I have met few writers who enjoy writing queries. Somehow the query letter tends to feel like we're taking a really complicated test. And if our query gets turned down, we tend to moan - if only they would let us send the manuscript! Still, queries are part of the business, especially for writers hoping to sell a book or hoping to sell articles to some of the higher paying markets. And there are ways to make the query letter a little less scary.

THINKING LIKE AN EDITOR

When an editor opens a query letter, she's hoping for the answer to certain questions, so it helps to look at your query writing process from the editor's side. The editor wants to know:

• Why will your target age group want to read this?
• Why will your target age group benefit from reading this?
• Are you sure this is for us?
• Can I trust that you've done accurate work?
• Can I trust that you'll turn in lively, readable text?
• Are you professional in your manner without being cold?

Lets look at the questions one at a time.

WHY WILL YOUR TARGET AGE GROUP WANT TO READ THIS?

It's amazing how many writers create query letters explaining why other people will want the target audience to read the story or article or why the target age group should read the story or article. For the most part, that is not what the editor wants to know. Most of the writing done for magazines and commercial publishers isn't created to be homework - it's created to be entertaining and useful for the reader.

If you're querying a fiction manuscript. Keep in mind that the reader wants to be entertained. Imagine you're trying to get a child to read a book - can you imagine his reaction if you said, "You should read this, it's good for you!" I know my reaction - so are lima beans! Instead, you would probably say, "This book has dragons!" or "This book is full of adventure!" or "This book is hysterical." So before you write your first word of the query, sit back, close your eyes, and imagine handing your manuscript to a reluctant child. What do you say to get him to want to read it? That will be key to your query.

Of course, in the letter, you're addressing the editor - but you're still keeping that kid in mind. Phrase your "coolest thing possible" in more professional terms, but get it in there:

• Kids love dragons, and "My Story" has them - but these dragons have a secret.
• Filled with adventure, "My Story" follows the terrifying challenges of a young boy caught in a flood.
• Librarians say humor books fly off the shelves, so "My Story" takes a light look at the ubiquitous primary grade need to make clubs.

If you're querying nonfiction - keep in mind that the reader wants to be entertained. Right, you still have the same problem, editors are going to want to know why kids will want to read this. What's the coolest thing you uncover? Is your approach going to be lively and fun? Did you find the story inside the nonfiction topic? So, you'll follow much the same approach, phrasing your coolest thing in professional terms:

• Every kid knows that caterpillars munch leaves, spin cocoons, and turn into butterflies. But do they? "My Nonfiction" will look at the weirder side of caterpillars.
• Designer blue jeans are today's key to cool - but not every tween can afford them. "My Nonfiction" will look at ways to turn the dullest discount jeans into the coolest couture - all by designer you!
• Glow in the Dark Mice? Bioengineering is producing some unusual creatures and "My Article" will take a look at the fuzzier side of genetic manipulation.

Did you notice the one big difference between the fiction "cool" lines and the nonfiction? The nonfiction uses future tense in describing what the article will do - "will look." This is because queried nonfiction is sold with the assumption that the article is still fluid, not done yet. This allows the editor to make suggestions for the article she would most like to see. Fiction, however, is sold when the story is finished (even if you're having to write a query), so you don't need to write the query as though the fiction is still in process.

WHY WILL YOUR TARGET AGE GROUP BENEFIT FROM READING THIS?

Editors do hope for a bit more from each manuscript than just fun - most books and articles are also expected to be meaningful in some way. With fiction, that means that the story will have some kind of thematic depth. It will reveal some kind of truth about the human condition. Many fiction writers say they choose fiction because it's the freest way to tell the truth. So, for fiction, you'll need to ask yourself - what truth is revealed in my story? Since theme is often played out in change in the main character, your thematic line can be written with the same focus - how did truth change the main character (or how did the main character resist accepting the truth revealed in the story).

• In the terrifying world of the Chicago streets, Michael must find a way home - but he soon discovers that some friendly faces hide dark secrets.
• Hannah thinks popularity will wash away all the years of being "the fat kid" - but she soon learns that popularity comes with its own dirt.
• Owen is tired of being the babysitter, but when disaster strikes, Owen discovers he and his little brother make a great team.

ARE YOU SURE THIS IS FOR US?

Editors get an amazing number of totally inappropriate submissions - both in queries and in manuscripts. Publishers that produce only nonfiction picture books get queries for novels. Magazines that publish only first person nonfiction get thinly veiled lectures written in third person and filled with "you should" and "you need to." Nothing makes an editor happier than knowing (1) the piece you're sending is appropriate and (2) it's appropriate because you bothered to find out what they publish.

Tip one - market guides are not enough. No market guide can print a sample issue of every magazine right in the guide. No market guide can include a synopsis of all a publisher's most recent releases. But those are things you really need. At the very least, don't send out a manuscript before trying to learn more about the publisher via…

1. The public library. It's free and it has books and magazines. See if it has books by that publisher or the magazine you're targeting. And if it doesn't, see if you can get them by interlibrary loan.
2. The local bookstore. Okay, I admit it. Although I buy a lot of magazines from the bookstore, I rarely buy books. I do picture book research by simply LOOKING at them in the store and reading the ones that seem like what I want to send out.
3. Looking online. Many publishers of books and magazines have websites. Increasingly, magazines are beefing up their online content. You can learn huge amounts from those websites. If you didn't even look - editors are correct in wondering what other important corners you might be cutting.

