Sometimes I feel like I write myself in circles, answering the same questions. I’m sure this is why Miss Snark quit blogging. After a while she had to feel like she’d answered everything at least twice. That being said, I know there are always new readers and I know that sometimes it’s the second or third time you answer when someone gets it.
So, here’s the question:
If I've reworked my query letter to the point where it is now an entirely different letter with much better substance, can I resend it?
I don't want to fall into the camp of those people who just don't get it, but I really like you as an agent and would love it if I could give it another swing.
I promise I'll take a second rejection at face value (should that be the case). If it makes it any more appealing, version two of my letter has already gotten a few responses from real live agents asking for pages.
Go ahead and send it in, especially if you’re getting better feedback than you were before. From an agent’s point of view, I dislike the idea that the same 50 people are sending me queries for the same 50 books, but from an author’s perspective, you never know if you don’t try. If you know, and have proven evidence, that your query is stronger, go ahead and hit those dream agents again.
Jessica
I think it’s not surprising that a lot of authors wonder what to do next after rejection: How do you handle a rejection letter if it’s clear it was more than a form letter, and can you use that to your benefit when it comes to finding another agent?
The first thing I want to say is that it is absolutely, perfectly acceptable to send a thank-you note or a thank-you email if you felt truly touched or learned something from a rejection letter. In fact, I have a file of thank-you notes that authors have sent me over the years. Not only are they appreciated, but I actually use them to track some authors and their future careers. It’s fun to see success even if I have no part in it, or just a tiny part.
In a recent post comment, though, a reader specifically told the story of her experience with an agent who worked with her on a project for six months before eventually deciding to pass. The author was wondering if it would be okay to mention this experience with other agents. And my very strong answer is no, absolutely not. Don’t ever share a rejection, no matter how kind it might be, with other agents. Listen, we can be an egotistical bunch and each of us likes to think that we’re your first and only pick. Most important, though, is why would you want us to go into your proposal wondering why someone else already rejected it? Think about it this way, if you read a really scathing book review by a reviewer you trust, aren’t you going to go into that book (if you read it at all) looking for what’s wrong with the book?
My other bit of advice on this subject has to do with resubmissions. If an agent sends you a kind rejection letter with advice that you find you can use and do use to revise (heavy revisions) and strengthen the book, always, always give that agent the option of seeing the book again (even if she didn’t specifically ask for it). Unless you really feel this is not the agent for you, why not send the book to someone you know has already expressed an appreciation for your work. The worst that can happen is she can say no a second time.
Jessica
I'm still operating on the high I got yesterday from finishing my first novel. When I read it today, I actually kind of enjoyed it. Oh, I'm sure I'll find it dire in a few months, but for now I am just reveling in the bliss of having a complete novel done. I also promise this will be the last time I mention it.
Instead, let's discuss rejection/resubmission ettiquetee. In most cases a rejection is a firm and complete rejection. The house has decided not to pursue your manuscript for some reason, and it is unlikely to change its mind. This is especially true of vague, impersonal rejection letters that may or may not be a form letter. And form letters while regrettable and (I'll be honest) sucky are a neccesity in this business. The GLA blog actually has a nice little article on these kinds of rejections. You have to scroll down to the second post, but you will find a quote from The Boss (my boss, not Springsteen) and a link to one of the bestest small presses on earth.
No, the issue of resubmitting becomes stickier when the editor or agent writes a personal rejection letter. In these types of letters the editor often offers words of encouragement or advice. It's tempting to think that since the editor went to the time and effort to create this dialog with you, they would would want to see the new version of your work. But the truth of the matter is that this isn't always the case. I've written personal rejection letters with advice for authors on how to make the story stronger, but the story itself is inappropriate for our press or not the type of story I'm personally interested. Even if the author takes every comment I made to heart and ends up writing a dynamic new story out of it, the truth is that I still don't want to see it again. I could tell that story had potential, hence the comments in my letter; however, the story isn't a good fit for me.
So in a situation like this, how does an author know whether or not the editor wants them to resubmit? Simple, the editor or agent asks. They will say something similiar to the following phrase: I would be interested in looking at this work again. If that kind of sentence does not appear somewhere in the letter, then assume the editor is not interested in a resubmission. Consider the editor's advice, and then move on to the next potential target.
