Pitch, submission and query. Do these terms leave you scratching your head? You’re not alone.
And if you feel silly speaking out in a workshop or Facebook group to let everyone know that you don’t know what these basic terms mean, you’re also not alone.
Pitch, submission and query. The basics of getting published.
They’re the first things you do to present your writing to potential publishers. They’re three different ways to prepare your work to send out into the world. Each has a different format. You send each for a different reason, and over the course of your writing life, you’ll likely use all of them at least once.
Yes, a pitching, querying and submitting may be basic and simple, but each has a specific format and meaning. Get them wrong and you run the risk of having your writing rejected without even having been read. Get the details and formatting right and you put yourself in the top five percent of people who send their writing to be published.
There’s no shame in not knowing.
Many people never ask for definitions of pitch, submission and query for fear of looking foolish. The guidelines of each are simple to learn and easy to remember, but if you never ask, you’ll never know.
In this post, I’ll define these three publishing terms then offer an overview of how and when to send which.
Ready? Let’s go.
What is a pitch?
You have an idea for an article you want to publish to a commercial magazine or journal. Instead of writing the whole thing, you send a relatively short e-mail — usually no more than 500 words — to an editor proposing what you’d like to write for them. This e-mail is your pitch. You’ll outline what the piece is about, what it will include, why it’s timely to publish now (if applicable) and why you’re the very best person to write it.
Pitching a topic instead of a story is one of the biggest mistakes writers make when pitching editors. Remember, the most important part of a pitch is the story you want to tell, and you want to make your story clear in a sentence or two at the beginning of your pitch.
The writing in your pitch is like an audition. You’re letting an editor know how you write and you want them to love your voice and how you approach the topic. While your final article may not match the tone and style of your pitch, how you present yourself in your pitch shows how you write and goes a long way to getting a reply from an editor.
Do you want to write on spec?
Sometimes, an editor will ask you to send the entire piece so they can read it and decide. This is called “on spec.” It means they’ve made no promises to publish your writing, but they’ll decide after reading.
You may not have written the piece before sending your pitch. In which case, you have to decide if you want to write the whole thing immediately or if you’ll just pass and find another place to publish. Many writers feel having to write a piece on spec without even knowing how much you’ll be paid if they approve your work for publication isn’t worth the time and effort. For others, it will depend on the publication. So if the New York Times or The Atlantic or another magazine for whom you’ve been dying to write gives you an option on spec, you might want to test the waters. It’s your choice.
What’s a submission?
When you submit a piece of writing, you send a finished piece to the editor or publication for their perusal, usually a publication that focuses more on the craft of writing or a literary magazine. Submissions can be for short and long pieces, fiction and non-fiction, poetry and prose. It’s usually not for books.
Submission differs from on spec in that the publishing outlet only accepts completed pieces for consideration. They don’t accept pitches at all.
Editors want to read the entire piece before deciding if it’s right for them or not and if it fits a theme they may have for the magazine. Your e-mail is a cover letter. It’s not an audition in the same way a pitch can be. Instead, your e-mail introduces you, your work and the piece you’re submitting to the publications’ editors and readers. Each publication has a different way of asking you to submit your work. Read and follow their guidelines carefully.
Many publications use the Submittable interface for you to send your work. Your cover letter is built into their system and they include all the information you need to submit — due dates, formatting, type of writing — right on the Submittable page. Submittable also has a regular newsletter that will keep you up to date on their latest news and also upcoming submission possibilities.
What is a query?
A query is a one page, few paragraphs intended to entice a potential publisher or agent to want to read (and eventually publish) your book. A query begins with a hook to make your reader want to read more. Then you follow with a brief overview of your book and your bio. Simple short and sweet, but one of the most difficult things to write well.
The goal of a query letter? You want your reader to ask for more. What your reader asks for will differ. It could be ten pages, fifty pages, maybe even the whole book.
For fiction or memoir, you want to complete and polish your book before sending the query. Why? Imagine you send it in and an editor wants to read the whole manuscript, but you don’t have it yet. Then what? You’ve lost an opportunity and may not get another chance.
Nonfiction is a bit different in that you don’t have to write your book first. You can instead send a proposal.
A non-fiction book proposal includes different sections, such as a chapter overview, other books that are like it, market research and sample pages. This isn’t an exhausting list of what you’ll want to include, but it does show you that the marketing aspect and audience for your book needs to be clearly outlined in a way you don’t need to do with a pitch or submission. What each publisher or agent wants varies. Always follow the guidelines you’re offered.
What a pitch, submission and query have in common
Know your publisher, agent or editor. Read the writing the publisher produces and understand the kind of writing they represent.
Follow the prescribed guidelines to the letter. Each publisher, agent, editor or press requests their guidelines for a reason. You run the risk of your writing being ignored if you don’t.
Research what each has published previously. Make sure you’re not offering a piece of writing they already have or would never publish.
Your writing speaks for you. Whether you’re presenting a short synopsis of your book, a pitch for an article about cows in Argentina or a short story based on an exhausting night you once spent in Iceland, your writing will always be more important than who you are or what you’ve done in the past. While yes, a well published and popular author will catch the eye of a publisher more easily, if their writing doesn’t work, it’s unlikely their words will end up in print. But a first-time author who has written a piece that hits all the right notes? Well, I can’t 100% promise anything, but I’d bet good money you’re publishing days are coming soon.
