items.

Why this matters:

• Many agencies strip images and odd formatting.
• Offbeat fonts slow reading and signal inexperience.
• Gimmicks distract from the pitch.

Standout comes from focus and clarity. Specific comps. Clean structure. Accurate details.

A few quick style checks:

• Use a standard font if a document goes out, Times New Roman, 12 point.
• Left align. Single space within paragraphs. One blank line between them.
• No all caps for emphasis. Use strong verbs instead.

Make contact easy

Do not hide contact lines in a block of text. Place a simple signature with complete info.

Copyable template:

Name, optional pronouns
City and state or region
Email
Phone
Website or portfolio
Socials, one or two, only if professional

Example:

Priya Menon
Minneapolis, MN
priya.menon@email.com
555-0142
priyamenonwrites.com
@priyamenon on Bluesky

If querying under a pen name, note both in the signature. "Priya Menon, writing as P. R. Menon." Use one email for every submission in the round.

No headshot. No home address. No attachment for the resume unless guidelines request one.

Mini exercises to tighten the package

• Bio trim. Write a two‑line bio for this project. Cut any detail that does not prove authority, audience, or professionalism. Read aloud. Snip filler.
• Tone pass. Replace hype with data. Swap "future hit" with "complete at 98,000 words, first in a planned duology with a full arc."
• Gimmick audit. Open your sent folder. If any query includes an image, colored text, or a quote from a friend, revise before the next batch.
• Signature check. Paste your signature into a new email and send to yourself. Confirm links work and the layout reads clean on phone and desktop.

Quick before‑you‑send checklist

• Bio shows publishing credits, expertise, or platform. Two or three lines total.
• Tone reads confident and courteous. No bragging. No self‑dig.
• No gimmicks. Plain formatting, clean file names, requested materials only.
• Signature includes name, city or region, email, phone, website or socials.

Professionalism builds trust before a single page gets read. A lean bio, steady tone, and clear contact info tell an agent you respect the process and you know your lane.

Submission Strategy and Timing Mistakes

You want requests, not silence. Strategy helps. So does patience.

Querying before the manuscript is ready

A strong weekend draft feels thrilling. Sending on Monday feels brave. Resist the urge. Agents want work that holds together from page one to the end.

Readiness check:

• Two solid revision passes, one structural, one line level.
• Beta readers or a critique group outside friends and family, at least two readers.
• First fifteen pages tested by fresh eyes.
• Opening pages deliver the setup promised in the query.
• Word count aligns with current norms for the category.
• Confidence to send a full within 24 hours, no scramble for fixes.

Mini exercise:

• Write a four-sentence summary of the first act. Then skim the opening three chapters. Mismatch anywhere, adjust either pages or summary, then update the query.

A final polish matters. A light copyedit lifts clarity. Short sentences where needed. Clean punctuation. No typos in names or places.

Blasting without tracking or iteration

Spray and pray drains energy and data. Small batches give feedback and control.

Try this plan:

• Send 5 to 10 queries in week one.
• Track responses in a simple sheet. Columns: agent, date sent, materials sent, status, notes.
• Review after two weeks or once half respond.

What to read in the results:

• Form rejections across the board point to pitch problems. Tighten the hook, sharpen stakes, fix comps.
• Mixed results suggest tweaks, not overhaul. Nudge the opening sentence. Swap one comp. Trim a clause.
• Requests from only one subgenre cluster, maybe the label needs clarity. Adjust genre line and comp set.

Targets help:

• Aim for some interest within the first 10 queries, one to three requests counts as healthy.
• Zero requests after 15 to 20 queries suggests a bigger rethink. Workshop the pitch with peers. Rework pages to align with the query. Then build the next batch.

Sample tracker row:

• Agent: Rivera, Stone & Palm. Date: Apr 5. Materials: Query plus first 10 pages. Status: Partial requested Apr 18. Notes: Wishlist mentions eco-thrillers.

Poor follow-up etiquette

Agents post response windows for a reason. Respect those timelines. No nudges on queries unless guidelines invite them. Nudge on exclusive reads and fulls once windows pass.

Keep nudges short and polite. One nudge per request. Then wait.

Template for a full request nudge:

Subject: Status update, Title by Your Name

Dear Rivera,

Checking on the full for Title, sent March 3. Agency site lists a twelve-week window, now passed. Happy to resend if needed.

Thank you for your time,
Your Name
email • phone

If an offer arrives, notify all agents with outstanding materials right away. Give a deadline for responses, one to two weeks is standard. Provide the date clearly in the subject line.

Offer-in-hand notice:

Subject: Offer received, response requested by May 28, Title by Your Name

Dear Rivera,

Sharing news of an offer of representation for Title. I would value your decision by May 28 if interest remains. Happy to send any additional materials.

Thank you,
Your Name

Not aligning materials across the package

Agents compare query, synopsis, and pages. Mismatch blocks trust. One document says dual POV, pages show a single narrator. The query lists a 90,000-word thriller, the synopsis reads like family drama. Fix the package before sending.

Alignment check:

• Names, ages, locations match across all files.
• Genre line and tone match the story on the page.
• Stakes in the query echo in the synopsis with concrete outcomes.
• Opening pages show the same inciting incident pitched in the query.
• Word count is identical in all places, including subject lines and headers.

Mini exercise:

• Highlight every proper noun in the query. Do the same in the synopsis. Compare lists. Any surprise names in one, fold in context or remove fluff.

Skipping agency updates and market research

Agents open lists, close lists, shift focus. Policies evolve. A quick scan prevents wasted sends.

Before pressing send:

• Check agent and agency sites for open status and guidelines.
• Review recent interviews or wishlist notes for taste shifts.
• Confirm active interest in your category and subgenre.
• Note requested materials by format, pages pasted or attachment, doc type.
• Update the target list monthly.

Smart targeting beats volume. Build a curated list grouped by strong fit, medium fit, wild card. Start with strong fit. Keep notes on why each agent fits, such as a client title, a panel quote, or a wishlist line.

A simple week-by-week plan

Week 1

• Final readiness check and polish.
• Build a list of 20 to 30 names, grouped by fit. Draft tailored first lines.

Week 2

• Send Batch 1, eight queries.
• Track in the sheet. Step away and write.

Week 4

• Review responses. Adjust query if patterns emerge.
• Prepare Batch 2, eight more, with updates based on data.

Week 6

• If requests sit out of window, send one polite nudge on fulls.
• If an offer arrives, send offer notices with a clear deadline.

Quick checklist before you hit send

• Manuscript revised, beta tested, line edited.
• Query, synopsis, and pages tell the same story.
• Batch plan set, tracker ready.
• Agent guidelines reviewed day-of.
• Nudge templates prepared, dates noted.

A steady plan saves months. Patience plus precision gets stronger results than speed. Send with care. Keep records. Adjust with evidence.

Frequently Asked Questions

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