Most of us have at least a high school education. One of the things that will get you rejected is sloppy copy. Part of that “use of language” means grammar, spelling, paragraph structure, and where you choose and don’t choose to use adverbs and qualifiers. “For me, honestly, it’s all about voice.” Much the same way a reader gravitates toward one book over another. It has to be a great book that grabs an agent’s attention in that moment. I asked literary agent Jessica Faust, who also owns BookEnds, LLC, what makes a query stand out, and she said, “I don’t think there’s any easy answer to that question. A great story means it’s written in a dynamic voice with strong, engaging characters sparking dialogue a sense of place and time a well-constructed plot terrific structure and wonderful use of language. The most important element of getting a book or story considered for publication is to have a great story. Agents, editors, and publishers are investing in you, and you have to prove that you are worth it.
Even if you have a day job and “write on the side,” professional presentation is important. These individuals and organizations want to work with professionals. If you’ve put a year into writing your book, you should put in a few extra hours towards proofreading, crafting a strong query letter, and researching your target agents and markets. Yet so often, the pieces are rejected due to simple choices that make the difference between acceptance and rejection. Riters spend a lot of time creating, crafting, and polishing stories.
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