Here is the actual query letter for what became By Darkness Hid. I submitted this letter with a sample chapter to Jeff Gerke at the Oregon Christian Writer’s Conference. Jeff bought my Blood of Kings trilogy and published it through Marcher Lord Press.
June 11, 2008
Jeff Gerke
Marcher Lord Press
8345 Pepperridge Drive
Colorado Springs, CO 80920
Dear Mr. Gerke:
Bloodvoicing is a gift, an endowment to communicate from one gifted mind to another. For a slave to have the gift is unheard of, yet one slave has more power than all the rest combined.
A young adult fantasy novel, Prince Gidon tells the story of two young people with a unique, ancestral ability to speak to, and hear, the minds of others: a slave forced to serve a prince who wants him dead and a young woman masquerading as a boy to avoid a forced marriage. The novel alternates between their points of view until their stories collide on the battlefield.
Judging from the steady stream of medieval fantasy novels on the bestseller lists, young adult readers remain fascinated by epic fantasy adventures. Projects similar to mine like Eragon, Dragonspell, Chosen, and The Bark of the Bog Owl bring a fun mixture of fantasy and faith to the Christian market.
I have two books contracted. Jason Farms will be released in spring 2009 (a young adult suspense novel from The Wild Rose Press), and A Mango and a Mud Church will be released in 2010 (an “all reader” book from Beacon Hill Press). My articles have appeared in Brio, Brio & Beyond, Shine Brightly, and Devo’Zine. My husband and I have worked with teens in the youth pastor role for nine years. I researched medieval life and swordsmanship for three months before I started to write this novel and can provide a works cited page.
If the premise appeals to you, I would be happy to meet with you to discuss the project. I can provide a marketing proposal and the complete 96,000-word manuscript.
Sincerely,
Jill Williamson
Enc. Synopsis, One Sample Chapter
Hello Jill, I’ve currently completed my first query letter (because my novel’s finished … LOL) but I’m worried that I may have missed the mark and it may not sound as professional as I would like it to. Would you be interested in giving feedback to my query letter? Thanks!
– Luan
Sure, Luan. I’d be happy to take a look at it. You can post it in a comment or email it to:
info@jillwilliamson.com
🙂
Jill
I love this. 🙂 Clear, concise, and to the point, but interesting at the same time. ^_^