This week I wanted to go over some resources that I have used while navigating the vast ocean that is Traditional Publishing.
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When I first finished writing my novel, I had no idea of where to go to get it published by a publishing house. I looked up publishing houses that I was familiar with, and quickly realized, I needed to get an agent. Then came the next conundrum, how do I get an agent?
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Unless something drastically changes by the time I finish writing this, you're going to need to know how to write a query in order to land an agent (and maybe a synopsis). For me, this is the HARDEST part. Writing a 300 page novel? No problem! Write a 250 word synopsis of that novel? Help!!!!
I am definitely not a query master, but I have learned a lot over the past year and a half that I have found to be very helpful, and I wanted to share. So first, the basic things the query letter must address of your story.
Who is the protagonist?
What do they want/need?
What will happen if they get it?
What will happen if they don't get it?
Stakes, Stakes, Stakes! (You'll hear this a lot!)
Don't forget to include the Comp titles, (usually within 5-7 years) and your total word count. (Word count is something to keep in mind for your genre. Look up general word counts for your genre, and try to stay within. Too far over or under could be a rejection).
Here are some resources where I learned most of my query writing.
Query Shark:
This website was created by Agent Janet Reid. It helped me to understand the basic format of a query letter, and what you shouldn't do when writing a letter to an agent. Query shark takes submissions from querying authors, and reviews them publicly. You can see what does and doesn't work in a query, and apply it to your own writing.
Read the archives! Seriously, read everything. Yes it's a lot, but it will definitely enlighten you on the query format.
Eric Smith Rocks:
Just as the headline says, Eric Smith rocks! Another Agent, also author of YA romance, that does his best to help new writers with traditional publishing. He has lots of resources on his website for querying authors. He also has query letters that were submitted to him that made him want to take on those stories. I found these to be very helpful in formatting my query, and expressing what my book is about. (He's also a really cool dude, and I really suggest that you follow him on Twitter @EricSmithRocks).
Which leads to my next subject...
Twitter:
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Twitter has been my most helpful resource. So much of the writing community is on Twitter. There are also a large amount of pitch contests through out the year, and writing competitions that can help your writing (even queries) improve.
If you need to find the writing community on Twitter, you need only use the hashtag #WritingCommunity. You can post questions, or ask for help. All of my current Critique Partners I have found through Twitter, and they have been the best help.
Get a community of fellow writers that can help improve your writing, and also be with you for all the ups and downs of querying. Don't forget to also use the hashtag #amquerying to find other writers also querying, and in the trenches with you. The support of the community will help you.
Synopsis:
Some agents ask for a one page synopsis of your story, that includes all the secret plot twists of your story. It helps them get an idea of your whole story before they ask for your full manuscript. I found this to be just as hard as writing the query. However this resource from Pubcrawl, is a big help.
It breaks down writing a synopsis into a worksheet, that I found really helpful to express the whole plot of your novel. It gets you to leave out all the little extra bits that are fun in the story, but not important to the main plot. Applying some of the same tips can also help with reducing word count in your query if you tend to be a bit wordy...like me, lol.
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I hope you find these resources helpful as you start querying your novel. Next time I will write about resources I use with finding agents, and tracking the queries that I have already sent out.
You can follow my query adventures on my various social media accounts below. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions, or if you are looking for a second pair of eyes on a query. I'm always willing to help.
Querying is hard, but we are in this together. You are not alone!
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