Couple of query letter questions...

1. Most agency websites say to use this heading: QUERY: Book Title

2. You kind of have to look at the response rate. If you send out a batch of ten, and all ten get rejections (or two months go by without a response), it may be the query. If you send out ten more with the same results, it's almost definitely the query.

If you're getting material requests, and then rejections, it may be the writing.

I've seen/read that almost all queries via Email
should have the word 'Query & Submission" in the title
something like, 'Author Query or Author Submission'
Most Agent when you click there web-site link will
tell you how to approach them, . . . query letter only or with
1 or 2 page synopsis, first 10 or 50 pages, or a writing sample.
Few want attachments so you have to put it all
in the body of the Email, it's a pain but you have to
give the agent what they want, before they reject you. : X

Most agent won't tell you why, although I came across
one that was quite helpful (thank you Robert Brown)l,
but its rare.
Normal it's a pretty standard rejection like
"it's not for us", "I'm overwhelmed with clients",
or "it just doesn't fit our agency's needs".

Chaos Titan pretty much answered question 2.

About 1: Yes, the word Query or Submission needs to be in the header because it's almost always requested. Read the submission guidelines. They usually say what to use to avoid spam filters.

James81 said:

Is that the standard rejection?

Click to expand...

Yep. Pretty much.

I think it's really hard to give a generalized reason why things may get rejected, because for every agent it's different. That's why they use the line "not right for me." It encompasses any of the variety of reasons.

Also, sometimes there is no easy answer/reason. I really learned this from participating in Nathan Bransford's Agent for a Day thing. When an agent can only request a limited amount of material, sometimes they can come across a query that is well written, with a story that sounds great, but they simply don't love it enough.

In cases like that, all you can do is just keep querying. Good luck!

Read the Agent's guidelines. Personalize each query...don't just do an email merge with a form letter. And finally, get help with your query BEFORE you send it to Agents. Hard to help after.

Toss you query up in Share Your Work and see if it's the query that's the problem.

* sharpens red pencil of doom *

James81 said:

How do you know if it's the query or the idea behind the book?

So far, i've gotten two rejections that say "I don't feel like I'm the right agent for this particular book."

Is that the standard rejection?

Click to expand...

With form rejections it's pretty impossible to know for sure. It could be both. Or neither--it could be the agent just didn't like it, but that doesn't mean another agent won't love it.

Frustrating, I know.