Personalizing Your Query Letter
Why It Matters
When you personalize a query letter, you’re not trying to impress an agent—you’re demonstrating intention.
Querying is often framed as writers asking agents for representation, but that framing isn’t complete. An agent isn’t doing you a favor. They’re entering a professional partnership where they agree to invest their time, expertise, and industry relationships without upfront pay, in hopes that your book will sell. That makes representation a two-way decision.
Personalizing your query letter shows that you understand this.
Querying Is A Business Relationship
An agent works for you. They advocate for your book, negotiate contracts, guide your career, and help shape your long-term trajectory as an author. You would not hire an employee—or enter a partnership—without knowing whether your goals, values, and working styles align. Agents think the same way.
When you personalize a query, you show that you:
Have researched the agent’s list and interests
Understand what kinds of stories they champion
Are intentional about who represents your work
That immediately sets you apart from mass-submission queries.
Know Who You Are Querying
Personalization starts with the basics—and those basics matter more than many writers realize.
You should always know:
The agent’s full name
The agent’s correct pronouns
That you’re addressing the right person at the right agency
A query that opens with “Dear Annie” and then refers to the agent as him signals a lack of care. It tells the agent the query was rushed, copied, or sent without intention. Even strong writing can be dismissed when the introduction shows inattention.
Taking the time to confirm names and pronouns is not about perfection—it’s about professionalism. It shows respect for the person you’re approaching and reinforces that you are serious about finding the right match, not just any match.
What Personalization Looks Like
Personalization doesn’t mean flattery, praise, or recounting an agent’s entire résumé. In fact, too much praise can work against you. Strong personalization is brief, specific, and professional—usually one or two sentences.
Effective personalization might reference:
The genres or themes the agent represents
A stated wish-list item that aligns with your book
An interview where the agent discussed what they’re seeking
The goal isn’t to convince them you admire them. The goal is to show that your book fits their interests and that you chose them deliberately.
What To Avoid
Personalization should never:
Sound desperate or apologetic
Include unrelated personal details
Over-explain or over-praise
Feel copy-pasted or vague
One well-placed sentence does far more than a paragraph of fluff.
Where To Include Personalization
You can personalize:
In the opening line of your query, or
In a short sentence after the pitch
Both approaches are industry-appropriate. What matters most is clarity and confidence.
The Bigger Signal You Are Sending
Agents aren’t just evaluating your book. They’re evaluating you—your professionalism, your attention to detail, and your readiness for a long-term working relationship.
Personalization tells them:
You take your career seriously
You’re selective, not desperate
You understand how publishing partnerships work
That’s the kind of author agents want to invest in.
For examples of industry-standard query letters, see my blog post HERE.
✨ The right agent is chosen with intention, not found by chance.
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