Selling Yourself
In today's publishing climate, it's not enough to have a great idea for a book. Your query letter also must tell the agent or editor why you are the best person to write your book. Point out your credentials, your experience, and your published credits, if any. If you're fortunate enough to have high-profile endorsements from a celebrity, a well-known author, or an expert in the field about which you're writing, be sure to include those, as well.
Toot Your Own Horn
Your query letter is no place to be modest. You don't want to come off as arrogant or cocky, but you do want an agent or editor to have a good grasp of your qualifications. Cite awards you've received that relate either to your writing or to the topic of your book. If your book is about creating winning public relations strategies and you've won awards from the Public Relations Society of America, for example, mention that in your query letter.
Life experience can count as a qualification, too, but don't overdo it. If you're pitching a murder mystery set in a fictional Southwestern artists' colony, let the agent or editor know that you lived in Taos, New Mexico, for two years. You don't have to give your life story; in fact, most times it's better not to, unless you're pitching your autobiography. Choose what's most relevant to your topic and eliminate unnecessary details.
Emphasize the Positive
First-time authors sometimes make the mistake of calling attention to their lack of publishing credits or to previous rejections of a proposal. Statements like “I have never written a book before …” or “Seventeen other agents have declined to consider my proposal …” make you sound defensive and amateurish. Remember, the impression you want to make on the agent or editor is one of a positive, energetic, and talented author — even if this is your first venture into the world of publishing.
Instead of highlighting the shortcomings, rework your query to focus attention on the positive. If you don't have any book credits, list your magazine or newspaper credits instead. If you don't have any published credits to cite, tell the agent or editor about your years of experience in the field covered in your proposal. Talk about what you have done, not about what you haven't done.
Alert
Using humor in queries can be tricky; sometimes what is meant to be funny comes off as flip and will turn off the reader. If you aren't sure whether humor is appropriate in your query letter, leave it out and stick to a more straightforward approach.
Take honest stock of what you have to offer and find the best light in which to cast your assets as a writer. For example, if you want to write a cookbook for working mothers, your query letter might mention how you devised your tasty new recipes in between sales meetings and school plays, or how your family's favorite dish was created by accident one day when your youngest child dumped a bowl of grapes into the stew pot. With this approach, you highlight your expertise as a working mother trying to make sure your family gets fed without calling undue attention to the fact that this would be your first book.
Select Appropriate Endorsements
Agents and editors don't care whether your mother, college roommate, coworker, or best friend thinks you're a terrific writer, unless your mother, college roommate, coworker, or best friend also happens to be a well-known author or expert. However, the right third-party endorsement can give an extra boost to your query. Even a one-line recommendation can carry much weight with agents and editors who are leery of signing up untried authors.
Essential
It can be tempting, especially when we want to impress someone, to overstate or exaggerate things. Resist this temptation in your query letters. Put your work and yourself in the best light, but never lie about endorsements or referrals; it will catch up with you, and you'll end your writing career before it even starts.
Who is that “right” endorser? It depends on your project. If your book deals with constitutional freedoms, for example, you might ask a prominent constitutional law professor to write a line or two as a recommendation. For the cookbook example, a dietician's endorsement can add heft to your proposal.
For your fiction proposal, you might seek a recommendation from a published author of the same genre. You also can mention that your novel is written in a certain style — “after the manner of Danielle Steele,” for instance, or “in the vein of James Thurber.” Be careful with phrasing here; you don't want to claim to be imitating another writer, only that your style is similar.
Sometimes agents or editors will agree to review your material if you've been referred by an existing client; in fact, some agencies only consider new authors if they come with such a recommendation. Be sure you have the referring party's explicit permission to use his or her name.
