Article Marketing-Tips and Tutorials | Contact

 

 





Building A Rock Solid Query Letter

Word Count:
834

Summary:
Recently I reviewed a client's query letter. It was a hard working query letter, detailing the marketing prospects for the book, her own glowing credentials and the contacts she possessed that would help her publicize the book. But she left out one teeny weeny thing: she didn't say what her book was about! I used to think query letters were relatively easy, but now I realize that a query has to do so many things that it's easy to forget essential elements. Since the letter is...


Keywords:



Article Body:
Recently I reviewed a client's query letter. It was a hard working query letter, detailing the marketing prospects for the book, her own glowing credentials and the contacts she possessed that would help her publicize the book. But she left out one teeny weeny thing: she didn't say what her book was about! I used to think query letters were relatively easy, but now I realize that a query has to do so many things that it's easy to forget essential elements. Since the letter is your first step in putting your book's best foot forward, you don't want that to happen. So here's a simple rundown on what goes into a solid query letter.

Who Are You?
It's tempting to start the letter by leaping into a breathless description of what you're sure is going to be the best book in the world, but resist a little longer. You want to use your first paragraph to introduce yourself and let the agent know why he or she should pay attention to you. Tell the agent who you are. Describe your qualifications, including a bit about your current activities which will in turn describe your platform. Have you been doing speaking engagements? Do you appear on television? Are you noted in your profession? Have you won any awards? Do people look to you as an expert in your subject? Do you teach? For instance, if you are a workshop or seminar leader in real estate finance, frequently travel across the country, and have 5,000 people attending your workshops every month, you can tell the agent:"Now I’ve decided to give away all of my secrets in a book about real estate financing with no money down." Anything that puts you in front of people is a potential place to sell your book so don't forget to mention such activities.

What's Your Book About?
In the next two or three paragraphs of the letter you get to talk about your wonderful book idea and/or story. As a guideline, it may help you to read the backs of book covers. You'll want to do something similar--a brief synopsis of your book with enough spark it will intrigue the agent or any other potential reader, to pick up your book. Use bullet points to highlight what amazing tidbits the reader will get out of the book. Will they get five strategies on how to eat without gaining weight? Or 4 low cost resources for financing a large home improvement project? Or the 6 surefire signs you've found your life purpose? Make this description tight, concise and, of course, hugely interesting. Then you can move on to...

Your Great Marketing Plan--With You As the Star
The query letter should include a brief paragraph or two about how you're going to market the book. Of course, if you go with a traditional publisher you'll get major help in this area from the publishing house. But remember this: no one will be a better advocate for your book than you. And when editors are considering manuscripts they're also considering what kind of a marketing presence they'll be getting with the author. You'll make their job easier--and your book much more successful--if you can bring your own marketing plan to the table to work hand in hand with the publisher's. Do you have contacts in the media willing to help? Are you good at getting quoted in newspapers and magazines? Do you publish freelance articles that can mention your upcoming book? Put a lot of thought into this. Too many writers go into the publishing process expecting everything to be done for them and then are disappointed. Having a good marketing plan would show a potential agent that you're serious and you understand the business.

The Next Step
You’ve mentioned your credentials, described your book and your stellar marketing plan. Ideally, at this point, you have the agent intrigued. You want him or her to say, "Great! What does this person have to offer?" This is where your letter would say something like, "I would love for you to see more and I have a proposal" or "I have 50 pages of a manuscript." Whatever you want the agent to see next, offer it up and ask, "May I send this to you?" Asking permission is always a classy thing to do, it shows you're not being presumptuous. Then you move into a closing that let's the agent know you'll follow up in a certain amount of time either via phone or email (they might prefer email).

When you're done, read your query letter over many times. Have another trusted set of eyes read it for you. It's easy to overlook important points, or to think you've covered something when you really haven't. When you can polish no longer, send it out--many times! And congratulations. You've just made the first step in getting yourself and your book out there. I wish you a successful journey.


© 2006 Sophfronia Scott

 

 
Translate Page Into German Translate Page Into French Translate Page Into Italian Translate Page Into Portuguese Translate Page Into Spanish Translate Page Into Japanese Translate Page Into Korean

More Articles



More Articles


Can't Write Articles For Links? Write Code!

... and advice pertaining to your website's subject is a great way to generate links and traffic. But what if you can't write or are afraid to write? Well, if you can write software, you're still in luck! In this article I'll show you a trick that can still garner you hundreds of links and won't require you ... 

Read Full Article  


Making Money With Articles: Picking A Good Web Hosting Company

... this is the only way that you can build a site, then it is necessary. Some web hosting providers may also offer a deal on a yearly URL or other products when you make a web hosting purchase. Ultimately, whatever web hosting provider you choose will depend on your individual needs and what you can afford. ... 

Read Full Article  


Writing The Resource Box So It Makes People Click

... when you get people to click on your resource box, you generate traffic that can be counted upon as potential customers. So what would be a good content for your resource box? Basically it is keywords, learning about the proper keywords that people are mainly searching for. There are many tools you can ... 

Read Full Article  


Making Money With Articles: Picking Articles For Your Niche Site

... your exact keywords, so you may have to either make revisions to the articles (which may not be allowed on some free articles) or base your keywords on the articles that you find (which could leave you with very competitive keywords that would take a lot of time or money to attain a high ranking for). ... 

Read Full Article  


6 Red Hot Tips To Get Your Articles Read

... about something you know about, that s why if you own a site, you probably is knowledgeable about that certain topic and theme. When you write about it, you won t have a hard time because you already know what it is and what it s about. It s just a matter of making your articles creative and interesting. ... 

Read Full Article  

Article Marketing News from Yahoo:

New Article Marketing Strategy Announced By Content Writing King

New Article Marketing Strategy Announced By Content Writing King According to Content Writing King, this new link building strategy has been in development for a while. [...] they claim that Lehi Drew’s blog post writing series is meant as a supplement to their strategy. About Content Writing King – Content Writing King is an online company that helps consumers to find and obtain article ...

Content Writing King's Article Marketing Blog Page has been Updated.

Content Writing King's Article Marketing Blog Page has been Updated. While the issues weren’t named, Content Writing King said that the fix to the blog page has helped the website to function more smoothly their article marketing customers who are looking for link building services. In addition to the recent maintenance for their writing website, Content Writing King’s writer has dedicated his ...

Link Building Strategy Second Phase Completed, Announces Content Writing King

The second phase for Content Writing King’s new link building strategy has been announced. As reported, this is a new strategy for their article marketing website services.(PRWEB) May 23, 2012 Today, the second phase for Content Writing King’s new link building strategy has finished going through development, reported Content Writing King. This new strategy has been in development by Content ...

Content Writing King Releases Link Building Educational Material

Content Writing King Releases Link Building Educational Material Content Writing King has released a new blog post containing link building educational material. The educational series for Content Writing King’s article marketing website is aimed at teaching visitors, and customers, the best basics about article marketing, content creation, link building, and search engine optimization. Content ...

Content Writing King Writer Announces New SEO Blog Post

The Article Marketing Writer For Content Writing King Has Released A New Blog Post. This New Blog Post Educates On White Hat And Black Hat SEO(PRWEB) May 17, 2012 Today, Content Writing King has announced that their article marketing writer has published a brand new blog post. This new blog post is all about white hat search engine optimization and black hat search engine optimization. The goal ...

Ebooks | Contact Us | About | Advertise with Us |Sitemap | Miscellaneous Articles | Site Terms and Legal Disclaimer | Extras | Topics |

Copyright: EXZOrders.com -