Sharon Belcastro

#tenqueries Q10 Make sure your word count falls within guidelines. Kudos for noting it in the query.

#tenqueries Q9 love to read (at the end of the query of course) how active an author is in the writing industry. Shows great commit to honing their craft and a level of confidence what they've submitted will most likely be quality work.

#tenqueries Q8 I personally wish dystopian would make a comeback. I still like to read it but it's too hard to sell right now. Pains me to pass.

#tenqueries Q7 Make sure the agent actually represents what you are pitching. We don't represent screenplays.

#tenqueries Q6 Make sure genre noted in query is actually the genre you've written. Reading in your genre is critical to knowing what agents, editors and readers expect.

#tenqueries Q5 Short and sweet summary of the story including the protagonist's goal motivation and major conflict. Intriguing! Word count? Check. Genre? Check. Comparable titles. Bonus. Guidelines? First three chapters attached. Will be reading the sample chapter for sure.

#tenqueries Q3 Follow the query guidelines. If agent asks for first three chapters as an attachment, please attach. Don't paste them into email. They may not get read and that could be a lost opportunity for us both.

#tenqueries Q4 Summarize your story in one to two sentences before you launch into a long synopsis. We will be more apt to read on if you can grab us from the go.

#tenqueries Q2 If you're not sure where your story fits before you submit...how do you know it fits. If you don't know your genre, how can you know it's something the agent would want to read.

#tenqueries Q1. Start your query with a sentence or two that lets us know what your story is all about. Don't make the agent read through your life story before you even mention your story. We want to get to know you but we want you to pull us in with a good hook first.