Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 10: MG Contemporary: This pitch doesn’t include a strong enough hook. It’s a story about friendship and growing up—but it seems too quiet for me. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 9: Adult “Cross-Genre”. I’d instead suggest the author categorize this as “Sci-fi with romantic elements”. The pages didn't quite do it for me -- they're good, but they don't feel unputdownable for me personally. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 8: YA Sci-fi: This was a strong query, but the beginning feels a touch overwritten without grounding the reader in the character's POV, so it feels a little slow to start. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 7: MG Adventure: The query is written in bullet-form, rather than in narrative, making it choppy and abrupt, rather than intriguing. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 6: YA Fantasy: The details in this contemporary fantasy aren’t meshing seamlessly enough to make me want to invest myself further in the characters or the world—there’s just too many things going on. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 5: YA Historical Mystery. There are bits and pieces of this query that are enticing and make me want to read more—but I don’t feel like I have a true grasp on what the story is really about. There were logic holes that also made me question the story's flow. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 4: YA Sci-fi. This pitch is super long and I'm having trouble finding its focus! Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 3: MG Fantasy. While I love the idea behind the main plot line of this story, I had difficulty connecting to the voice in the pages. It didn’t feel as solidly MG as I am looking for. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 2: YA Fantasy. After reading the pitch, I felt like perhaps this story had been misclassified as YA—it felt much more adult to me. I also found the first pages to be a bit overwritten. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 1: Adult Thriller. Though this was a well-written query, it sounded very familiar, both in terms of content and character motivation. I worry that this manuscript doesn't quite stand apart from the pack enough for me personally. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 10: YA comedy/thriller. While I like the idea of a funny thriller, I found that the humor wasn't landing for me personally. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 9: Adult Historical Fiction: Once again, I was intrigued by the pitch, but when I got to the pages, I felt like the entire story was being told to me, rather than showing me details that would allow me to connect to the story in my own way. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 7: MG Supernatural. While the writing in this query was good, I found the pacing in the first chapter was a little frantic, rushing through events so quickly I couldn't root myself in the narrator's POV or world well enough.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 6: YA Horror. The plot of this query piqued my interest, but the voice didn't quite get me -- a snarky teen whose tendency toward sarcasm feels a little harsh to the secondary characters. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 5: YA Fantasy. The first pages of this manuscript are well-written, but not particularly exciting. It’s too internal, preventing the reader from beginning to engage with the plot or the characters. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 4: YA Fantasy. We’re given the hook right away—but there’s no explanation about what that hook will mean for the characters. It's a solid premise, but I almost wonder if the story is told from the wrong character's POV? Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 3: YA Contemporary. The beginning pages of this manuscript focus on too many specific details that don't feel particularly important, making the pacing feel very slow right away. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 2: Adult Literary Fiction. This query doesn’t follow my guidelines (it includes an attachment rather than pasting pages in the body of the email) & it also hints at many vague plot details -- I'd need more specifics to get excited. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 1: YA. No genre is given, but the description says speculative. The voice in the query is inviting and clear, and the author bio stood out as rather endearing, but the plot felt a little quiet for me. Pass.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

#tenqueries 10: Adult Psychological Fiction. I like what this story promises on an emotional level, but it’s very long and literary, and the pacing in the first chapter feels slow. I'm definitely a plot person. Pass.