Now, on a rare occassion you'll come across a time when you are unsure if the editor wants you to resubmit or not. Perhaps they've been unclear in the letter, or one paragraph flatly contradicts another. In this case, be sure to ask before resubmitting. Write or email (but only email if and only if your previous communications with the editor have been through email) the editor thanking them for their advice, and then ask them if you can resubmit. The worst that will happen is they will say no. And if that turns out to be the case, you've saved both yourself and them time. You can move onto the next house. They won't sit down to a manuscript and think, "Haven't I seen this before?"
All of this resubmitting stuff popped into my mind because this morning I emailed a woman some comments on her submission. Since I knew The Boss had already told her she could resubmit, I didn't think to put anything about looking at a resubmission in the email. The author then sent me the nicest email basically thanking me for my suggestions and then asking if she could resubmit to me. I wish I could show it to you since it is an excellent example of how to professionally communicate while still showing enthusiasm. And it's this kind of professionalism that I encourage all of you to aim for. When an editor or agent is unclear, ask questions. And I'll keep trying to post advice here.
Dear Miss Snark:
I sent out maybe fifty queries on a novel about two years ago. No bites. I've since taken some writing courses and entirely rewritten it, though the basic plot and title, which I love, remain the same. When I send out queries now, with a totally different letter, might agents recognize it from before and not even read it? Would it be a good idea to change the title and even alter my name slightly so they don't recognize it as something they've already passed on?
If the only thing agents saw was a query letter, don't worry. Even Agent Elephant doesn't keep that kind of detail in his head, and I don't know anyone who tracks query letters. Fulls and partials, yes of course, but not queries.
If any of the agents read more than a query letter, tailor the query to tell them what you told me-it's faster, stronger, smarter with newly polished six million dollar shoes.
Agents understand that writers learn from experience and they retool and polish work that made the rounds a while back. This second query would not be an automatic pass, particularly with what you've told me: two years, writing course, reworking.
The resubmissions I'm not keen on are the "major revisions" that arrive too soon (less than three months) and don't mention any kind of outside help. Those get a cursory look. Yours I'd read.
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Wow, that's extremely generous of you, Jessica, and no, I'm not being sarcastic! Some agents would probably like to get their hands on you after this post, but the truth is, when you're a newbie, your query letter is going to suck worse than a clogged up Kirby. After much guidance, revisions, and blood-congealing screams, said newbie could in fact produce a query worth reading, and in turn actually have a book worth reviewing. Still, they should have done their homework BEFORE querying, but it's a common mistake with new writers.
I think it takes a lot of guts to requery. I'm at the other end of the spectrum. I write the book, the query, and the synsopsis, and bang! I send it all out and don't look back, or try not to. I get right to work on the next thing. If an agency or publisher opens up to submissions, I'm like "I don't waaaaannnuuuu." And I put off revising and sending, burying myself in the next thing. Pathetic.
Then, I read a post by a recently published author who spent FIVE years writing, revising, and querying her novel.
As someone who after years and years of submissions has now found a wonderful publisher for my work, I think it is vitally important to move on to new projects when current ones aren't finding their home.
I understand both sides, of course. When we are attached to manuscripts, and are sure we have found the solution to what ails them, it is very tempting to resubmit. Personally, I have often equated it to challenging romantic relationships. Wanting to reconcile because the relationship is known and familiar but at some point, if it doesn't work, it doesn't work. And the best thing to do is shelve it and move on to one that will. How many times have we writers moved on to a new story and felt that great sense of fresh excitement--much like in a new relationship: "I never thought I could fall in love that way again, and I have--wow!"
Also too, I have to believe if an agent sees potential in your work, they would much rather see that you can put your skills into more than one project.
and blood-congealing screams
Scarlettprose, that's a fabulous phrase!
I agree with previous commenters that a writer shouldn't cling to just one project and should move on, but I also think that they can do both.
Yes, I'm one of those. My first queries were drenched in suck. I improved it, and just yesterday, sent out about five more. I also wrote 900 words on my WIP. (and worked 12 hours at my day job.) I just don't see where it has to be all or nothing.
