Query Count: 8

I thought I would include a query count from now on. I think it will keep me accountable and hopefully show great progress during this part of the journey. Oh boy, what a journey it is!

This week I completely changed up the book explanation of my query. What took me two weeks (realistically more) to perfect before, has only taken a few days this time. I received feedback from a friend, who had not read my book. She did not think my original query was as full of intrigue and enticement as I hoped. After a moment of questioning the very existence of sanity, I started writing a new query.

The new version is quite changed from the old, instead of a stated explanation, it is first-person from my character’s point of view. It felt good to write Edan’s words again and ponder his life. After sitting on this new approach for a day, I started researching the concept of my fantastic idea: “query first person character pov.” As it turns out this a HUGE faux pas in the literary world. My favorite web-article about the subject was from Query Tracker Blog. The writer discussed how confusing a query book explanation can be when written in first person. Unless your book is a memoir, it can make you sound a bit crazy.

I took a step back, when I re-read the query with my new knowledge. It did sound a little off. I could make it work, but is it worth the risk? The answer is no. I carefully went back to the query and changed the language to 3rd person. I’m not sure it is quite as impactful, but pretty good. I think it is better than the previous query, which is what matters.

On to the weekend and querying again on Monday.