Thread by @C_H_Armstrong

THREAD:
1/ #AmQuerying Authors: I'm going through queries now, and I can't tell you the number of passes I've sent because I don't know what the story is about. PLEASE don't give agents a reason to pass before reading your opening pages. PLEASE make sure your queries include...

2/...all necessary information. MOST IMPORTANTLY, please make sure it reads like the back of a novel you might buy in a store, COMPLETE WITH STAKES! Without the stakes, there really is no story at all. And, surely, your story has stakes but we don't know what they are unless...

3/...you give us that information in the query.

What are the states? The stakes are, quite simply, what the character might win/lose by gaining whatever it is they're trying to accomplish within the pages of the novel. Without it, you might as well be pitching a diary...

4/ So what does a good query include?

1. Identify the main character
2. What does the character want?
3. Who/What is standing in the way of what the character wants?
4. What must the character accomplish to get what they want?
5. And what might the character gain/lose...

5/...as they reach for that goal?

Also remember to include word count--and do you bet to conform to the genre. A 25-30K Adult or YA manuscript is always going to get a pass from me because it's way too far from the optimal threshold, which means it needs editing and...

6/...my workload doesn't allow enough time to help you do that properly.

Likewise, a YA or Adult manuscript at 125K+ words will also likely get a pass because it's on the very high end of optimal threshold and will likely need edits I don't have the time to properly help with...

7/...though there will be some exceptions where it makes sense to use that many words, especially if you're writing SciFi or Fantasy (which I don't rep).

Also, make sure you include that word count and genre in your query.

And finally...if you're asked to include...

8/...the "first" 5, 10, 15, 50, etc. pages, PLEASE MAKE SURE IT'S THE **FIRST** pages, and not something you've selected as the best of your writing.

I've passed on too many queries this morning for reasons that could've been easily fixed by the writer and, while it was...

9/...necessary on my part because I have too many queries to spend a half an hour on each one trying to figure it out, it still made me sad because I've been in the querying trenches, and it's hard enough when you have a GREAT query. So please...

10/...if you don't know "how" to write a query, or your concerned that your query is missing elements or doesn't pack the right punch, do you research or find someone in the #WritingCommunity to give you feedback.

Best wishes all! /END