Patricia Nelson

I'd like to motion that we officially ban Comic Sans from all professional emails. Okay? Can we agree on that for the good of all? #querytip

Real talk, guys: a query that claims "my book isn't like ANY other book out there" tells me that you likely don't read very much. #querytip

I so appreciate it when a query links the author's twitter handle/website. Makes it easy for me to find out more if I'm intrigued! #querytip

I periodically get queries that include a long explanation of why the person's prev. agent sucked. Eek. Seriously, DON'T DO THIS. #querytip

#querytip Don't undermine yourself: always better to omit a bio paragraph than to say something like "I have no experience as an author."

And if you're persistent & talented, you'll hit on the right timing eventually. #fridaythoughts #querytip

If your query starts with "I have a book that's 85% done," STOP right there. Don't send. You're not ready yet. Write the last 15%! #querytip

That said, I reply to all queries! If you haven't heard back from me four weeks after querying me, it's always okay to follow up. #querytip

Today's #querytip: put your book's title in yr query's subject line. I get tons of emails just titled "Query"; easy to skip one by accident.

Always start your query w/ character. Give me a person to care about. When queries start w/ worldbuilding, I feel lost & tune out. #querytip

I see many YA queries that comp to classics: WRINKLE IN TIME, etc. Great bks, but YA has changed since then. Newer comps = better. #querytip

Even if you have multiple mss ready, it's always better to pick just ONE to query to any given agent. Otherwise I get overwhelmed! #querytip

Starting your query w/ "my book is way better than all the other garbage currently published" = still maybe not the best strategy. #querytip