What do you say in a cover or query letter?

"The most IMPORTANT THING a cover letter does is ALLOW YOU TO SHOW YOURSELF IN THE BEST POSSIBLE LIGHT TO A PROSPECTIVE PUBLISHER. There are many variables possible in cover letters and most of them will work for someone, somewhere. But in order to get your letters working for you, you need to find the best possible combination of things to say (and NOT say) in YOUR cover letter for YOUR stories that show off YOUR specific talents, credits and expertise in the best possible light." - Verla Kay, children's author

There are a few rules.

Rule number 1 - one page only.
Rule number 2 - know the purpose, which is to catch the editor's (or agent's) attention.

Now let's discuss the Pieces and Parts of a Query or Cover Letter.

Simple letterhead with your info.

Date.

Editor or agent name and address.

Greeting - professional (Ms. Martin, Mr. Yee, or Evan Z...).

Your contact with editor/agent, if any. This can be your opening, or can follow the paragraph about your submission.

• Where you heard editor speak, if appropriate


• Where you read article


• What you thought


• May mention a RECENT book of theirs that you loved


• May be a thank you, i.e. "Thank you for your encouraging remarks on my last submission, Title."

Something exciting about your book, short story or article.

• Grab the reader right away. This may be a direct quote from the manuscript or a catchy line or question about the theme of your piece. A sound bite. A teaser. The following are starter ideas.

• Does the first line hook the reader?
• Is it an unusual idea or deal with an unusual situation with universal themes?
• Is it set in an unusual place?
• For a magazine piece, is it timely? (i.e. 100th anniversary of ... and, of course, you're submitting with plenty of lead time.)

• In a query, this paragraph or section may be all you have to showcase your piece. Make it as good as you can. For a book, think of doing an elevator pitch or mini-synopsis of your story. Think of the blurb on the back of the book as you work. Agent Nathan Bransford has an excellent blog entry on this topic. Read "The One Sentence, One Paragraph, and Two Paragraph Pitch."

Details about your piece.

• What it is: middle grade novel, picture book, magazine article.


• Nonfiction books often require a book proposal--this series does not address those since I've not had that experience.

ARTICLE VERSUS STORY
Some people call articles stories, while others only refer to fiction as stories. What's what?
I personally differentiate these two by nonfiction (article or essay) or fiction (story), and of course, each of those categories can be broken down more. That said, I will at times call a piece a "true story" versus an article. That usually happens in response to a magazine looking for "true stories about..." Sometimes these are also called true experiences.
When submitting a manuscript, I usually indicate "article" or "nonfiction" for those true stories and "fiction based on a true story" or "fiction" on those I've made up.

NOVEL
It might be a middle grade novel, an early YA novel, or a tween novel, etc., but never a fictional novel. Editors and agents hate that misnomer.

More details about your piece.

• Why it shouldn't be passed up or a need for book in today's market. If you can demonstrate this, you'll have an edge.

Verla: "It was an exciting and dramatic period of our American history, but until now there have been almost no picture books on this subject for the 5-8 year old child. The only picture books listed in "books in print" are very long -- up to two thousand words. None of them are suitable for younger children."

And more details about your piece.

• a brief summary

• one sentence for a cover
• no more than a paragraph for a magazine query
• high concept - 25 words or less
• hit the high points
• tell the end
• title


• word length and number of chapters, if appropriate


• rights for magazine pieces: if reprint rights, tell where and when it has appeared


• exclusive or multiple submission, if appropriate


• whether it is complete


• whether you are including a synopsis (if requested in their guidelines)


• whether it has additional material

• for books, glossary or maps or photographs (color slides, digital images, black & white photos)
• for magazine pieces, sidebar, activity, photos, related websites
• anything the editor should know about it
• setting is unusual and you've lived there


• theme


• a holiday story


• what inspired you to write it

Appropriate info about you.

• publication credits - if you don't have any, leave this out

• "I'm enclosing my résumé" or books you've published and/or a list of some magazines you've been published in.
• don't apologize for not having credits
• don't say you're a first time writer
• awards, contest winner


• training - degree in something relating to Literature or English, graduated from Institute of Children's Literature


• related personal history, education, jobs, or hobbies that apply to this piece

Closing.

• include info about SASE and if it's for "reply only" indicate they may discard the copy of the manuscript


• for queries, call for an answer on whether they want to see your manuscript (or the rest of your manuscript)

Sincerely (or whatever you feel is appropriate) and your typed name with space to put a signature.

