O THE COVER LETTER:
O Contents:
O Return Address. Make it very easy for the agent to contact you.
O Phone number, e-mail, website information, etc.
Hint: Is your phone number toll free? Professionals use toll free numbers.
O Address double-checked. Have they moved? Same suite?
O Addressed to the correct person. Use their name, not "Dear Editor,"
Hint: Consider a 25-cent phone call to check.
O Nothing informal. This is business.
O Times Roman, 11 or 12 point font, never smaller.
O High quality white paper. 20# bond at least.
O Your own letterhead stationery.
O Don?t have letterhead stationery? The professionals do.
Hint: Your word processor can create letterhead. Just use a different font.
O Business style format. Let your modern word processor help you here.
O Laser printed if at all possible. Ink jet is okay. NOT a 9-pin dot matrix printer.
Hint: Sweet talk your boss into printing it for you on the company laser.
O A "reminder" introduction used, if and only if it applies. "In Dallas, we spoke..."
O No more than one page for the cover letter.
O Absolutely nothing negative or amateurish in the letter. Avoid such errors as:
"Although I'm not published..."
"All my friends love it..."
"Since everyone else has rejected it, you're my last hope..."
O Sell, Market, and Sell. Sell the benefits, not just the bare facts.
Hint: Do you know a great marketing rep.? Let them look over your letter.
O Any impressive awards your manuscript has won.
O Great "hook", even if you must rewrite it fifty times to get it perfect.
O High-impact, concise "blurb".
Hint: See my "High-impact Thesaurus"
O Superb "clincher" at the end.
O Signed. (duh!)
O P.S. included if feasible. A postscript nearly always gets read.
O Spell checked, by computer and visually.
O Grammar checked, by computer and visually.
Hint: If you use Mail-Merge, pay SPECIAL attention to the greeting.
You don't want to write something like "Dear Ms. Dr. Jones,"
O Aged at least a day, and proofed again.
O Correct letter in the correct envelope!
O Double check this before sealing every envelope.
O THE SHORT SYNOPSIS
O Spell checked, by computer and visually.
O Grammar checked, by computer and visually.
O Aged at least a day, and proofed again.
Hint: Let a second pair of eyes read it.
O Correct synopsis in the correct envelope.
O Double check this before sealing every envelope.
O THE S.A.S.E:
O Correctly addressed to you (not to them!).
O Their correct return address.
O Envelope the size they requested.
O Proper postage.
O Courtesy piece of bond paper inside the SASE, inscribed "For your comments."
O YOUR BUSINESS CARD:
O Optional of course, but you should have them.
The professionals do (hint, hint).
O THE ENVELOPE:
O Correctly addressed to them (not to you!).
O Your correct return address.
O Proper postage. Won't they just love you if it arrives there with postage due?
O All enclosures.
O Cover Letter on top.
O Business card clipped to your cover letter.
O Short synopsis.
O Folded S.A.S.E, stamp showing prominently when they open your outer envelope.
