The Promises Made in Queries
- By: Jessica Faust | Date: Jul 10 2018
Recently one of our agents received very high praise from an editor when she said, “submissions aren’t usually as great as the pitch, but in this case it was!” And that, dear reader, is querying in a nutshell.
When agents read queries we are looking for great pitches and when we are reading submissions we are hoping and praying that the book lives up to the pitch. That doesn’t mean writing a mediocre pitch is the better plan. Mediocre pitches won’t get requests. What it means, is that if most submissions don’t live up to the promise of the pitch then, in our experience, the pitches that don’t promise anything will likely lead to submissions that promise far less than we are looking to represent.
There truly is a method and experience to this querying madness.
Is that usually how it works – the query pitch is better than the submission? Or is it possible that fabulous work is missed because the query pitch was meh?
Jessica … I have a GREAT BOOK! That’s what my test readers say; that’s what my family says; that’s what I SAY! A dozen well-respected agents have given my pitch the bounce. Is it one strike and I’m out? If I up my game with a new strategy, will you see if I can bunt?
Signed,
UNBIASED IN BC