#WritingCommunity
Did you use a filtering verb in your opening (see, hear, feel, watch, smell)?
Eliminate it & bring your POV closer:

#querytip

Spoiler alert: if I request a full manuscript from you, I'm going to send you an immediate follow up asking for your goals and what you're looking for in an agent. You should REALLY know the answers to these questions before you start querying! #QueryTip #WritingCommunity

#WritingCommunity, the average length of time from acquisition of a book to pub is 18 months. Most agents take a few months to consider queries. If your concept is time-sensitive, you need to bear in mind that trad pub is a 2 year+ process for a new author. #QueryTip

Always write a query letter. #querytip

Thinking of submitting to me when I open to #queries again soon? Read some of my authors' work to see what I like. @AuthorWren It's a Wonderful Lie comes out 12/9 and you can pre-order now. @LeslieSulliRose Pink Guitars and Falling Stars comes out 1/6! #querytip #asktheeditor

Almost every time I edit a MS for an emerging author, I have to address problems in the balance of narrative, action, and dialogue. This isn't a dealbreaker for me, since it's an easy lesson to learn for most authors - but something to revise for! #QueryTip

Hey all! I got a TON of queries when I reopened, so I am closing until Jan 1. I don't send rejections in Dec, so I'll be going through and taking notes so I can get everything done first thing of 2022. ❤️
#amagenting #querytip #amquerying #writingcommunity

Your friendly reminder that your story likely does NOT need to start with your character waking up.
Consider finding a more interesting dropping in point.
#querytip #amwriting #writingadvice

Note to #NaNoWriMo21 writers: please don't query it yet. EDIT AND GET BETA READERS AND EDIT AGAIN!

I'd really love to not have first drafts in my inbox tomorrow ❤️
#WritingCommunity #amquerying #querytip

something cropping up in recent queries is a whole slew of comp titles (like, 5-10 in some cases). A comp is so good and useful, but more than three (IMO) tends to muddy the waters and make it seem like the book is trying to be everything rather than what it is #querytip

#querytip 1) Please don’t send me an email without the proper submission materials that are listed on my agency’s guidelines (query, synopsis, chapters in email’s body, etc). It shows me you actually did your research & that tells me so much about your character with just that.

Writers, if you contact me saying you've got an offer and then give me ten days to review your manuscript, I am passing.

Even WITHOUT a holiday smack dab in the midst of those ten days, it's not enough time to completely redo my schedule to fit you in
#querytip #amquerying

In case I haven't screamed it lately, #amwriting family:

• The Emotion Thesaurus by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi
• Craft In The Real World by Matthew Salesses
• Story Genius by Lisa Cron

Are all powerful writing tools for your toolkit!
#writetip #querytip #NaNoWriMo21

"OK but what's the hook?" is something you should ask yourself with every single manuscript. A summary is not a hook. Emotions are not a hook. #querytip #writetip #WritingCommunity

PSA: Dears, You don't need to tell me your protagonist's first and last name in the very first paragraph. You have no idea how many submissions start like that. #writetip #querytip #WritingCommunity

A query letter shouldn't tell me things I already know, like that you're seeking representation (I know, lol), or quote lines from my wishlist. Instead, tell me what's intriguing about your project. Show your enthusiasm. Explain what will resonate with readers and me. #querytip

...and that's all I have time for today! I hope that this insight is helpful to some of you as you prepare your queries for 2022! #QueryTip - a lot of folks are SWAMPED from now until the end of the year - hold off on sending your new queries until January!!

Effusive praise in a query just sets my teeth on edge. Actually almost any praise in a query sets my teeth on edge.

A query is not about me.
It's about your book.

Tell me about the book; not how fabu I am (I already know that)
#querytip

Please don't think professional editing is mandatory! If you can afford it, great. If not, we DO NOT expect you to go broke for it! Being able to hire a freelance editor is a privilege not a necessity
#amquerying #querytip

I know everyone is excited about nanowrimo and stuff, but it’s really not a good time to query with any agent. It’s the end of the year, most agents are triple busy and don’t have time to read any submissions. #querytip