Submission Guidelines

Our goal is to make this process as painless as possible for you, and the following guidelines will make us better able to respond to you in a timely manner.

 [For Michael Bourret, Jim McCarthy, Lauren Abramo, Michaela Whatnall, and Kendall Berdinsky, please submit to them ONLY via Query Manager—links can be found in their Meet Our Agents page. For all other agents, please submit by e-mail, which can be found on their page under Meet Our Agents.)

Dos

 

  • Do send your query letter via email, and include the full query in the body of the email, not as an attachment. Do be sure to query only one agent at this agency. We will not review queries sent to more than one of us and a pass from one here is a pass from us all, as we do share materials widely in house.

  • Do include a writing sample of the first 25 pages of your manuscript (fiction) or your proposal with sample chapter (nonfiction) in the body of the email below your query letter.

  • Do proofread carefully and double-space your materials if possible.

  • Do resend your query email if you haven’t heard from us in 8 weeks, noting the date previously sent. Our goal is to read and respond to every query in that time frame.

  • If you’re submitting a picture book, do include the full text, as well as a dummy and/or sample art if available (attachments should be PDFs no larger than 20MB).

  • If you’re submitting a graphic novel as solely an author, do include the first 25 pages of the script. If you’re submitting a graphic novel as an author/illustrator, do include the first 25 pages of the script as well as 10 illustrated pages (attachments should be PDFs no larger than 20MB). We understand that industry-wide submission requirements for graphic novels are not yet standardized, so we also welcome other materials you may wish to provide, such as a link to your portfolio or pitch packet. (Please note, while we welcome picture book and graphic novel submissions from authors and author/illustrators, we are not open to illustrator-only submissions.)

 

Don'ts

  • Don’t send attachments with a blank email or an incomplete query – we will not open them.

  • Don’t send materials as a shared file or download link (such as Dropbox or Google Docs). We will not open these files.

  • Don’t submit to more than one of us at once, whether in the same query or separate queries, or requery another agent here after getting a pass. We share queries with each other frequently, so a no from one is a no from all.

  • Don't query more than one project at a time.

  • Don’t send a query for a novel until the manuscript is complete, polished and ready for review. We do not accept partial manuscripts for novels. Nonfiction can be queried with a proposal.

  • Don’t pitch projects or follow up on queries over the phone or via social media. Pitches made via Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc, will not be considered except as part of a planned pitch event.

 

Query Tips

 

We like our queries to be concise, well-written, and well-proofed, and as devoid of gimmicks as possible. Here’s what to include:

  • A professional, personalized greeting.

  • A mention in the first paragraph of why you’re querying us: you admire a client’s work, you met us at a conference, you read a great interview, etc. Be brief and specific!

  • Key stats for your project: title, genre, word count, and comp titles or authors.

  • Your pitch: a paragraph or two summarizing your novel or nonfiction project that will hook us on your work. For fiction, please include genre, word count, and comp titles.

  • Your bio or credentials: your expertise in the topic, your previous publication credits, your social media platform.

  • As stated above, please note, while we welcome picture book and graphic novel submissions from authors and author/illustrators, we are not open to illustrator-only submissions.

See our FAQ section for more information on a strong query and what to expect when you’ve queried!