Q6: YA, word count is 37,000 words. That's even short for a middle grade. #tenqueries

Q5: Adult noir thriller; nothing that really intrigued me. It's good, but in a saturated genre, your ms has to be GREAT #tenqueries

Q4: Boy MG adventure, opened with protagonist getting woken up by mom - the MG equivalent of "it was a dark and stormy night" #tenqueries

Q3: YA paranormal thriller about demons. If your MS is about demons, consider finding another word for "demon." Its a red flag #tenqueries

Q2: Picture book. I don't do picture books. Make sure you do your research before submitting. #tenqueries

Q1: YA about a young Hollywood starlet who gets caught up in a scandal. Writing isn't bad, but I'm seeing a lot of these

Of those 20,000-ish queries in 2014, close to half are wrong-genre, so you're not really competing with all that! #10queriesIn10tweets

So far in 2014 I've read just shy of 20,000 queries (up from 2013) and 256 partials. #10queriesIn10tweets

I've not signed any new clients in 2014 (yet!) but I am actively acquiring! #10queriesIn10tweets

#10 = YA fantasy. Darn! I wanted one accept this week. Sadly no - the story and world feel too generic. PASS #10queriesIn10tweets

#9 = contemporary New Adult. Interesting setup but the writing isn't quite strong enough to convince me. PASS #10queriesIn10tweets

#8 = science fiction. Query goes in depth about the themes presented. No mention of the plot though. PASS #10queriesIn10tweets

#7 = YA fantasy. Query doesn't include a pitch, just character descriptions and title. PASS #10queriesIn10tweets

#6 = paranormal romance. Interesting and compelling world building, but not enough spark with the characters. PASS #10queriesIn10tweets

An example = original query letter for FALLS THE SHADOW by @stefaniegaither (Sept 2014, S&S): writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/g… … #10queriesin10tweets

re. #5 = I call this the "and they have many adventures" mistake in queries. Make your query specific in its pitch! #10queriesIn10tweets

#5 = YA science fiction. World building feels confusing and characters aren't portrayed with a specific goal. PASS #10queriesIn10tweets

#4 = fantasy. Interesting world but query fails to introduce any characters - just talks about magic & backstory. PASS #10queriesIn10tweets

#3 = contemporary romance. Heroine's conflict doesn't feel compelling or engaging to me. PASS #10queriesIn10tweets

#2 = YA science fiction. Basic grammar problems and the pitch feels weak. PASS #10queriesIn10tweets