Enclosures - this is standard business letter practice.

If you learn better by example, check out these sample query letters by Laura Manivong and Jodi Meadows.

Get Ready. Get Set. Submit!

1. Do you know where you want to send it?
• If so, move on to the next step.
• If not, and you're already done the homework mentioned in part one, discuss with your critique group. They may have good suggestions.

2. Check your market book, guidelines, and any other resources you have for this specific publishing house or magazine. Ask yourself . . .
• Is my manuscript the type they publish?
• Is my word count appropriate for what they want?
• Have I heard an editor from here speak? Or read an interview with them?

3. Read first lines from your manuscript or write out what is exciting about your piece to use as a teaser.

4. Write your letter.

5. Check for the elements above.

6. Proof carefully!

7. If possible, share with your critique group or another writer; they might offer suggestions and comments for improvement.

Final Suggestions

• Overall, remember to be brief, professional and to the point, but let your voice come through
• Spell check!!
• Send a clean copy
• Keep copy of your letter

Today I'm talking about Query and Cover letters--including requests for guidelines and catalogs.

HOMEWORK TO DO BEFORE YOU WRITE THE QUERY OR COVER LETTER

(This information is aimed at those submitting directly to a book publisher or magazine themselves. If you're using an agent, what's in the query or cover letter is the same, but you will be researching the agent, not the houses or magazines. Note: agents generally do not handle magazine submissions.)

Have the most recent market lists (SCBWI puts one out annually for members) and market books (Writer's Digest Book's Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market - www.cwim.com, Institute of Children's Literature's Book Markets for Children's Writers and Magazine Markets for Children's Writers - http://www.writersbookstore.com/BooksonWritingforChildren.htm) and make notes when you hear of editorial or submission policy changes.

See if submission or writer's guidelines are available on the internet. You may want to save them on your computer, print them out and/or bookmark the site. If not available on line, write a letter to the publisher requesting guidelines. Keep it simple: Please send me your writer's guidelines for AAA BOOKS. I have enclosed a self-addressed stamped envelope for your convenience. You can often pick up guidelines at conferences, too.

• Write the date you received/downloaded on the guidelines themselves so you'll
• know how current they are.
• File guidelines so you can locate them when needed.
• Perhaps, mark in your market book that you have this publisher's guidelines.

Know what kinds of books or magazine pieces are appropriate for this publisher.

• Editors really hate getting picture book submissions when they only publish novels, etc. More than that, you need to know the flavor of a publishing house. i.e. If they only do edgy material and yours is not, you're wasting your time and theirs.
• Go to the library and/or bookstore and look at what a specific publisher has published recently, which leads to the next point . . .
• Catalogs! Check websites to see if a publisher has an online catalog. Pick paper catalogs up at conferences. Ask bookstores for any extra copies they have--last spring's is better than nothing! Write a letter requesting a catalog, again keep it simple, but abide by what the market book says on what you send with it. i.e. Please send me your most recent catalog for BB BOOKS. I have enclosed $3.00 and a self-addressed stamped envelope for your convenience.
• You may want to indicate in your market book that you have a publisher's catalog.

Know something about the editor of the publishing house. Have you heard him or her speak? Read interviews written by them or their blog or followed them on twitter? Each of these will give you some insight. Is she into paranormal or sick of it? Does he like humor or serious fiction? At the very least researching an editor will help you get title and name correct.

Have your story written, critiqued, rewritten until ready to go. Never send something the moment you hit the end. If you belong to a critique group, great. If not, consider doing so. At the very least, let your material sit a while (weeks, months) so you can come back to it fresh. Read it aloud. Consider reading self-editing tips (in books or online). Rewrite. Let it sit again. Repeat as necessary.

QUERY & COVER LETTERS

Q: What's the difference between a query letter and a cover letter?

A query is sent without the full manuscript. It's a letter sent to the editor asking her if she would like to request a partial or full manuscript (or rest of manuscript) to read. What you send depends on the house's or magazine's writer's guidelines.

A cover letter is an introduction letter sent on top of a manuscript, similar to a letter that goes with a résumé. The full manuscript is right there for the editor to read.

Why you'd choose one over the other . . .

The former is an easier way to reach more markets at once. Many novel publishers want a query with 1 or 3 chapters, or 5 -10 page - always send first chapter(s) or page(s). Nonfiction often requires a book proposal.

