Starting with dialogue - #querytip
Ask yourself if it passes the "coffee shop" test - meaning, if this is something someone said in a crowded coffee shop would it make you stop and listen?
If it doesn't, don't start with it.
Examples below...

Writers, when you inform an agent you have an offer of rep/publication it's really helpful if you reply over your original query. That way, everything is in one place. #querytip

Here is the EXCLUSIVE and DEFINITIVE list of questions to ask agents when you talk to them on the phone about representation.

katemckean.substack.com/p/questions-to…

j/k there is no list but this is about why

#amquerying #writingcommunity #amwriting #pubtip

You worked super hard to polish your manuscript and be query ready! Don't let that hard work slip away by not following submission guidelines 😁

#querytip #query #amwriting #amediting #hardworkpaysoff #Hardwork #WIP #YA #MG #PB

Talking Down About Others & Yourself: Three Surprising Query Letter Mistakes by @ericsmithrocks bit.ly/2MPYka6 via @PubCrawlBlog #querytip #pubtip

Saturday AM #pubtip: if you’re an author looking for rep and you read an agent bio that says the person “has worked with” extremely famous authors at previous jobs, be sure to ask them, “does that mean you actually repped them?” But not for the reason you think!

Apparently this needs boosting. #evergreen #querytip

So much this....but also don’t write your book about 20 year olds and tell me it’s young adult, know what makes a book YA or adult, have reasons for your protagonists being the age they are, know your genres and age groups. #querytip

Please stop calling your projects New Adult, I beg you! I wish New Adult took off, but it didn't. And so now, it's not a marketable genre to publishers. If you pitch to me as NA, I will be more likely to reject. Try to stick to Adult or YA with crossover potential. #querytip

Reminder to nonfiction authors, don't forget to put your platform in your proposal. If I ask for one, I already like the premise, but now I need to see the business plan. There are great resources out there on writing proposals, so be sure to do your research! #querytip

I know there are people behind those manuscripts who worked their butts off and I want you to know that you are great. Keep trying. #amquerying #querytip #amwriting #amagenting 2/2

On Sale Date: the big day! The one that matters to authors/readers. The actual day the book is live and available to purchase! 🥳 🥂

This is the date the public thinks of as "pub date" or "release date" etc, but in-house we call it "on sale date" to be crystal clear.

#pubtip

Release Date: somewhat ambiguous but essentially the day books can be "released" from the warehouse and shipped to stores and/or the day digital files are sent to online distributors/retailers.

I think. It's behind the scenes stuff. *shrug*

#pubtip

Pub Date: a general publication MONTH.

Ex: we call it a "February pub" and the date is 2/1/20. You may see 2/20 on an ARC etc. This is how we organize titles for our seasonal schedules. It is not the actual day a book is on sale. It's often not a Tuesday!

Confusing! #pubtip

#PSA to the book world! Some publishers (like HarperCollins) have 3 key terms & dates re: the publication of a book.

Pub Date. Release Date. On Sale Date.

The public uses them interchangeably but they mean different things to us. A random (but useful?) thread! #pubtip

Here is a #pubtip I wish those of us who write and sell nonfiction were better at communicating--to ourselves, to others, and especially to new authors:

Quality nonfiction does not develop on an assembly line. It develops organically and ambiguously, in lurches and recursions.

When I teach query letter workshops I like to encourage writers to take a moment, right before they nervously click send on their email, to imagine that the agent they’re querying is sitting on a couch in sweats with a cat curled up on their lap. #querytip

There are obviously some exceptions to that last one. They should not be so long that we can't remember them! They should not have subtitles unless they are nonfiction. Look at current popular titles in your genre and try to emulate the style. #querytip

Please indicate whether you're querying with a fiction or nonfiction project. It's not always obvious. Thank you. #pubtip #amquerying

How To Research Literary Agents youtu.be/8PxmWYq8w1Q via @YouTube #querytip #pubtip #writetip