Expert Query Letter Writing Services
Query letter-writing services by bestselling writers and former Big-5 acquisitions editors
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Who We Are
We’re more than just a ghostwriting and editing firm—we’re a team of industry experts who offer comprehensive and personalized services to ensure you achieve your book-publishing goals.
Meet our team of bestselling editors and publishing professionals.
What We Do
Professional Ghostwriting
Work with our team to plan and write a book that expertly captures your style and vision. Our process allows you to work directly with former Big-5 editors and bestselling writers to ensure your book is of the highest caliber.
Book Coaching & Editing
Work directly with New York Times-bestselling editors to strengthen the substance and structure of your manuscript. Our editorial services improve the quality of your writing, and industry experts will provide in-depth consultation to advise you exactly how to target the market.
Publishing Navigation
We build and execute a comprehensive book-publishing strategy to achieve your goals. We navigate every step, including book concept, marketing, publicity, securing the ideal publisher or agent, book launch, and targeting the bestseller lists
Our Comprehensive Writing Services Include
Book-Planning
Bestseller Targeting
Direct Submissions to Publishers
Our Work
#1 national & WSJ bestseller
New York Times bestseller
#1 bestselling author
NYT bestseller
100,000+ copies sold
Six-figure deal with Harper and WSJ bestseller
Working with Kevin Anderson & Associates is a great experience. Having worked together on multiple books over the years, they’ve proven themselves to be reliable, responsive, and talented. Their team of bestselling authors is a great resource for us and I definitely recommend their services to any author or publisher looking for top-quality writing services with a well-managed process.
Our Team
Why Choose
Kevin Anderson & Associates?
Agency Connections
We work directly with top literary agents and publishers, allowing us to connect you with the perfect advocate for your book.
Quality Service
When it comes to grabbing the attention of a literary agent or publisher, the strength of your query letter or book proposal is nearly as important as the quality of your manuscript itself. Our team of publishing insiders know how to write query letters that sell.
Work With Industry Experts
Our team includes former literary agents, Big-5 acquisitions editors, and #1 New York Times-bestselling authors.
Our offices are in New York, Nashville, and Los Angeles.
Can’t get to us? We can bring our team to you.
FAQ
Why Do I Need A Query Letter?
Your query letter is an invaluable marketing tool that you will use to promote your book to literary agents and publishers. Since publishers are constantly receiving countless manuscripts, literary agents act as a filtering system for the publishing industry. The endorsement of a literary agent gives publishers a level of assurance that your material is worth their time to review it.
Some writers’ circles say that you will need to query 80+ agents before you can justify calling it quits. Each query letter should be personalized to the recipient and address how you see your work complimenting the roster of authors that the literary agent currently represents. The process is often long and taxing, and there is no guarantee that you’ll find representation. But, if you do, a literary agent will very likely be able to find a publisher for you and act as a champion for you and your book. Writing your query letter is the essential first step to obtaining a literary agent of your own.
What Are the Components of a Query Letter? How Is It Different Than a Book Proposal?
While there is no magic formula for the perfect query letter (in fact, the more personalized each letter is, the better), there are certain components that should generally be included.
First and foremost, a query letter is never longer than one page. Within that page, you must be sure to include a hook (a one- or two-line attention-grabbing statement that conveys the essence of your book), a brief bio that describes your credentials as an author, an explanation of why you think your book is a good fit for the agent or publisher, and last but not least, basic info about your book (such as the title, genre, and word count).
In addition to these specific elements, be sure to personalize, personalize, personalize! Have you attended a workshop with the literary agent or one of their associates? Have you studied one of their published authors? Did you hear the president of their company speak at a conference? Include anything you can that shows you’ve researched the agent or publisher, that you know their work, and that your book would be a good fit within their existing markets and business model.
A book proposal is quite similar to a query letter, except that it is longer and generally includes a synopsis or outline of the book, chapter summaries, detailed author bio, marketing platform/strategy, and a market analysis. Book proposals are generally used for nonfiction books and can be submitted for a manuscript that is not yet complete.
In general, authors of fiction and memoir/autobiography will submit a query letter and authors of nonfiction will submit book proposals.
Wondering what you should do for your book? Give us a call to get your free consultation.
Can I Send the Same Query Letter to More Than One Agent or Publisher?
Significant sections of your query letter can be sent to more than one agent or publisher; however, query letters are most effective when they are customized to your recipient. Most successful query letters include a section about how your manuscript relates to the distinct character or priorities of the agent or publisher you’re contacting.
Should I Send My Manuscript Along with My Query Letter?
Unless you’ve been specifically requested or directed to do so, don’t send your entire manuscript with your query letter! This is a classic pet peeve for agents and publishers and, more often than not, your unsolicited manuscript will end up in the recycling bin. Instead, be sure that your query letter or book proposal is attention grabbing and contains all of the necessary information about you and your book. Each agent will have specific submission requirements, which typically include a small writing sample from your book. If they like what they see, they’ll ask you to submit the entire manuscript for review.