Cosigned. But I do like to know that work has happened, since I like having the full picture. #querytip

#Writers, always be sure to check the agent's website before following directions from a magazine or interview. Their profile will always have the most up-to-date submission instructions. #amquerying #querytip #amediting #amwriting

I was up late reading queries and kept seeing the same problem: “walls” of dialogue. It’s OK to start a story with dialogue but it better be purposeful. Otherwise after two plus pages of nothing but aimless conversation, I lose interest. #revisiontip #querytip

#querytip: if an agent doesn't represent a certain genre, don't send the book, not even with an apologetic first line, as in "I know you don't represent [X] but..."

This whole thread, but mostly this. Read the damn instructions. #querytip

A heads up: I will be closed to unsolicited submissions starting on 2/12 and reopening in the spring. #agenttip #querytip

Typo for the day: Dust mites or Dust motes? #amwriting #amediting #amquerying #querytip

mites - insects like lice

motes - specks or particles

Great thread from the amazing @KateBrauning on why some agents/editors give feedback and some don't/can't! #amquerying #querytip #amwriting #amediting

Guys, if you can't put my name your query letter, which is a business letter after all, or you address it to Dear Sir or Madam, I, and every agent out there, will delete without reading it. It's that simple! #helpyourselves #querytip

#querytip(s) from my client ❤️

The most accurate submission guidelines are on an agency/agent’s website. Other sites are more likely to be outdated, plus from the horse’s mouth and all. Submission guidelines are the first gatekeepers - the first test. Don’t fail because of laziness. #querytip #Research

A millennial is not just a person in their 20s/30s. Millennials were born between 1980-2000. They don't exist outside of their time. A 20-something in 1994 is not a millennial, for example. (I'm a millennial and I was 6 in 1994, FYI.) #querytip #lifetip

Note to writers: If you ever have a line of dialogue that is simply "Yeah"—DELETE IT. Useless words that are often portrayed with body language or considered rhetorical anyway. #amediting #amwriting #querytip #amquerying

#Writers, STOP PITCHING TO AGENTS ON TWITTER. I get you want to gauge their interest, but you need to query through the appropriate channels. This is not a place to cheat the line. We post likes and dislikes, but do not reject and accept your novel. #querytip #amquerying

How to Achieve Perfect Pitch, a new blog post series from @ericsmithrocks where he shares client query letters & explains why they hooked him! #querytip

So much this! I pass on queries and then see them come back in WITHIN MINUTES to another agent. Give yourself an opportunity to fix and strategize. #querytip

#QueryTip Seven is a good number for a submission round to test the draft + gather information. If it works, great! If not, there are many more fish in the agent sea. Revise your manuscript/pitch/strategy and try again. #amquerying

#QueryTip Send queries in rounds, a handful of agents at a time. If those agents pass or you don't hear back, give yourself time between each round to rethink your strategy/pitch, revise, etc. Then try again. Revision is magical! #DontGiveUp #amquerying

Novellas are hard. Often when I'm reading queries, I latch onto an idea ("I love this!") -- then see a length of 35K words or less and falter. If you've got a great concept, it's always worth exploring whether or not there's a full novel there. #amquerying #querytip

Please don't start your query letter with "Dear Agent". It looks like you did 0 research on what I'm looking for. #querytip