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There are more than three.

It’s been quite the learning curve for me since I decided to take my writing to a higher level in April 2023 and began querying literary agents for the first manuscript of my Ashes trilogy. I did no research and very little casual reading about what was required to query an agent properly, so I made many mistakes—more than three. But in today’s post, I will present the three most important things I wish I’d known before sending query letters to agents in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

1.     I wish I’d known to research and select the literary agents I would query carefully.

The extent of my research into literary agents, before I sent out my first fifty or so letters, was whether they considered religious/inspirational stories. I Googled “Christian Literary Agents.” If a name came up on that list, that was the extent of research that I did. It wasn’t until I started getting immediate rejections one after another that I looked up how to query agents and learned quickly that it was essential to research each agent carefully to ascertain whether they represented my story genre.

Agents are like readers—they have genres and themes they feel more comfortable representing to publishers than others. If they don’t feel comfortable representing your genre, it doesn’t matter how good your story is for that genre; they will usually give it a pass. And agents don’t usually have time to explain why they rejected your query. Some are considerate enough to send you a form letter explaining that your manuscript wasn’t a good fit for them and that they must pass, but they wish you luck. Many others don’t reply.

Now I know to go to the agent’s profile on the agency's website and read about them, their credentials, and their preferences for the books and authors they are comfortable representing before I willy-nilly send them a letter. It doesn’t guarantee they will respond positively, but it considerably increases my odds of success. There are specialized search engines like QueryTracker that are useful for finding agents, but it’s still up to you to do your due diligence and go to their profiles and read about them. Do your homework.

2.     I wish I’d known most agents won’t look at you unless you have a significant author’s platform with high traffic.

I admit that this aspect of the traditional publishing process leaves me with a bitter taste. Because the publishing industry, like any other, exists to make a profit, they don’t like to take financial risks on people who are “unknowns.” Suppose you haven’t successfully published and sold many books or have a large platform with tens of thousands of followers on social media and your email newsletter subscription list. In that case, they don’t want to risk buying your manuscripts. Reputable literary agents don’t make money unless they sell your manuscript to a publisher and make you make money. That being the case, literary agents are highly picky, and if you can’t prove you have a large fan base already established and chomping at the bit to buy your next book, they are not likely to take you on as a client. If they can’t guarantee a publishing company that your books will sell right off the bat, there’s not enough incentive for them to accept your manuscript. It’s simple economics in our capitalist system: supply and demand.

This is where I am stuck in my efforts to obtain representation. As hard as I have been working to expand my social media presence, develop my blog, and promote my email newsletter subscription, I haven’t had much success. My analytics are not impressive—certainly not high enough to impress a literary agent. I will continue to work at increasing my numbers, but it’s a slow process and quite discouraging. If you want to help me in this process, sign up for my newsletter by filling out the form following this post. It will help me out a lot!

3.     I wish I’d adequately edited my manuscript—developmentally and copyedited—before sending samples to literary agents.

I sent my manuscript to a professional editor for copyediting and paid a fair but considerable fee for the service. As far as I can tell, she did an excellent job, but the problem is that I didn’t have my manuscript developmentally edited before I sent it for copy editing. There is a big difference between these two types of editing. I strongly recommend that anyone with a completed manuscript do both by a professional before submitting a story to an agent. I didn’t do that with my manuscript the first time I submitted it, and I wish I had. Yes, it is an extra cost, but the time and disappointment it will save you in the long run is worth it.

So, what are developmental and copyediting? Developmental editing is defined by Scott Norton, reprinted by the University of Chicago Press, as “intervention that moves content from one chapter to another or rearranges the lion’s share of a chapter’s contents within itself, but that falls short of writing new material (Norton, 2009). In other words, in this form of editing, the book is examined for precise focus and logic of that content. It ensures that your writing will resonate with your target audience and that your plot, characters, and theme are consistent. It’s editing the big picture.

On the other hand, copyediting follows developmental editing. It is the final editing stage before a manuscript is proofread and formatted for typesetting. The material is revised to improve its readability and to correct grammatical and spelling errors.

A professional should do both editing forms before you submit your manuscript to an agent. I wish I’d known that before, but I won’t repeat the same mistake.

Other things I wish I’d known…

There are a few more things I wish I’d been aware of before querying agents. These include:

·      Address your query letter or proposal to a specific agent. Don’t simply send it to an agency—research and select an agent from that agency.

·      When addressing the agent in your letter, use their name. Don’t use “Dear Sir/Madam” or “To Whom It May Concern.” It’s disrespectful and shows that you didn’t do your due diligence. Agents are people and deserve to be treated with respect.

·      Don’t brag about how incredible your story is in your query letter. It’s alright to promote yourself but allow the strength and quality of your story concept and manuscript sample to impress them. Related to this, don’t mention that writing is just your hobby. Agents want to feel assured that you are serious about your work and writing as a career. They’re not interested in representing “hobbyists.”

·      Be clear and concise in your letter. Don’t be vague about the essential facts of your book. Ensure the plot is straightforward, your genre is stated, and you understand your target audience. Don’t forget to include a word count. If the agent in their submission requirements says they only want the first five pages of your manuscript submitted with your letter, then only send the first five pages. Follow the submission instructions of each agent wholly and carefully.

Now that I have learned my lessons the hard way, I plan to do better in my next attempt at querying agents for my revised and edited manuscript. I hope what I’ve posted today saves you wasted time and effort and helps you find success in landing a deal with a literary agent.

Thank you so much for reading this post and visiting my blog. Please sign up for my newsletter for a monthly update about the website and blog and exclusive access to the material on my Subscriber Content page at www.paulinejgrabia.com. I am honored that you have taken time out of your day to read what I have to offer, and I will endeavor to continue to post blogs that are worthy of your continued attention. May God bless you richly.

Pauline J. Grabia

Works Cited

Norton, S. (2009). The Introduction to Developmental Editing: A Handbook for Freelancers, Authors, and Publishers. Retrieved from University of Chicago Press: press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/595146.html#:~:text=At%20the%20University%20of%20California,short%20of%20writing%20new%20material.

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