Queries, queries, and yet more queires II

First there was QueryFail, then came AgentFail, events that touched tender spots in many people and stunned many others with their fury. If you wade through them (I only managed to read snippets) you may agree that we can learn from them if we can find a way to manage the negativity.

In comes Nathan Bransford, ever helpful and positive, with Agent for a Day. He invited readers to submit queries, 50 of which were randomly chosen and posted on his blog on Monday, April 13. His readers chimed in to comment on these queries and to choose the five queries that interested them.

There is still some negativity in the comments but if we ever wonder how our queries compare to the others, this is a fabulous opportunity to find out. I discovered that I couldn't read more than seven to ten queries at a time, and even then I skim, a lot. A few of them piqued my interest: voice, plot, possibilities. I plan to re read those to see if I can pinpoint just what attracted me to them.

You want more real-life examples, you say? Well, another uber-agent, Kristen Nelson, posts examples of the queries that caught her eye, with comments by her, as well as letters she sends to editors. Check them out.