Picture books are usually sent with a cover letter. Many magazines do not want to be queried either. Some editors want to see the complete manuscript for a novel. In any of these cases, you'll use a cover letter.

The wrinkle of electronic submissions . . . Queries and cover letters can be sent electronically, at least if that is something the magazine or house wants. Some guidelines will say "no attachments" and want all text pasted into the email. Others will accept attachments, but will tell you they must be in Word.

You must read the guidelines to see what an editor, house or magazine wants in their submissions.

Q: Okay, I've decided not to query. Should I always send a cover letter with my submission?

2 views . . .

I don't. The reasons I do are: 1. The magazine requests manuscripts with a cover letter. 2. I have more information I want them to know (i.e. why I wrote the piece, or my submission fits a theme). 3. It might be pertinent for them to know my other writing experience and I don't think a full résumé is needed.

What one editor says: "As an editor, I did find submissions that lacked a cover letter a bit rude, like a phone caller who doesn't bother saying hello or identifying themselves before launching into the conversation." - Jacqueline K. Ogburn former children's book editor

Next entry, I'll go into more details on the specifics of a query letter.

Don't know where to start? What about that book you read? You thought it was similar to what you write, so check the acknowledgements page. Some authors thank their agent in the book. If an agent liked their work, they might like yours. Next step, further research on the agent.

Of course, you will to go to the agency's website, right? Check out client lists, if available. Take note of submission policies. And read the agent's and/or agency's blog. But don't submit yet. You'll be continuing your research into this agent.

Agent Query is a searchable database of literary agents. But it is also much more. It has info on large and small publishing houses, literary magazines, plus articles such as "When Agents Offer Representation..." or "How to Write a Query." In addition, it has links to many other sites, including some mentioned below.

When checking out an agent, definitely go to Publisher's Marketplace. One cool feature is the site lists who has recently updated their page. Click on browse members, where you can look up a specific name or merely see who is listed. But once you're on an agent's page, you can often see what projects they've recently sold and/or best known projects.

Don't miss Chuck Sambico's blog* - he's the editor for the Guide to Literary Agents. I love how he's posted a variety of agents' pet peeves about Chapter 1. He also has entries on "How I Got My Agent" plus has good links to other blogs and websites.

Now that you've done some research, you may know who an agent's clients are, so read some books that agent represented. It'll help you learn whether the agent could be interested in what you write.

Know an author agented by this agency? Ask her questions. You may want to find out whether the author has had other agents previously. He may not want to say who he left, but he probably is willing to discuss problems.

Here are two good articles on Harold Underdown's site regarding agents:
• Children's Book Agents and Artist's Representatives: a Guide
(do I need an agent, what do agents do) has good content, but remember it is a dated article as one of the examples is of The Firebrand which has closed.
http://www.underdown.org/agents.htm

• Finding and Choosing Literary Agents
http://www.underdown.org/researching-agents.htm

A lot of working checking into an agent? Yes, but your submissions will be much better targeted than many an agent receives.

*I know there are many other people blogging about agents. If you'd like to list any, feel free to comment here.

A few years back another writer and I did a novel writing retreat. These questions are ones I developed for attendees to consider about their novels. Perhaps the updated version will be helpful for you, too.

Where will your novel be shelved after it has been published? Not just shelf, but picture what authors you will be placed between. If you don't know, take a field trip to the bookstore and see.

What is the genre and subgenre of your novel?

Middle Grade

• Adventure
• Animal
• Biographical
• Contemporary
• Early Middle Grade
• Fantasy
• Graphic
• Historical
• Horror
• Humor
• Multicultural
• Mystery
• Problem
• Religious
• School
• Science Fiction
• Sports
• Tweens

Young Adult

• Adventure
• Biographical
• Chick Lit
• Coming-of-age
• Contemporary
• Dystopian
• Edgy
• Fantasy
• Graphic
• Hi-Lo
• Historical
• Horror
• Humor
• Multicultural
• Mystery/Suspense
• Novel in Verse
• Paranormal
• Problem
• Religious
• Romance
• Science Fiction
• Sports
• Steam Punk
• Urban
• Western

I doubt these are exhaustive lists, but they should help you think about what type of novel you're writing.

What three stories are similar in some way to yours? The first 3 books or movies that come to mind when you think of your story are? What makes them similar? What is different?

Think about the books you most enjoy reading. What subgenre(s) are they? Don't know? Check out reviews, talk to booksellers and librarians.

