Put your best book forward! How to make sure you're ready to query

One of the most common things I have heard (and read) from agents is that a huge percentage of the work that comes across their desk, especially from the slush pile (which is where we all go unless you have some direct line or special introduction), is that the work just isn’t ready.

Let’s back up a second to look at the process:

(If your goal is to self-publish your book, or work with a vanity or hybrid press, or if you’re writing for the sheer pleasure of it, you may think today’s post is not for you but most of this advice is just as valid—it’s just not quite as critical because you have more control over the process.)

If you want to try to have your book traditionally published, you need to find an agent. With a few exceptions, publishing houses do not accept unsolicited manuscripts (e.g., writers sending their books directly to an editor/publishing house).

So the first step in this part of your journey is to find an agent. There are lots of tips, tools, and strategies that can help you with that and I will devote future posts to more of that information. 

Reaching out to agents is called querying. You send the agent a query letter and some other materials, usually a synopsis and a small set of manuscript pages. (All agents have specific guidelines about exactly what they want to receive and how. Read those guidelines and follow them, even if you find it exasperating that they’re all a little different. Submissions that don’t follow guidelines don’t even get a first look.)

Agents get hundreds of unsolicited submissions each month (sometimes a hundred or more per week!). They don’t have time to read a submission that doesn’t knock their socks off, never mind ponder if and how they could help that manuscript and that writer make the manuscript shine if it doesn’t already.

And once an agent has rejected your manuscript, with very few exceptions, that’s it. There is no second bite at the apple.

Is this system massively subjective and gatekeeper-y? Yes. But it’s what we have to work with. 

So all of this to say, your manuscript should be in the absolute best shape that you can get it before you start this process.  Most folks are not there when they start querying. Please, please, do everything you can to put your best book forward.

What does that look like?

1. Your first draft is not submission-ready

If you’ve been doing this a while, you probably know that. Even if you have been meticulous, you missed something, maybe a few somethings. That doesn’t mean you’ve done a bad job. First drafts are supposed to be shitty, remember?

2. Give it some time

Once you’ve done a draft (especially your first), give it some psychic distance. A general rule of thumb seems to be that a month is the sweet spot, but if you can’t quite let it breathe that long, aim for at least two weeks. If you’ve ever done this, you know what I mean—things that you would have missed because you were so close to it become clear with a bit of distance.

3. Establish guidelines and read to evaluate

Do not edit as you go. Trust me, you will be at it for much longer than necessary and now is not the time to be correcting the small things. It will also distract you from what you should be looking for, which are the criteria you’ve set for yourself to evaluate your draft.

A few different strategies for handling the issues that you’ll find as you read:

• If you haven’t been working with an outline, now is the time to make one. As you read, jot down 2-3 sentences about the plot (what happens) and the point (why it matters to your protagonist, what changes for them) for each chapter or scene.

• As you create this outline (or if you already have one), put your other notes in as well. Keep these editorial notes separate from your plot/point assessment. Tell yourself, as you go, exactly what changes you want to make and possibly why (if, when returning to these notes later, you fear you will wonder what the heck you were talking about).

• If you’re reading a hard copy, arm yourself with some medium and large-sized sticky notes and make notes on those, then stick them to the page.

What do I mean by ‘establish guidelines’? As mentioned, unless you’re in the polishing stages, you’re not reading to correct spelling and grammar or wordsmith. You want to be focusing on big-picture issues:

• Is the world you have created believable? Are there places where you need to do more world-building or research to make the world immersive?

• Does each scene or chapter illustrate the point of your novel in some way?

• Does each scene or chapter move logically from one to the next? Is the cause-and-effect trajectory of the events and the characters’ reactions clear?

• Are the protagonists’ desires’ and the antagonistic forces standing in their way clear?

This is just some of the criteria you can and should be looking for and as you might expect, it can be hard to keep all of the questions you are checking to have answered straight. Give yourself permission to focus on 2-3 things and make sure you’ve nailed them down as best you can before moving on. Because—and this is a guarantee that you’re doing something right, not wrong—you’re now going to….

4. Revise, rinse, repeat

Most folks need to do this a couple of times to really make sure they’ve tackled all the things. When you fix the major issues, you can then focus on the intermediate, medium issues. Do this as many times as you need until you get to the point where you only have the minor, easy things left.

5. Find some fresh eyes (not your own!)

Whether it is a writer friend, writing group, beta reader, developmental editor, or coach, have someone who understands novel-writing read your book.

Not everyone has the budget for a professional, I get it. But this is the time to push yourself to step outside your comfort zone, if need be, to find a fellow writer with whom you can exchange your work.

The reason I’m putting so much emphasis on finding someone with writing knowledge is that they are going to be able to identify any outstanding issues. They also should be supportive but not just a cheerleader. I love my husband and appreciate his encouraging words about my work but I don’t expect him to be able to give substantive critique on my book. 

If you do have the budget to hire a development editor or a book coach, do a little homework. Make sure that person has familiarity with your genre. Ask to have a chat to discuss your project and your goals beforehand. Developmental edits and manuscript evaluations are significant investments and you’ll want to be comfortable with whoever you hire and feel confident that they understand your goals, any specific issues or questions you want them to be considering, and clear on exactly what they will be providing in terms of feedback (inline edits, evaluation letter, etc.)

6. Do a polish edit

Now is when you want to interrogate things on the word and sentence level. Are you being as succinct as you can be? (An evaluation of my first draft found that I used the word ‘that’ almost 2,000 times! Really?!? Apparently it’s a fave.) Could you choose a different word that would capture your meaning just as well or even better than the original?

Remember, no one gets it 100% right the first time. Writing a novel is a process, not an event.

Have patience with yourself and the process and take advantage of the places where you do have some control over it—namely, making sure that you’ve done everything you can to put the best possible book into the world. Once you start sending out those query letters (and beyond!), there isn’t much you can do beyond crossing your fingers and steeling yourself for frustration and rejection (not to be a downer, but it is almost inevitable and it is not a reflection of you or your worth as a writer…remember what I said about subjectivity!).

So! Deep breaths. Remember why you love doing this in the first place. And please, go read that book one more time. 😜

And keep me posted on your journey! I’m rooting for you.

♥️ Cheers, 

Kerry