Submission Guidelines - Cowles Ryan Literary Agency

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

How do you submit your book idea to us?

Please send us a Query Letter via email in the 3-5 paragraph form outlined below. A query is important because it helps you focus your project, and helps us understand it at a glance. Your query letter will need to be specific and adhere to these guidelines to be considered.

Your Query Letter:

Pitch your idea in the first paragraph. A good pitch summarizes your project clearly. It should also create excitement and interest in your project. Be sure to include the title, genre, and target market/audience. Also, research your category or genre, and position your project against other similar titles.

Give us more detail about the story or subject in the second paragraph (or two). For fiction, describe the storyline of the book and tell us briefly about the setting and main character(s). For non-fiction, explain your specific approach to your subject, and its relevance. Again, create interest and excitement in your story or subject. This section should be brief and to the point – no more than one or two paragraphs.

Finally, in the third or last paragraph, tell us about yourself. Why are you uniquely qualified to write this book? Establishing your qualifications to write about a specific subject is especially important for non-fiction. Include your publishing history, and mention awards, grants and fellowships as well as previous publications. For both fiction and non-fiction, an author with writing credentials whether in literary magazines, daily newspapers, university presses or other published books is always taken more seriously.

What additional material should you send us?

If you are writing a work of fiction please send the first ten pages of your material. If you are writing non-fiction, we need to see a brief proposal, a table of contents and a writing sample (this can be the first 5-10 pages of a chapter). You may include this material with your query if it is embedded in the body of your email. We do not open attachments.

Be sure to send your contact Information:

Please enclose your e-mail address and phone number in your email.

Where to send your query:

The Cowles Ryan Agency accepts e-mail submissions only. The query letter and submission materials should be imbedded in the body of your e-mail. We do not open attachments.

Please see contact section for e-mail info

What's the next step?

We wish we could respond personally to every query we receive. That is not possible, but we do review the queries we receive that adhere to our submission guidelines. If we are interested in your material, we will follow up with either a phone call or email to request more information, such as additional sample chapters. We politely request that you do not call to follow up on your query unless we contact you. If you do not hear from us within 4-6 weeks of sending your query, please assume we are passing on your project. Our decision not to pursue a specific project at this time does not mean others won't respond, so don't give up!

We know your project is important to you, so please know we appreciate your efforts and the chance to consider your work. Thank you for your interest in our agency.



			SUBMISSION GUIDELINES How do you submit your book idea to us? Please send us a Query Letter via email in the 3-5 paragraph form outlined below. A query is important because it helps you focus your project, and helps us understand it at a glance. Your query letter will need to be specific and adhere to these guidelines to be considered. Your Query Letter: Pitch your idea in the first paragraph. A good pitch summarizes your project clearly. It should also create excitement and interest in your project. Be sure to include the title, genre, and target market/audience. Also, research your category or genre, and position your project against other similar titles. Give us more detail about the story or subject in the second paragraph (or two). For fiction, describe the storyline of the book and tell us briefly about the setting and main character(s). For non-fiction, explain your specific approach to your subject, and its relevance. Again, create interest and excitement in your story or subject. This section should be brief and to the point – no more than one or two paragraphs. Finally, in the third or last paragraph, tell us about yourself. Why are you uniquely qualified to write this book? Establishing your qualifications to write about a specific subject is especially important for non-fiction. Include your publishing history, and mention awards, grants and fellowships as well as previous publications. For both fiction and non-fiction, an author with writing credentials whether in literary magazines, daily newspapers, university presses or other published books is always taken more seriously. What additional material should you send us? If you are writing a work of fiction please send the first ten pages of your material. If you are writing non-fiction, we need to see a brief proposal, a table of contents and a writing sample (this can be the first 5-10 pages of a chapter). You may include this material with your query if it is embedded in the body of your email. We do not open attachments. Be sure to send your contact Information: Please enclose your e-mail address and phone number in your email. Where to send your query: The Cowles Ryan Agency accepts e-mail submissions only. The query letter and submission materials should be imbedded in the body of your e-mail. We do not open attachments. Please see contact section for e-mail info What's the next step? We wish we could respond personally to every query we receive. That is not possible, but we do review the queries we receive that adhere to our submission guidelines. If we are interested in your material, we will follow up with either a phone call or email to request more information, such as additional sample chapters. We politely request that you do not call to follow up on your query unless we contact you. If you do not hear from us within 4-6 weeks of sending your query, please assume we are passing on your project. Our decision not to pursue a specific project at this time does not mean others won't respond, so don't give up! We know your project is important to you, so please know we appreciate your efforts and the chance to consider your work. Thank you for your interest in our agency.