Does what your writing fit one of the areas you love to read? If yes, keep reading those subgenres. If no, consider writing in a different subgenre--something you love to read. If you never read, how can you know what today's kids are reading?

Feel free to comment on these lists and questions. (Click on the title of the entry and it will take you to a page where you can comment.)

Nothing is better than actually meeting an agent or editor in person. (Although long term following of someone on twitter is close.) By listening to an editor or agent talk at a conference, not only do I learn about their house, their agency, their tastes, and perhaps how they work with authors, I discover something of their personality. I've gone away with "Wow, I'd love to work with __________." I've also experienced, "We just wouldn't mesh." They've also taught me about craft, given me insights into my own weaknesses in writing, made me think, inspired me, encouraged me, and challenged me. Whew!

This past year I was privileged to meet quite a number of editors and agents--all at SCBWI conferences. (If you've never gone to one, I really encourage you to do so.) Two agents that pop to mind with no reference to notes from the LA conference last August are: Marietta B. Zacker, Nancy Gault Literary Agency, and Sarah Davies (pronounced Davis), The Greenhouse Literary Agency.

I loved Marietta's straight forward, no nonsense approach--this was especially noticeable in the Q&A time. She's passionate about what she does. She advised when writers are looking for an agent that they consider these questions: "Who will share your vision? Who will share your passion?" Marietta recommends writers find the passion that each has - whatever that may be.

At the beginning of her speech Sarah answered the questions on everyone's minds. She also told her audience that writing is like being a violin player. "Would you expect to be on a world stage when you just learned to play scales?" she asked. Sarah finds it thrilling as an agent to have the opportunity to change someone's life and help them reach their dreams.

At the Iowa and Illinois SCBWI Conferences I met Candlewick Editor, Yolanda Roy, who besides being a good editor is also a singer! Which reminds me, Ted Malawer at Upstart Crow Agency, used to sing opera (Kansas SCBWI conference.) Back to Yolanda who reminded us, she and other editors do what they do because they love it. She wants to know we've checked out her publishing house when we submit.

I've heard lots of agent talks, but in Kansas Ted gave some very practical advice about what we should be asking agents. He also advised, "Think about the query letter as the bait." He believes comparisons--i.e. your manuscript to other books--are his job, not yours, which is different than what I've heard others say. (Again, why we should be out listening to these professionals speak!)

In Illinois I met Alisha Niehaus from Dial Books for Young Readers. She did a fantastic and fascinating workshop using Savvy by Ingrid Law. With permission of Ingrid she gave us insights into how the book changed--wow! When talking about middle grade readers in another session, Alisha said, "Though they wish they could make out with a vampire, they are still trying to figure out how to fasten their training bra."

I met other editors and agents in 2009, but this post is growing too long to mention them all. Over the years my knowledge of the publishing world has grown by listening to agent and editor talks, panels, critiques. I've learned how dedicated these professionals are. Best yet, I've improved my odds of finding the right home for my manuscripts.

It used to be hearing an editor or agent at a conference or event was the only way to discover what he or she was like personally. That's not true anymore. These days you can also learn about an agent's or editor's personality, pet peeves, likes and dislikes and more on the web. Many editors and agents are active with blogs and/or on twitter. Some of the blogs are personal blogs; some are official agency blogs.

Last spring on her blog, Editor Martha Mihalick talked about some of her favorite places in books.

This summer both Agent Kate Schafer Testerman and Agent Elana Roth tweeted about their frustrations of going through queries. Kate shared on twitter after posting requirements on her blog. Elana reposted her tweets as a collection on her agency's blog afterwards. One of the biggest complaints both had was that people don't follow submission directions.

Agents and editors have pet peeves, too. Look at these agents' comments. Jennifer DeChiara tweeted, "Never say 'in regards to.' Just say 'about.' 'I am writing about' instead of 'I am writing in regards to.' Please. I'm begging here." From Barry Goldblatt's Query Lessons: "'Word-jockey' Is an idiotic euphemism for 'writer.'" Lauren E. MacLeod tweets, "Am getting *really* tired of pre-query emails. Just query. If I don't want it, I'll reject."

Do agents ever purchase manuscripts from unpublished writers? Of course! Colleen Lindsay tweeted, "The first project I sold was an unpublished writer. Got her a two-book deal at Pocket. The writing is what matters."

