Resources
Query Guidelines
MacGregor Literary is not accepting unsolicited queries and proposals at this time. However, we are happy to share some thoughts on the submission process. When submitting a query to a prospective agent, you should normally follow these guidelines:
- Indicate who referred you to the agent
- Limit your query to one page
- Be clear in revealing the genre and subject of your manuscript, as well as identifying your target audience
- Point out what is unique or particularly strong about your idea
- Give a sense of your vision for marketing your book
- Share about your writing experience
Submission Guidelines
If the agent is interested in pursuing your idea, he or she will usually ask you to send more information.
For a nonfiction manuscript:
- A proposal detailing the title, audience, uniqueness, sales handle, and reasons why you believe the work will attract a readership
- A list of current titles that would help a publisher understand how your book will compete in the current market
- A description of how you can help market the book
- A table of contents and chapter outline in which you share a brief description of each chapter
- The first three chapters (approximately 50 pages of the work)
- A complete biography with your publishing history and an explanation of why you are qualified to write this particular project
For a fiction manuscript:
- A 5-6 page synopsis, double-spaced, in which you describe in greater detail the basic plot and introduce us to your main characters
- The first three chapters (approximately 50 pages of the work)
- A complete biography with your publishing history and a description of how you would help promote the book
Sample Proposals
Click to download; Adobe Acrobat or another PDF viewer is required to view.
- The Traveler’s Gift by Andy Andrews
- The Great Exhibition
by Kaye Dacus
Recommended Reading
For Novelists:
- Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maas
- The Plot Thickens: 8 Ways to Bring Fiction to Life by Noah Lukeman
- The 38 Most Common Fiction Writing Mistakes: (And How to Avoid Them) by Jack M. Bickham
- Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King
- Write Away by Elizabeth George
- Techniques of the Selling Writer by Dwight V. Swain
For Non-Fiction Writers:
- Stein on Writing by Sol Stein
- Woe is I by Patricia O’Conner
- Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss
- Bird by Bird by Anne LaMott
- The Elements of Style by William Strunk and E.B. White
- On Writing Well by William Zinsser
- Christian Writer’s Market Guide by Sally Stuart