Tip two - find something specific you can say about the publisher in the query letter.

1. After hearing you speak at the spring conference in New York, I was delighted to learn how much you love mysteries.
2. After reading Highlights for many years, I know how much you like experts - so I …
3. In the June issue of Spider, I read the fascinating article on trap-door spiders and believe your readers would enjoy learning about their cousin, the giant sea spider…

By giving specifics you're saying you're committed to the research needed to match your submission to the right market. And that suggests you're an author who doesn't cut corners.

CAN I TRUST THAT YOU'VE DONE ACCURATE WORK?

Some publishers require bibliographies/source lists with queries, others do not. But they all want to know that you are going to be sending accurate work. If you're writing fiction (for example) that is set in Alaska, an editor will wonder how you know about Alaska? So you might want to include a line like…

1. Having grown up in Alaska, I know how challenging it can be…
2. I've always been fascinated by Alaska, and after a recent Alaskan cruise…
3. Having talked to a number of Alaskans….

When you are writing fiction with an unusual local or focus (such as genetic engineering), it's worthwhile to include a short notice of why the editor can trust that you're writing about those elements accurately. That's why editors like to see teachers writing classroom fiction - though we have all had experience in classrooms - they have the most recent "research."

With nonfiction, the demands of proof are a bit harsher. So you'll want to devote a full line to some of the research you've done about the specific topic.

1. I interviewed one of the researchers presently working on a project to…
2. I've read personal diaries and haunted historical societies seeking out tidbits on…
3. After reading all the available literature on dinosaurs, I went right to the experts…

You don't always have to list what the "available literature on dinosaurs" consists of at the query stage, but if the editor is going to ask to see the piece, she's going to want to know you are a careful researcher. Now, sometimes the article is primarily based on personal experience…in that case, your "accuracy" line might read like this…

1. Faced with a handful of infant rabbits whose mother had been killed by my dog, I knew I couldn't just leave them to die. So I turned to the experts for advice…
2. Growing up in the Netherlands, our winter holidays were very different than the ones my grandchildren celebrate here in the United States. I would like to share my childhood experiences with your readers…
3. When I discovered my daughter was cutting, I totally freaked out…then I looked for help…

CAN I TRUST THAT YOU'LL TURN IN LIVELY, READABLE TEXT?

Query letters can seem depressingly short - especially when you're querying a book! Editors really do want the letter itself to be only one page. This creates an incredible test for the writer but one that is revealing to the editor. Can you write something that short, carrying that much information and still make it sound lively and readable? If you can, the editor trusts that you'll bring that same skill to the manuscript. If your sentences in the cramped confines of a query letter are awkward, stilted, cold and confusing - the editor assumes the manuscript will be even more so. So a query letter needs to show your skill.

Sometimes writers wail that they just cannot convey their manuscript in those short confines. Unfortunately, that may be pointing up a serious problem with the manuscript - not with your query letter skills. If you cannot pick out the kid-friendly exciting element and convey it in a sentence, you may not have something in there to grab the young reader. If you cannot bring out the growth and change in the reader to share your theme - you might not have one - or you may have too many. If your articles seems dull and flat and confusing when described in a paragraph - maybe it's because the article itself lacks organization and focus. If you totally cannot do a query - consider that a possible diagnostic of a problem manuscript.

You might try asking someone to read the piece for you - then ask them the first two questions. Can they answer them? If so, you may be able to use their answers, matched with your lively concise prose to build your query. If a reader cannot answer the questions - you're back to having a problem with the piece rather than the query.

ARE YOU PROFESSIONAL IN YOUR MANNER WITHOUT BEING COLD?

Query letters are brief and information filled, but they shouldn't sound like a professor lecturing a class. They also shouldn't sound like a note to your Aunt Gladys. They are friendly business communication. They need to reflect your light, easy communication skills but keep in mind that every sentence must be purposeful. No light chatter. In fact, the following things must very much not be in your query:

1. No mention of past rejections or how long you've been trying to get published.
2. No mention of writing classes -- unless it's a way of connecting with the editor (for example, she taught the class.)
3. No mention of anyone who has loved your article
4. No mention of critique groups or hired editors.
5. No telling the editor how she is going to feel about the manuscript.

Taking classes, attending conferences, and getting critiques or editing (paid or free) all help you be a better writer and editors are interested in people who are serious about their writing - BUT - they want you to show them that you're serious by crafting a good query, not by giving educational experiences unless they directly reflect a connection with this particular editor or they relate to the article/story topic. (For example, if you're writing about young authors who take writing correspondence courses, it would be okay to say that you also took such courses because it is relevant to the topic.)

Another important way you show your professionalism is in how the query looks. Editors expect a clean, attractive query with all vital information. So these things play into presenting yourself as a professional:

• Query needs to be visually appealing -- correct format and no hinky stuff with the fonts to get an overlong query to fit on one page.
• 12 point Times New Roman or similar font
• Single spaced
• Standard business letter format
• Query needs to come with an SASE
• Query needs to target the right market/person - if you don't know the editor's name and the writer's guidelines say to send it to "Submissions Editor", it's perfectly okay to say "Dear Editor" but not "To whom it may concern" or "Dear Sir or Madam."
• Query needs full contact information for you - address, phone, and email if possible.

Sounds like a lot to remember? It can feel that way but it boils down to three things:

1. Make the letter attractive and appealing.
2. Make the letter purposeful and professional.
3. Make the letter brief.