Query Roundup

As of 5:22 pm (I know I was slow today!), Friday, July 13th, I'm caught up on queries. That means I have gotten the query inbox down to 0. If you queried me this week and didn't get a response, double check the submission guidelines and send off the query again.

(And remember to query the New Leaf query address).

This week there were 273 queries in my inbox!

Of those...

I got 6 bouncebacks saying my email wasn't accepted by the domain. (If you have an author site and your email goes through your site, make sure you can get your emails!)

The most common genre this week--This week felt like a mish-mash. Still a lot of fantasy and sci fi, but it was a good mix of adult, YA, and middle grade.

Why I rejected most queries--I'm not grabbed
Like the past few weeks, most of my rejections stem from not feeling grabbed. This doesn't mean it's bad, just that nothing stands out or really jumps out and says UNIQUE! 


But I also got a lot of queries this week that had really strange beginnings to them--a few times I wasn't even sure if it was a query and then a few other times it was just pages, no explanation. Remember you want to start with who your character is and what your book is about. Try to save personal stuff about yourself for the end of the query, and things like your inspiration and your passion for marketing yourself, that can wait until after the work has been requested. (Like, I probably don't need to know your age). Similarly, while the former English teacher in me is a big fan of theme, I don't need to know that in your query. The plot is much more important to me.

The beginning of your query is so important, because if I'm reading 273 queries on a Friday, you want to hook me not lose me.

Queries I regrettably passed on--2


YA Mythology--really cool query with personality in it and good pages, but...just not really my thing. * Passing on projects like this one are tough for me. It seems good--it could be great!--but based on the premise it's just not what I would pull off the shelf and in the end the writer should have an agent who feels differently.
MG/YA Fantasy--Really good writing in the pages, but it feels a little too much like too many stories I've already read. And it seemed to fall in between age groups.

Manuscripts I requested--5


YA Horror--intriguing premise in the query. KILLER pages. Sounds like just what I'm looking for.
Adult Women's Fiction--Fantastic query, high concept, and then excellent pages. Very exciting!
YA Literary Retelling--Standout writing, really interesting premise.
Adult Historical/Paranormal Romance--interesting concept, really intrigued by the writing.
YA Thriller--Great query, great concept, great pages. Win!

One More Parting Note


If you have a picture attached to your gmail account, make sure it's a picture you'd want an agent to see. All of my emails (and queries) are routed through google business which means if someone has google+ or a email picture, I see it when I read their query. I can't say I've every passed on something because of a picture, of course. But I've been awfully distracted by a few of the...more interesting? ones.