Query Roundup 10/5

As of 2:35 pm, I've answered all my queries.

There were 166 queries in my inbox today.

Of those, I requested 1 manuscript.
A self published YA paranormal trilogy that I considered pre self publishing as well. The author has had success and wants an agent to help with her career.

I regretfully passed on 1 manuscript.
A really unique sounding fairytale retelling in a steampunk world. I'm still thinking about it. Someone will snatch it up--it's just not for me since I have a few fairytale retellings or original fairytales on my list. ***
-- This query stood out though and even though I didn't request it that's what you want. For your query to stand out.

This is where I'm going to encourage that if you're a querying writer, read a lot of queries. The more you read them the more you'll recognize what works and what doesn't. Read the queries on Queryshark, talk to other querying writers, see if authors who have recently sold their work have their query online (like this one).

***update***
To answer Lexa's question in the comments:

Thanks as always for the insights on the inner working of the agent's world. Interesting that you'd pass on something because you already rep someone whose works resemble it. Perhaps it's because those works haven't sold? It's something that never occurred to me.

Agents and editors never want too much of the same thing on their lists. Otherwise they compete with each other. Granted I can have more than one paranormal or urban fantasy series, but I try to acquire things that are different. So I have on my list Personal Demons (angels and demons), Valkyrie Rising (Norse Mythology), Anew and Awry (immortals and a take on a famous legend) and The Nightmare Affair (everything, but the main character is a nightmare). This works for me, but I wouldn't want to have four angel and demon books. I also probably shouldn't have a list full of paranormal YA.

Fairytales, original and retellings, have had a surge in popularity. On my list I have two that have come out, two that have been sold, one that a client is working on. It's already a solid list. So to take on another fairytale it would need to be very stand out and unique, but it would also need to be different than what I already have.

This is important because an agent's work doesn't end after the sale. There's a lot of work that goes into getting that book from sale to publication and then their publicity and the author's career after that debut novel.