About Words Agency - Literary agency

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Submission Guidelines For Books Only

WE ARE ONLY ACCEPTING EMAIL QUERIES
About Words Agency is looking for commercial fiction and nonfiction.
We are NOT interested in representing poetry, religious/Christian, or true crime.

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To send your submission electronically, send an email to query at aboutwords dot org
with the subject: Query - [title of your book]

FOR FICTION QUERIES OR MEMOIRS:

Two separate items in addition to a short query letter with author name, title of book, and word count (not page count) should be inside one email, pasted in as text, not as an attachment:

* Short, one-page synopsis, with all plot points including the ending (ONE PAGE ONLY, copy/pasted from a Word document that is in Times New Roman 12-point font, with a title, author byline, single spacing, and a blank line between paragraphs)
http://writers.aboutwords.org/tipssynopsis.html

* First chapter plus prologue, if there is one (THE FIRST 1000 WORDS ONLY OF THE BOOK, starting with the prologue, if any, and continuing (or starting, if no prologue) with the first chapter, until a total of about 1000 words of the book is included)

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Tip: Narrative nonfiction (such as biography and memoir) is a special case of nonfiction. Send the synopsis/overview and the first chapter inside the email as with fiction. However, if you can also include competing books and book promotion, that would be helpful in evaluating the submission. An excellent writing reference book for memoirs and other narrative nonfiction is Writing Creative Nonfiction, by Theodore Cheney.

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FOR NONFICTION (NOT MEMOIR):

A full book proposal in addition to a short query letter with author name, title of book, and word count (not page count) should be inside one email, pasted in as text, not as an attachment:

http://writers.aboutwords.org/tipsproposal.html

Overview
About The Author
Book Promotion
Competing Books
Table of Contents
Chapter Summaries
Sample Chapter

Most queries will receive a free, no-obligation, personalized one-page analysis of the submission.

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We have personally reviewed and highly recommend the following writing reference books:

Stein On Writing, by Sol Stein (great all-around writing book)
Getting The Words Right, by Theodore Cheney (the best book on general editing)
Write In Style, by Bobbie Christmas (editing with your word processor & other tips)

The Elements of Style, by Strunk, et al (the original and still best on grammar & punctuation)
On Writing, by Stephen King (inspirational and educational)
Writing The Breakout Novel, by Donald Maass (how to write a best selling novel)
Writing The Breakout Novel Workbook, by Donald Maass (the companion workbook)

Writing Creative Nonfiction, by Theodore Cheney (the best for memoirs & bios)

Children's Writer's Word Book, by Alijandra Mogilner (important for age appropriate vocabulary)