Query Letters
by S.D. Yorston

Aside from proper manuscript format, the query letter is perhaps the most important item in submitting a piece to an editor. This is the face the editor is going to see when the envelope is opened (drum roll, please).

Now, there is a difference between a query letter and a cover letter. The query letter comes first (or should) even before you submit a manuscript to an editor. The query letter is part of the eternal slogging through the latest edition of the Writers Market, looking for places to sell your work. It is a staple of the writing career and should be mastered with the same vigor you used when mastering English. Well, slightly more.

Cover letters are sent with a manuscript (similar to a proposal, which we'll get into in bit). Like a query letter, they sell the manuscript you've sent and provide basic information about yourself. Unlike a query letter, they accompany the manuscript and will differ slightly in tone and function. Where a query letter is asking if an editor is interested in material he or she hasn't seen, a cover letter introduces them to material at hand.

A query letter is a letter to a magazine or publisher where you hope to place a manuscript. If you are just approaching the market, you're more than likely asking for guides and perhaps a sample issue of the magazine or a book catalogue of titles. If you're beyond the tentative "getting to know you" stage and are ready to swing into full seduction mode, then your query letter is going to pitch an idea to the editor and hopefully land you a request for the article or manuscript you're shopping.

There are a few things that a query letter should be. Concise tops the list. A query letter should be that: a letter. Not a ten-page "Catching up with Grandma" essay, a one-page letter that asks for specific information or relates specific information. For a simple query for guidelines, a sample issue, or book catalogue, a single paragraph will suffice. You don't need to introduce yourself, relate events from your childhood, or even ask how the editor feels today. You will need to include a SASE (or envelope with an IRC if you're querying an international market). If you're purchasing a sample issue or if there's a charge for the book catalogue, send a money order or cheque as well. You generally do not have to include an envelope for the sample issue or catalogue.

Once you're beyond the simple stuff and are ready to start pitching woo, a query letter will include a brief —no more than a paragraph—pitch of the idea. Follow it up with another paragraph stating the proposed length of the piece, the slant you'll use to make your work stand out from the rest, and any other information relevant to how you'll be covering the topic. Your third paragraph will close the letter by mentioning your experience with the topic and your publishing credits in that market. If you've not published in this market, don't mention it.

A query letter for a book proposal is much the same as one for an article in a magazine. You'll need to hook the editor from the start and mention any publishing credits you have in that market. A book query also includes a synopsis of the book. Synopses are a whole other breed of beast that take time to master. Some well established authors need little more than a few paragraphs to sell an editor on a proposal. Those less experienced and established authors need to get the editor's attention then hold it long enough to show that the book is well written and will sell. A synopsis for a novel is a chapter-by-chapter outline of the book and can run up to 30 pages in length, depending on the complexity of the plot and the number of characters you've got. A synopsis should be as brief as you can safely make it, but not so brief as to be obtuse. Name all your characters and explain the important plot points. You'll also be including sample chapters (usually the first three).

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Copyright 2000 S.D. Yorston

About the Author:
Shane Yorston is a science fiction and fantasy writer living in eastern Canada. To date, he's seen print in a few small press magazines in his home country and in the US. He most recently appeared in Divine Meat from Idol Press, an anthology of erotic mythology (ISBN: 0-352-33587-4, Published June 2001, Virgin Publishing).

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