THANK YOU for this post. First, it's always wonderful to see that other writers also suffer from the dreaded first-query-suckage-syndrome. Second, it's wonderful to hope resurrection is still possible.
I have to say that I really recommend moving into another project before going back to requery. I gained perspective and learned so much delving into something new, that it made me see completely different strengths in my first novel.
And scarlettprose, sucking worse than a clogged-up Kirby? LOL!
This is just me. But I would imagine the same query (from anyone, not to single one person out) could be rewritten dozens of times, adding and subtracting different aspects of the novel each time. And yet it's still going to be the same query, with the same theme, and the same basic content.
On the other hand, if the project itself has been rewritten (or it's an entirely different project), I can see re-querying with a different query letter. In other words, I've always just assumed agents reject the overall project and not the way a query letter is written, because the project didn't interest them.
Am I missing something here? How bad could these queries be that they have to be rewritten so many times to give a basic description of a novel?
This is good info - do you suggest a time period for the resend though? I've heard don't requery an agent unless query plus novel have been rewritten and about 6 months have passed.
Interesting...I fear requerying because the last thing I want to do is piss off an agent.
Off topic; You once posted about Rawhide Rescue. Because of your post I looked into volunteering. Rawhide was a little too far north for me but I found a group closer to home and I'm on my fifth foster dog! Thanks for that post! Taking in foster dogs has been a great experience.
Aimless:
That just made my day. Thank you so much for letting me know. I really admire you for your work fostering. It takes special people to make great pets.
--jhf
I've always sent my queries out too soon. Then I'd receive a request for a partial or a full, and the manuscript wouldn't have been polished enough, so there would always be a rejection.
This time around I'm being smarter. I've put the brakes on, and developed a plan. I won't even submit to a contest until the entire ms. has gone through a couple of rewrites. While that latest story is sitting and simmering I've started another one. Next month I'll start the second rewrite on the first manuscript.
Maybe then I'll be able to write a dynamite query letter, and be able to follow up with a dynamite manuscript. But I'm not going to hold my breath on that. ; )
Anon @10:21 - I'm still learning, but my impression is that a query is meant to entice an agent to want to learn more about the project. It's too short by itself to really give an impression. For example, I can approach the query by describing my book from the plotty perspective... or focus on the characters... or I can try to be clever and do something weird...
So maybe I end up with three queries suggesting three different books, but it's really just three views of a single project. Even a 3-page synopsis can change drastically depending on how it's approached, so I figure the project itself (hopefully) is perfectly sound, and I just have to learn how to write my query so that the reader asks for more. Which is how I see re-querying reasonable under certain circumstances.
This answer really surprised me! I have *never* heard another agent give the go-ahead on that.
Me and Kelly both; I'm surprised to hear this. I think Miss Snark herself said you get ONE shot at an agent per project, because the agent is rejecting your book, not your query letter.
That said, if your query letter was sufficiently dreadful, the agent probably never glanced at the sample pages, and they certainly won't remember the letter even a month later. So why not?
Barring a completely off-the-wall query that would garner attention (like writing it all in 24-pt cursive font...I bet that would get your name and project sufficient attention), would an agent recognize one query out of the hundreds they receive daily? Would they really know that they'd seen that same query for the same project from the same author?
Heck, I had one agent who rejected a query they'd already rejected months before, even though I *hadn't* re-submitted it...
I think it is definitely possible that your query letter can improve on the same MS. I had to learn to write my query letter. If you go about the whole thing wrong they aren't just rejecting your idea.
Thanks for the encouragement Jessica.
Anonymous 10:21 - I disagree. The query letter can be an epic fail, because it doesn't give the agent any idea what the story is about. First-time query writers often get caught up in the "make it sound exciting" school of thought. They tend to lean toward vague, cliched phrases to express the tension, drama, emotion, etc. in the story rather than just SAYING it.
I can see where, if the letter truly changed, a writer would be interested in re-querying their favorite agent in order to make sure it is the story -- and not the initial query suckage -- that was the reason for rejection.
Please don't quit blogging.