QUERY
LETTER vs. COMPLETE MANUSCRIPT
As
you get better acquainted with publications and editors, you will
find a difference in preference as to how they want to be contacted
by you with freelance submissions. Some publishers want to see only
the completed manuscript, some want only a query letter, and others
will take either. It is important to know what each wants and abide
by that preference.
If
they want a completed manuscript, send them something that fits their
publication as exactly as possible. That means it is the right
length, the right style, an appropriate topic and the right slant. A
publisher will know immediately if you have done your homework and
are sending them something that matches who they are—or if you have
chosen them at random or as a last resort. Realize, however, that even if you
match the criteria exactly you may still get a rejection. There are
a lot of reasons for rejections that you have no control over, such
as their being overstocked, having recently published or accepted
something similar, overdrawn budgets, etc. But even rejected
manuscripts will be noticed if they have all the hallmarks of an
appropriate submission.
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