Our highly personalized approach to agenting makes it impossible for Benrey Literary to read or accept "over-the-transom" (unsolicited) proposals from unpublished authors. We do accept:

• Brief e-mail queries from unpublished authors (as described below)
• Queries and proposals from previously published authors
• Queries and proposals from unpublished authors referred by current B-L clients
• Requested queries and proposals from authors — published or unpublished — we have met with at writers' conferences and other events.

We strongly encourage unpublished writers to attend writers' conferences. That's one of the best ways to meet us and other agents. Many conferences are held each year throughout the country. Organizers invite literary agents to attend for the express purpose of meeting face-to-face with writers in search of an agent. Authors get to "pitch" their works; agents have the chance to provide immediate feedback and invite authors to submit detailed proposals for evaluation. (Visit our Writers' Conference Calendar page for a list of upcoming conferences that we plan to attend.)

All initial queries and proposals to Benrey Literary should be electronic submissions via e-mail.

• If you are sending a query, place it within the body of your e-mail. No attachments, please.
• Tell us it's a query in the Subject line. For example — Query: Moby Dick.

• If you are submitting a proposal, provide a brief query letter in the body of the e-mail and attach a Microsoft Word document — or an Adobe Acrobat PDF file — that contains a fiction or non-fiction book proposal, as described below. Please note that we won't attempt to open or read other file formats.
• Tell us it's a proposal in the Subject line. For example — Proposal: Gone With the Wind.
• Please do not mail us a hard-copy proposal unless we ask for one. We don't evaluate or return unsolicited hard-copy proposals.

Your query e-mail should "grab" our attention. One clear and succinct page (approximately 300 words) is more than enough to do the job. Proofread your query. Like all readers, we are discouraged by spelling errors, punctuation mistakes, and poor grammar. Countless books, blogs, and articles offer advice on writing effective query letters.

Our advice: don't worry excessively about the cleverness of your query. Use it to introduce your work, make clear why it stands out from the crowd, and explain why it will appeal to readers. Please make sure that your query describes the genre or category, length, and target audience.

The purpose of a fiction proposal is to get agents (and, eventually, editors) sufficiently interested so that they will want to read your complete manuscript. Your fiction proposal should be a single Microsoft Word document or Adobe Acrobat PDF file that includes:

Proposal Cover Page

Include the title, author's name, physical address, e-mail address, the genre of your novel (e.g. cozy romantic mystery, Civil War historical, women's fiction), and the length (word count).

One-Page "Sell Sheet"

A one-page overview that captures the flavor of your novel — think a big back-cover blurb — and presents its setting, major themes, and historical era (if appropriate). This is a key element of your proposal package; take time to do it well.

Biographical Sketch

Describe your writing experience, prior publishing history, education, and relevant achievements. These days, publishers look as closely at authors as they do at manuscripts. Don't be modest. Include any writing-related awards you have earned.

Story Synopsis

Develop a three-to-five page synopsis of your story. The goal of a synopsis is to convince the reader (eventually an acquisitions editor) that you have crafted a complete and compelling story

The First 30 Pages

Include the first 30 pages of the novel. (Include the prologue, if you have one.) Use a simple page format, with approximately one-inch margins top, bottom, and sides. Select a standard type font (e.g. 12-point Times New Roman), double spaced. Don't justify right-hand margins.

Market Analysis

Describe your novel's audience and your ability, if any, to sell books at speaking engagements, seminars, conferences, and other events. List other novels published within the past five years that are similar to your proposed work. Tell us why your novel is more compelling.

Author Marketing

Let us know if you plan to set up a web site for your book, create promotional "giveaways" (e.g. bookmarks), arrange your own book signings, or attend writers' conferences. Think out of the box when you come up with marketing ideas. Tell us also if you will be able to get a well-known writer to endorse your book.

History of the Manuscript

A note about first novels: it usually doesn't make sense for a first-time novelist to develop a proposal until the manuscript is complete. Few mainstream publishers will buy a first novel without a finished manuscript.

Non-fiction books are routinely sold to publishers on the basis of detailed outline and sample chapters. In fact, many editors prefer that the writer does not offer a completed non-fiction manuscript so that the concept and outline can be fine-tuned before the detailed writing begins. Your non-fiction proposal — submitted as a single Microsoft Word document or Adobe Acrobat PDF file — should include:

Proposal Cover Page

Include the title, author's name, physical address, e-mail address, the category of the book (e.g. self-help, recreation, true crime, inspirational, and Christian living), and the length (word count).

One-Page "Sell Sheet"

A one page overview that summarizes your proposed book in an exciting manner. Write a "thirty second elevator speech" that makes a compelling argument for publishing your book. Explain what the reader will take away when s/he reads the book.

Biographical Sketch

Chapter Outline

Prepare a detailed table-of-contents for your work that summarizes the content of each chapter. One four or five line paragraph describing each chapter is sufficient.

Three Sample Chapters

Include three chapters that are likely to impress us and editors. The chapters need not be sequential. Use a simple page format, with approximately one-inch margins top, bottom, and sides. Select a standard type font (e.g. 12-point Times New Roman), double spaced. Don't justify right-hand margins.

Market Analysis

Identify your novel's audience (the specific categories of readers your book is aimed at) and describe your ability, if any, to sell books at speaking engagements, seminars, conferences, and other events. List competitive books and explain the differences between your book and its predecessors, highlighting why your book will fill a gap or meet an unmet need. Tell us why your book is better.

Marketing Plan

A marketing plan is an essential element a non-fiction book proposal. It's up to the author (working with an agent) to "prove" that a sizeable target audience for the book exists, to sharply define this target market, to explain why the audience will chose the proposed book instead of competitive volumes in the marketplace, and to propose appropriate marketing strategies. Explain how you will use your "platform" (if you have one) for marketing the book — e.g. you frequently speak on the topic and audience members will buy books. Lastly, tell us if you know a prominent person who might increase your book's salability or credibility by writing a foreword.

History of the Manuscript

Please tell us the when's and the who's if you attempted to submit the manuscript — or earlier versions — to editors and/or publishers by yourself. We know that writers often meet editors at writers' conferences and other events and come away with opportunities to make direct submissions.