Last November I offered free query letter evaluations to members of the (former) Query Club in return for using their queries as teaching tools. Having never made this type of offer to a large group of writers, I was totally unprepared for the responses. Dozens and dozens of query letters flew into my email, reminding me of the pressure agents face every day.

It's daunting to discover an incredibly long list of queries, waiting to be read. Although the stories and projects described were diverse and fascinating, reading them required hours of time.

Welcome to AgentWorld. Every week agents read dozens, or hundreds of queries, hoping to find the next best-selling author. Small wonder they read just the first few lines, and not every line of every query. They don’t have time. (It’s rumored that some agents have lives outside of the business. They actually spend time with their kids, significant others, bowling buddies, etc.)

So, keep in mind the pressure to read to queries that agents live with every day. Do yourself (and them) a favor and write a query that helps them make a quick decision based on your fabulous writing skills and saleable manuscript.

NO, NO, AND NO! Focus on the manuscript you're introducing. Once you and your agent establish a working relationship, you can discuss your previously written manuscripts. Sometimes they can be resurrected, revised and published.

The format for a query letter is not "Emily Post Perfect." This is a business letter. Jump right into what you have to offer: story or non-fiction manuscript. No agent will care about you until they care about your manuscript. You could be an ax murderer, and if you've written a compelling manuscript, they'll be interested in representing you.

Amazingly interesting and well-written manuscript first pages are flowing into the contest. There's still time to enter if you'd like to compete to win a one-hour consultation (first prize) with me. The wining first paragraph will be discussed, along with other entries that are top notch. I'm constantly amazed at how varied and rich your stories are, and how well you (meaning contest entrants) have written first paragraphs to capture the interest of the reader (the agent), and motivate them to turn the page and keep reading to find out more about your story and what happens next.