Your Query Letter Hook
Create interest in your story with a powerful hook.
The hook is important to making sure your letter doesn't end up in the recycling bin. How can you ensure your reader will want to read more?
The first paragraph of your query letter for any book or article should be the hook. The hook is what, well, hooks the attention of your editor or agent and encourages them to find out more. A well written hook is essential to a successful query. What does an effective hook look like?
Version One:
When an event happens, a character of certain qualities will do something special to get through the event.
Version one is often called the “when” hook. It’s a formula used often because it works. It’s an easy way to create a one sentence description of your story that invokes interest.
Version Two:
What if something happened? How would you react? Would you be able to get through it? In this book, so and so is faced with the same challenges.
Version two asks the reader questions to create interest and personalize the experience. They ask the reader what he or she would do in tricky situations. They should make the reader want to know how your main character handles the same situation. Don’t answer these questions in your query letter. The answers will be found in your manuscript.
Version three is an edgy quote from your novel that speaks to the climax and leaves the reader wanting to know how the situation is resolved. This works best in the first person but can also be effective for a third person narrative.
For every expert on writing query letters there is a suggested way to write a hook. There is no one right or wrong way as long as the hook does the job of getting the right editor’s attention.
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Need more help with query letters?
- Addressing Your Query Letter