Meeting an editor or agent at a conference helps you realize they are just people like you are. A recent tweet from Agent Jennifer Laughran illustrates that concept, "Faced with 2 equally good choices. To pick either disappoints somebody. What to do? What to do? Horns of dilemma. Ow. OW. QUIT IT, DILEMMA!" As does this one from Editor Ruta Rimas "EEEEp. Has anyone ever been too afraid to read an ms? I really want to love this one and am scared to be disappointed...!!!"

Some tweets may be rather mundane, like comments on the weather, but still give a taste of personality. In the summer Editor Sarah Shumway tweeted, "is there a snowy, chilly book you can recommend that will take me far, far away from the muggy afternoon?" By contrast Editor Kristin Daly tweeted on another day, "But the REAL excitement: Mailroom just brought me advance copies of two fab fall books. Hooray! This rainy, gloomy day is def. looking up."

They all worry about whether their books will do well. Here's a tweet from Editor Elizabeth Law, "Now that G-Force is a hit, I am hoping that guinea pigs will ride a wave of uber-popularity, in time for our own Guinea Dog." Or have hopes for their books. This blog shares some comments from Editor Nancy Mercado on Neil Armstrong Is My Uncle.

Interviews of these figures are often online, too. On this site Editor Laura Arnold discusses editing and publishing book. Sometimes the interviews are directly on the publishing house's site as is the case for this one for Editor Louise May.

So interested in an editor or agent? Of course, you'll read books they've edited and agented, attend conferences where they are, but also find out as much as you can about them on the internet.

Some Useful Resources: Bloggers Who Interview Agents and Editors

Alice Pope's CWIM Blog - http://cwim.blogspot.com
Cynthia Leitich Smith - http://cynthialeitichsmith.blogspot.com
Cynthea Liu - http://www.writingforchildrenandteens.com/ in her "Take the Dare" challenge
Wordhustler by John L. Singleton and Anne Walls

"The greatest part of a writer's time is spent in reading, in order to write; a man will turn over a half a library to make one book."
Dr. Samuel Johnson (1709-1784)

Sometimes I learn by what doesn't work. I experienced this in an area of researching the market. Over the years I've faithfully read children's books and recorded what I've read, who published it, genre, and my opinion of the book. What I hadn't consistently recorded was the author or even a brief summary of the story. In addition, my recorded opinion had often been too succinct. And it had never occurred to me that it would be helpful to know when a book was published.

I look back on comments such as "couldn't finish reading it" and "same old supernatural story" and wonder what I meant. In the former case, did that mean, the writing style was difficult to read? Or did I find it boring? Was the main character uninteresting, or was the subject matter offensive? Who knows! Maybe in the latter case my notes referred to a repeated or overdone theme. Or was it the story itself that I felt had been told and retold too many times? I can't remember the story and I didn't make enough notes to remind myself of plot line or character or anything helpful to resurrect the story from my faulty memory banks.

But I learned from my mistakes. I changed my recordkeeping system to make sure I noted the author's name and a description of the book. Plus, I took a few extra moments to make clearer comments. The results are best shown by a sample comment: "odd - should we encourage kids to be friendly with real bears - not!" I know why I didn't like that story!

Being more detailed has helped me with my original intent in keeping these records--accurate marketing. When my notes are good, I can look at a publisher and see their books are "hard-hitting; not what is typical for ordinary people's lives." And since publishers do change, adding publication date helps me see easily which books are recent ventures and which happened long ago. (I keep the books in date order.)

What about the books on my list that didn't have enough information? I worked to rectify what I could. Many books I found online: my library, the publisher's website, or Amazon.com. There I could see the publication date, author, a description of the story. Often that jogged my mind and I could do an "oh, yeah" and write more notes. If that didn't help, I looked to see if the website had an option such as "see inside" this book. Rereading the beginning was the best way to bring the story back for me. However, books I read three to five years ago were often hard to find online. Some had gone out of print, but even that knowledge is useful.

In case this idea will be helpful for you, here's a recap of what I'm keep track of in the children's books I read: Publisher name, book title, author, illustrator (when appropriate), genre (including subgenre), brief description of book or storyline, publication date, and my opinion. I have books grouped under their publisher for that overall view of the house and, when possible, I note who edited the book. I keep this information in the computer in a table in a Word document, however, a spreadsheet program or a notebook would work as well.

Is this enough information to keep? It is for me. It makes a difference to my knowledge of what a house publishes. It has also shown me where I need to do more reading.