What order to submit: letter; synop; chapter

I'm not sure if there's a rule or if agents have a preference, but I follow the query with what's strongest. For me, that's the chapter. Synopses and I have an uneasy truce.

Unless they specify, I'd lead with the chapter. That way they'll see the query first and have an idea of what they're about to read; then, they'll see the chapter, giving them a good idea of your writing style and how well your writing hooks; then, they can see the synopsis to see what happens next. Otherwise, it's like they'll read a query, then a synopsis, which is basically really extended query and often isn't very exciting, and only then will they get to the heart of the matter: whether you can actually write.

One agency I will be querying specified they want the letter, then the synopsis, then the first three chapters. That is what makes the most sense to me. If they like the query, then will read the synopsis, and if they like the synopsis they will read the chapters.

Bottom line is that they will chose what order to read them.

When I was managing my own slush pile I'd flip straight to the writing. If I liked it, I'd look at the synopsis or proposal to see if the writer could structure a decent book. I barely read the covering letter.

If the writing isn't good enough it doesn't matter how good the synopsis is, the book isn't going to work, and synopses can be rewritten far more easily than a whole book.

Since you send all three at once, the agent is going to read them in whatever order she prefers, and this will almost always be letter, synopsis, chapter. It makes little sense to read them in any other order, so make it easy on her. Doing so is a pure waste of time and energy.

When you request all three, it's a pain in the butt having chapter first because it makes you think the writer might not have included the rest. Go with natural order, and with the way any sane agent, or editor, is going to read them.

Jamesaritchie said:

Since you send all three at once, the agent is going to read them in whatever order she prefers, and this will almost always be letter, synopsis, chapter. It makes little sense to read them in any other order, so make it easy on her. Doing so is a pure waste of time and energy.

When you request all three, it's a pain in the butt having chapter first because it makes you think the writer might not have included the rest. Go with natural order, and with the way any sane agent, or editor, is going to read them.

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Just because you probably read submissions one way doesn't mean that everyone else will.

How do you know for sure that the order agents prefer will "almost always be letter, synopsis, chapter"? Cite your sources, and in future make it clear that such things are your own opinions, and not some sort of legal requirement.

Submitting in ways that you don't like isn't wasting anyone's time or energy unless they're submitting to you--and bearing in mind that it doesn't seem that the OP is doing that, it's not necessarily an issue here.

Further, James, you've just implied that I am insane. Frankly I don't care what you think about my mental health, in relation to how I used to read submissions or anything else.

However, I do care that you think it's acceptable to suggest that people who don't do things the way you think is best are insane.

You're wrong, and you're rude, and you're this close to getting a time-out for it.

James appears to have a tendency to post an opinion then never return to a thread.

I agree with Old Hack.

(drops popcorn into couch cushion)

I am apparently insane, and so are the publishers I read for.

I don't look at the cover letter until the first page or so of the ms. looks reasonably competent and interesting.

I'm not really interested in the author or what the author thinks of the ms. until the ms. is worth reading in its entirety and possibly kicking up to the board or the acquiring editor.

I'm contemplating buying the ms. not the author.

One publisher I read for in the early 90's had us put the cover letter on the bottom, then the synopsis, then the ms. and then our reader notes on the top of the pile if we thought the ms. was worth reading by an acquiring editor.

The exception to this was reading mss. submitted for scholarly publishers, where we usually looked at the cover letter then the c.v. then the proposal; this was the practice at several different university presses I worked for.

Some agents specify what order they want it in, so do your homework before you sub. If they don't specify, send it in whatever order you want because they'll likely read it in any order they want and the way you sent it won't have much bearing on what they prefer to read first.

I always feel obligated to lead with the letter but I wish agents JUST wanted the first ten pages (and maybe a brief synopsis). I hate queries. And they do not care for me either. I get along slightly better with a synopsis, but the relationship is still a tenuous one.