How to write a covering letter to a publisher, editor or agent.
A cover letter is essentially a business letter introducing your story and yourself to the editor. The tone should be friendly but professional. If you are submitting electronically, your email will be your cover letter. If you are submitting by snail mail your cover letter is on a separate sheet and included in the envelope with your manuscript.
A cover letter introduces you and your novel to potential publishers. This letter is your first point of contact between you and a publisher, therefore, it is crucial that aspiring authors know how to write a decent cover letter. Here are three common questions, answered for writers looking to pave a successful path into the world of publishing.
A submission letter can be a terrifying hurdle to overcome in the journey towards possible publication, but there are some simple steps you can take to make it less of a chore. For this blog I’m going to focus on five very practical elements of a submission.
A cover letter containing misspellings and poor grammar will probably lead an editor to expect the same lack of professionalism in your manuscript. Below are two samples. Sample A represents a cover letter that would accompany a snail mail submission. Sample B represents one that would accompany an email submission. Sample A: Your Name Your Address.
For a fiction submission, ensure the letter is more about the book than you. Your Himilayan adventures can go into the author profile. For non-fiction, platform and qualifications are very important, so your query should be 60% about the book, 40% about your platform (if your book is about surviving in the Himalayas, your adventures are relevant and important).
The letter should be written on a letterhead, and it should be limited to about one or one and a half pages long. All the proper letter heading materials should be included (the date and the address of the recipient should be at the top left, under the letterhead). It should address the editor by name, if this is known.
Novel submissions play by a different set of rules, and there may be a slightly different etiquette in literary submissions and other genres. But, if you write and submit science fiction, fantasy, and horror short stories, the following essay is for you. How to Write a Proper Short Story Cover Letter.