How to Impress an Agent with Your Query Letter
If you want your memoir to be published by a major publishing house, you’ll need to pitch agents with a query letter. Query letters are notoriously difficult to write. They require a bird’s eye view of your manuscript, where you articulate the arc and overarching story being told. What’s more, query letters are brief, which means you need to distill your manuscript to its essence. Agents are strapped for time, and this is your one chance to impress them. If an agent isn’t immediately pulled in by your query, you’ve likely missed your chance.
Need tips for writing a successful query letter? Read below!
What is a query and why is it important?
The query is a one-page, single-space letter to an agent that succinctly lays out your book idea and explains why you are the best person to write it. The purpose is to intrigue agents enough so they ask to read your manuscript. In addition to showing the agent that you have a compelling story, the query should make it clear that there’s an audience for this book right now.
What should I include in my query letter?
Every query should include this basic information:
The book’s title
Genre (i.e. memoir, autobiographical novel, etc.)
Word count (generally, a good word count for a memoir is between 60K and 90K words)
The Opening Paragraph:
Begin the query the way you would any other letter – with a greeting, like “Dear Maggie,…” Then, use the first paragraph to hook the agent and compel them to keep reading. Some writers start their queries with a more traditional synthesis of the key themes and plot points of their book. However, I find that the most effective query letters begin in a way that showcases the writer’s writing abilities, and/or the timeliness of their story. Adding a bit more texture and style to an opening paragraph is a great way to pique the interest of an agent—it makes your query stand out, and also provides them with a taste of your voice and style.
Possible ways to begin:
Start with a mini-scene from your manuscript.
Mention a personal connection you have to the agent, if applicable. For instance, “We met at last year’s Muse and The Marketplace Conference…”
Provide a dramatic set-up for the book. For instance, “When I was a child, my parents told me the story of how I was born in a New York City hospital. Thirty years later, I would discover that was a lie.”
Show off your writing chops and distinct voice with a memorable opening image.
The Middle Paragraph(s):
The body of the query letter (typically one or two short paragraphs) should articulate what the book is about and what the larger arc of the story is. In crafting this content, think about the following:
What does the character (in the case of memoir, the character of “you”) want?
What’s in the way of the character getting what they want?
What does the character do to try and get what they want?
What does the character know / understand by the end that they didn’t at the beginning?
You don’t want to rehash every single plot point in the query – instead, stick with the 2-3 most pivotal plot points. What’s more important is to give the agent a sense for the overarching journey the character embarks on in the story. For memoir, it’s also critical to highlight what the “so what” is for the reader. How does your personal journey connect to universal themes that will resonate with other readers? What would compel a reader to pick up this book right now?
Note: If there are any unique structural and/or voice-related elements of your manuscript, you should mention those in the query as well.
The Closing Paragraph:
This is where you tell agents why you are the best person to write this book. Establish your credentials by mentioning any writing-related honors you’ve received, prior publications (i.e. personal essays, etc.), and professional experience that relates to the topic of your manuscript.
You should also mention “comparable titles” to your own book (usually 2-3 of them), meaning other published books in the same genre that would have a similar audience. For instance, if you’re writing a detective-style memoir, you might use other memoirs written in that style. Generally speaking, it’s best if those titles are from the past 5 years – this shows that there’s a current market for books like yours. For pointers on how to find comparable titles, check out this article.
You might also consider mentioning titles this agent has represented that are similar to your own book. For instance, if you notice the agent has represented many medical memoirs and yours falls into that genre, you could say something like: “I am impressed by your dedication to medical memoirs like XYZ, and feel my own would be a good contribution to that list.”
End the letter by thanking the agent for their time, and be sure to include contact information beneath your name (i.e. email and phone number).
Writing a query letter can feel daunting, but know that you’re not alone in this process. There are many resources for how to write strong queries – check out this article for common pitfalls of memoir queries, and click here for examples of winning query letters.
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