The Query Letter Checklist
Everything your query letter needs before you send it to literary agents
The query letter is the hardest few hundred words a novelist will ever write. After months — sometimes years — with your manuscript, you have a single page to make an agent want to read more.
This checklist walks through what a strong query letter needs, section by section. It won't write the letter for you, and it won't make querying feel effortless — nothing will. But it will help you check your letter against what agents are actually looking for, and catch the small things that might weaken an otherwise strong submission.
It's free to use, return to, and share. Work through it whenever you're preparing to query.
Before you start
A few things worth knowing before you write a word:
Every agent is different. Always check the specific submission guidelines on the agency's website. This checklist covers the conventions most agents expect, but the agency's own guidelines override any general advice, including this.
One letter, lightly tailored. You don't need to write a new query for every agent. Write one strong letter, then adjust the opening personalisation and any agent-specific details for each submission.
Your letter represents your book. The tone of the query should reflect the tone of the manuscript. A literary novel and a comic thriller should not have query letters that sound the same.
The opening
The agent's name is correct and correctly spelled. This sounds obvious. It is also one of the most common errors agents report.
You've said why you're querying this agent specifically. A brief, genuine reason: a book they represent, an interview they gave, a manuscript wishlist post. One sentence is enough. Avoid generic flattery.
You've stated the practical details early: title, genre, and word count, usually in the first short paragraph. Agents want to know immediately what kind of book this is.
The genre is accurate. Position your book where it actually sits on the shelf. If you're unsure, look at where comparable recent titles are shelved and marketed.
The word count is appropriate for the genre. A 200,000-word debut literary novel or a 40,000-word adult thriller will raise concerns before the agent reaches your pitch. Know the expected range for your category.
The pitch
This is the heart of the letter of usually two or three paragraphs that make the agent want to read the manuscript.
It reads like book-jacket copy, not a synopsis. The pitch is not a plot summary. It introduces the protagonist, their world, what they want, what stands in their way, and what's at stake. Then it stops, leaving the agent wanting to know what happens.
The protagonist is clear and specific. The agent should finish the pitch knowing who the book is about and why that person is compelling.
The central conflict is clear. What is the problem that drives the book? What choice or threat does the protagonist face?
The stakes are clear. What happens if the protagonist fails? Why does this story matter?
It doesn't give away the ending. The query is bait, not a full account. Resist the urge to explain how it all resolves.
It doesn't introduce too many characters or subplots. Name as few characters as the pitch can survive with — usually one or two. Complexity belongs in the manuscript, not the query.
The voice reflects the book. If your novel is funny, the pitch can be funny. If it's tense and spare, the pitch can be tense and spare. The query is a sample of your writing, whether or not you intend it to be.
Comparable titles
You've included two or three comparable titles ("comps"). These show the agent where your book sits in the current market.
The comps are recent. Aim for titles published in roughly the last three to five years. Older or very famous titles (the mega-bestsellers, the classics) tend to work against you.
The comps are realistic. Comping your debut to the biggest book of the decade can read as a misjudgement of your own work. Choose titles that genuinely share something with yours in terms of tone, theme, structure, and readership.
You've briefly said why they're comps. A few words on what your book shares with each title is more useful than the titles alone.
The biographical paragraph
It's short. Two or three sentences is plenty.
It includes relevant writing credentials, if you have them — publications, competitions, relevant qualifications, a writing community or course. If you don't have these, that is completely fine; many debut novelists don't.
It includes relevant life experience, if it genuinely informs the book. If your professional or personal background gives you particular authority over the subject, mention it briefly.
It doesn't apologise. No "I know I'm not a professional writer," no "this is just something I've been working on in my spare time." Present yourself as what you are: a writer querying a finished novel.
Tone and presentation
The letter is roughly one page. Around 250–400 words for the letter itself, excluding any sample pages.
It's professional but warm. Not stiff, not over-familiar. Imagine writing to a respected colleague you haven't met.
It's free of typographical errors. Read it aloud. Then read it aloud again. A query letter about your meticulous literary novel should not contain a careless mistake.
It avoids overstatement. Let the pitch do the work. Avoid telling the agent the book is gripping, unique, or unputdownable. Show them in how you write the pitch itself.
The formatting matches the agency's guidelines. Some want the query in the body of the email, some as an attachment; some want the first ten pages pasted below, some the first three chapters. Follow each agency's instructions exactly.
Before you press send
You've followed the specific agency's submission guidelines — in full, and to the letter.
You've attached or pasted exactly what was asked for, and nothing else.
The agent's name still matches the agency. If you're sending several queries in a session, this is the moment errors creep in. Do check.
You've saved a record of what you sent, to whom, and when. A simple spreadsheet is enough. You'll be glad of it.
You've accepted that this is bait, not a verdict. A query letter's only job is to make an agent ask for more. It cannot capture everything your book is. It only has to open the door.
A last thought
Querying is daunting, and a checklist can only do so much. The hardest part of a query letter isn't the structure, but the perspective shift: stepping outside a manuscript you know intimately and learning to introduce it as a stranger would.
If you'd like an experienced editorial eye on your query letter and opening pages before you send them, my Submission Package Review offers exactly that — focused, honest feedback to help you approach agents with confidence.
Wherever you are in the process: your book deserves a query letter that does it justice. I hope this helps you write one.