Good morning,
I am concerned about the COVER LETTER business.
From what I've read, people seem to be doing different things, and I'd like to know if there is somebody on here that knows (from experience hopefully) what is the correct way, in regards to the cover letter.
Some use the cover letter as a way of SELLING YOURSELF. Others use it as a SYNOPSIS.
I've read that the cover letter and synopsis are different things and should be seperate documents. But some try to blend the cover letter & synopsis together.
If the synopsis is about the book, then surely the cover letter is supposed to cover you personally, as a writer and your experience.
What is the definition of the cover letter?
So what to do?
Send a seperate document for the cover letter, synopsis and a short sentence in the email?
Or will the shortness of the email prompt the agent into not being bothered to click on the attached documents?
What should we write in the email?
Much confused,
CT
Hi CT. I found it I think it was kate Baxter that posted it to me it was on my shared work so here is the link. All the best Paul G
http://blog.authonomy.com/2015/05/why-literary-agents-reject-your.html?utm_source=SilverpopMailing&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20150601_AFP_Recurring_MayNewsletter1&utm_content=&spMailingID=11938926&spUserID=NTY3OTczMzQyNzkS1&spJobID=523030761&spReportId=NTIzMDMwNzYxS0
Hi CT, I have just submitted for the very first time. Before I did I asked on here as you have and the amount of help was great. I was pointed to some sites that helped and had loads of help with editing from people on here, won't mention names as it could be embarrassing. I had a video link put in my post and that really helped. The agent gives a lot of info and reads some submission letters out with do's and don'ts but it was an eye opener. It doesn't matter how many times people tell you what you should do we don't seem to grasp it. Well I don't! but this was good. I will tray and copy it in to this post, if not have a look on a question I asked I think it was "submission letter AGAIN"
Hi, CT!
There's no standard cover letter. If you go onto agents' and publishers' websites, and carefully read EVERYTHING that you're supposed to (in this case: "How to submit"), you'll see that different agents / publishers ask for different things. Some tell you that your synopsis should be part of the main body of an e-mail, some ask you to send it as an attached document. Some only accept communication via e-mail, some ban it.
So, sorry: no easy answers to your questions, but (as far as my experience goes) ALL of them want a synopsis, and most want some kind of CV. Some ask for it to be short, others want more detail...