Once upon a time…

I think I always wanted to be a writer. This proves it. I was going through some old journals as I declutter my condo and I happened upon this little gem from 1989. I do believe this was a draft of my very first query letter. It is a very good example of WHAT NOT TO DO WHEN QUERYING.

Enjoy…

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Mr. Editor,

I’m not really sure about the do’s and don’ts of submitting a manuscript. What I have enclosed is the first 4 chapters of my first (yet unfinished) novel. I’d classify it as a teen adventure story for ages 11 and up, I suppose. Also enclosed is an outline (rather proposed outline) of the rest. I figure it will come out to around 50,000 words — about 200 pages.

Let me tell you a bit about myself, okay? I’m eighteen years old, still in high school (gr. 13), looking at either Ryerson or Carleton for post secondary education. If my future as a fiction writer bombs then I’ll head into the field of journalism. For one semester at school I had a co-op at the local paper writing general interest stories and having a weekly column about the high school happenings.

The first two chapters of INSOMNIA were originally a short story written for my English class. My teacher thought I should send them in somewhere but I didn’t know where to send it. One day I just picked it up again and rewrote it leaving an open end for expansion.

Well, I certainly hope you like it. Please let me know either way. I’ve enclosed a SASE.

Thank you very much.

Sincerely,
Michelle R.
(aspiring novelist)

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Yes, I actually wrote “aspiring novelist” at the bottom. Because THAT MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE, PEOPLE. This may come as a shock, but I received a rejection form letter. I’m surprised they even responded at all, frankly. I do remember that they spelled my name wrong. Perhaps they were trying to tell me something.