Peter Knapp

#tenqueries 7: MG Adventure. The author does not sign his or her name to this query, and only spends three sentences actually pitching the book. The bulk of the query should focus getting an agent to want to read your pages, not your plans for the future. Pass

#tenqueries 6: Adult Fiction. There are no sample pages, no real query, and the author complains that no one will read their books. Pass.

#tenqueries 5: Adult Fiction. The plot of this story seems very quirky, but the query doesn’t really convey anything about the characters – just what happens to them, which may put the MC in a passive role. Pass.

#tenqueries 4: MG Fantasy. The first pages in this query are a bit overwritten, with too much unnecessary detail. As Stephen King wrote, “Description begins in the writer’s imagination, but should finish in the reader’s.” Pass.

#tenqueries 3: YA Fantasy. This query is mislabeled—it’s futuristic and feels like a dystopian (by both description and pages). I also wonder if it can be classified as YA given the protagonists ages (all twenties). Pass.

#tenqueries 2: YA Fantasy. This query doesn’t give enough specifics about what will happen in the story; it deals too much in generalities. Queries should be concise, so if you're using a phrase that could describe any number of books, rethink it. Pass.

#tenqueries 1: YA Contemporary. Though well-structured, the query is lacking in tension. I know what the characters want, but why does it matter? What is at stake for them? Pass.

#tenqueries 10: YA Contemporary. This story is a retelling that’s just a bit too familiar to really stand out amongst its counterparts. It was a close call though—it sounds very sweet, but I wasn’t pulled in by writing enough to overcome the familiarity. Pass.

#tenqueries 9: YA Fantasy. This story is seeking to profit off a successful, existing fantasy franchise without express consent from the author. I would not advise anyone to query a story like this. Pass.

#tenqueries 7: Adult Non-Fiction. Upon reading the first pages, I found the writing style to be very jarring—large paragraphs of narrative and dialogue with no breaks—and there were quite a few distracting typos that stood out. Pass.

#tenqueries 6: YA Contemporary. This query had a bit of a thriller or mystery element to it, but I wasn’t drawn in enough by the pitch to want to know what secrets were hidden within the characters’ lives. Pass.

#tenqueries 5: YA Dystopian. This query is called a fantasy and a dystopian at different points (I'm pretty sure it's just dystopian), and the plot seemed like it was going to be a touch too thin. Pass.

#tenqueries 4: YA Contemporary Fantasy. This book had an awesome title, but the plot felt young as compared to the target audience and tone, which prevented me from feeling intrigued enough to request it. Pass.

#tenqueries 3: Adult Fiction. Three quarters of this query is filled with reasons that the book was written and why the author has begun to query. That’s not necessary at this stage—what book you’ve written should be at the forefront of the query. Pass.

#tenqueries 2.. Adult Fiction. This query is a synopsis of the book, rather than an enticing pitch that leaves me hanging. If I know everything before reading, what’s going to drive me to read until the end? Pass.

#tenqueries 1: YA Fantasy. I really enjoyed the quirky voice in this pitch—it was genuinely funny without being forced. But I wasn’t given sufficient detail about the plot, and the pages were lacking in the same humor. Pass.

Time for an early morning stretch with #tenqueries. A reminder that there's usually not any one reason I pass, so these are representative of a reason that may've contributed to the pass, but in truth it's about how everything came together, and how it resonated with me.

#tenqueries 10: Adult Fiction. The author starts with a long bio (always start with the plot for fiction, I personally feel; I want to hear about your book first and foremost) & after a three-sentence plot pitch, there are no sample pages from the MS. Pass.

#tenqueries 8: MG fantasy. I was intrigued b/c this seemed to be a coming of age story in a fantasy setting, but ultimately it didn't work--the first pages felt slow, and I worry the plot won't take advantage of the cool fantasy world it's set in. Pass

#tenqueries 7: YA Fantasy. Another query where there are a lot of plot threads presented, but it's unclear what is at the center here. What's the central conflict/premise? Pass.