Making Comparisons

I'm not sure if those are in fashion right now. I haven't queried agents in a while, but a year ago the advice was you should not make such comparisons at all.

Sat Nam! (literally "Truth Name"--a Sikh greeting)

A few agents still want comparisons. But you don't need to include it unless they so specify.

Blessings,

Siri Kirpal

Apparently over at querytracker, quoting from Mary Lindsey's article,

"Another element I've noticed becoming more prevalent is the "this meets that" comparison. It used to be a no-no to compare your work to a movie or TV shows (only literary comparisons were thought to be acceptable), but I'm seeing a lot of this in successful queries and even in publishers' book descriptions, like that of our own QT member, Cole Gibson, whose book, Katana, is described by her publisher as "Kill Bill meets Buffy." This doesn't work if you use little known or obscure references. If you look through the QT success story interviews, you will see a lot of these in recent letters."

I looked through some of the successful queries at QT as well and a lot of them seem to use comparisons. I mean, I personally wouldn't do this in my query letter, abet an agent not liking comparisons.

I might use something classic in a "this meets that" kind of comparison. "Brave New World meets The Baby Sitters' Club" or something like that. (that just popped into my head--that'd be quite a book!) But bear in mind, if it's a classic that is so unheard of it's not in stores anymore, the comparison might not be so useful.

One way to avoid sounding boastful is to say something like, "This book will appeal to fans of book/author." You can claim something will appeal to people who like THE HUNGER GAMES without saying "My book will be the next HUNGER GAMES" (unlikely). And if neither of those work out for your book? Eh, don't worry about it. In fiction, comp titles aren't that important.

it may just be me, but I think the comparison should be pretty obvious in a good query.

on the other hand, I have yet to see a line actually saying it which gave me chills or left me with bated breath instead of inducing a snicker or eye roll....

... just queried one, myself, who specifically asked for comparisons. I managed to make one and stuck it in the first paragraph. To me, I kinda think it's rather important that the book be one the agent should probably be familiar with. If they're not then the comparison is going to be lost on them. So if you have reservations, maybe you should look about for another. Comparisons aren't necessary, but it's not a bad idea to have one in store anyway. G'luck.

Comparisons are a good thing. They show that you know where your book fits in the market, and gives an agent/editor an idea of what your target audience is.

Agents also use comparisons when pitching books to editors.