Body of email

Umgowa

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As you know more and more agents and editors lately want the initial query to be via email and they are asking that the sample of your work be pasted into the body of your email . . . as opposed to being forwarded as an attachment. . . . my question is this . . . What should I do when the agent does not specify their preference for putting the sample chapters in the body of the email? Have things evolved to the point where it is now the default practice to put the sample writing in the body of the email . . . If they do not specifically say to put it in the body of the email, is it OK to attach it to the email? . . . Thanks for any guidance you can give me here.
 

sheadakota

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I would play it safe and put it in the body of the email unless specified to attach it. I think you would run the risk of having them delete your query because it has an attachment.
 

hester

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Definitely agree with sheadakota. A lot of agents won't open unsolicited attachments, so your best bet is to include your sample in the body of the e-mail.
 

mayqueen

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It's pretty standard practice to paste the query and pages into the body of the email, at least with US agents. I would only attach documents if the instructions explicitly said to.
 

Roxxsmom

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I'd paste it in unless they specify that they want it as an attachment. A few agents still do ask for attachments, but given the hassles that can ensue with viruses and if word processing programs aren't compatible and so on, it's probably safer to put it in the body of the e-mail with the query. Why make it harder for them to access your pages? You want them to keep reading.
 

Umgowa

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Thank you

Very helpful comments . . . Thank you all.