Query Letter Service

Question

Hello: can anyone recommend a good query letter service? I have a query letter but I'd like to have a professional company look over it and make some changes. I found a few good places, but they want me to sign up with their "whole package" services.
Any suggestions out there?
Robin

Usenet · Accepted Answer

[nq:1]Hello: can anyone recommend a good query letter service? I have a query letter but I'd like to have a ... a few good places, but they want me to sign up with their "whole package" services. Any suggestions out there?[/nq]
I don't really have any suggestions, but I'm curious what their "whole service" includes.
Are you planning to contact agents, managers, producers or production companies? Depending on what you're trying to do, there might be 100 to 200 people you'd want to contact. That's not really that many, and the physical cost of stamps, envelopes and nice-ish paper is only about a buck a pop. Add to that some sweat equity in figuring out a personal greeting for each and doing a mail-merge... I'm just curious how much more effort you'd get from such a service, and what they'd charge in excess of a couple hundred bucks.
In other words, why are you using a service instead of just hitting the bricks yourself? Do you think they'll really improve your query letter? I'm not saying they won't, but I'm wondering what it's worth, over-and-above just having it reviewed by a few people who might know something.

Alan Brooks

A with an Underwood
Any approach trumps
no approach.
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Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Hello: can anyone recommend a good query letter service? I have a query letter but I'd like to have a ... a few good places, but they want me to sign up with their "whole package" services. Any suggestions out there?[/nq]
My suggestion is DON'T.
Do research. Find out who bought what and who sold it - http://www.hollywoodlitsales.com
Get in touch with people most likely to like your kind of script.

Call them, don't waste money on a letter.
Don't know how to reach people? Get a subscription to - http://www.hcdonline.com
or
http://www.imdbpro.com
or
http://www.variety.com (you can look up articles about people and if they have a contact listing for them it's clickable in the article) or
http://www.showbizdata.com
or others.
Don't have any money? Try http://www.everyonewhosanyone.com

When you have the contact information, CALL. Don't call at 1:00 PST, most people are at lunch. Call after 5:00 PST or even later some times, and the person(s) who own/run the production company might be there and listen to your pitch.
Save up and come to town for a week to a Sherwood Oaks event - http://www.sherwoodoakscollege.com - you'll meet real people at big production companies who will actually talk to you.

Make calls, get the info, pitch what you have, get interest, make sure you spell their names right (very important) and above all else -

Write a GREAT script that everyone will want.
Find producers first, managers second, agents third.

Don't write query letters - due to a current court case you'll get your letter back along with a letter from their lawyer or a letter drafted by their lawyer saying they can't read anything and didn't even read your letter. Sound harsh? Welcome toHollywood.

It does not take a majority to prevail... but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men.

Samuel Adams

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Hello: can anyone recommend a good query letter service? I have a query letter but I'd like to have a ... few good places, but they want me to sign up with their "whole package" services. Any suggestions out there? Robin[/nq]
Hi, Robin,
I'm sure what I'm about to write is not what you want to read, but as a mother would say "It's for your own good."
First off, you should be warned that any company, such as the one you describe, that offers all of these "services" has only ONE goal in mined: To seperate new wannabe writers from their money. Put on your track shoes and run!
Now for the part you won't much want to hear. If you have the confidence in your writing to think you have a marketable script, then surely you are capable of writing a query letter.
All of which leads to another question: Have you considered cold calling instead of query letters? You see, the problem with query letters (and most especially query letters with an enclosed SASE) is that they are incredibly easy to ignore. There are agencies and prodcos (that demand SASEs in their blurbs to the press) where query letters are rarely read and the stamps from the SASEs are peeled off and divied up among office staff to use on their Christmas cards. Even when a query letter reaches someone's desk who may actually respond, it's so very easy to keep shoving the query letter aside "for now" while more demanding things such as a ringing telephone are tended to.
So heres are some suggestions for a cold calling program:
1. If you don't already have one, get yourself one of those phone plansthat includes unlimited long distance calling.
2. Practice a concise but interest-grabbing short narration of your movieon a friend. A CRITICAL friend! Hit the high points of your story and be careful not to get bogged down in back story or character analysis. Make it short and interesting. You'll use this on the RARE occasion when you will actually reach someone by telephone who will ask you what your script is about. Remember! When you tell someone about your script, they can always ask questions if they want more information, but you risk drowning them if you dump minutia on them at the beginning.3. Gather a list of all of the phone numbers for places you would sendquery letters to and start calling. Don't expect a 100% success ratio at reaching someone. Rejection is the rule, so it's the exceptions you're after. Keep your eye on that goal! If you're calling WGA signatory (literary) agencies, have an agent's name if you possibly can. Short of that, try to charm your way through even though this is pretty much an exercise in futility, but who knows? Nothing ventured...

If your list is comprised of production companies and you don't have a name, ask for acquisitions. When you talk to anyone at a prodco or studio who is willing to listen to you (if not your pitch), they will ask that you submit your script through an agent. If you don't have an agent (and why else would you be asking us about query letters?), ask if they will accept submissions from your attorney.
3. If you don't have an agent or an attorney, hopefully you have a friendwho is an attorney or you can find an attorney who will write a cover letter to go out with your scripts for little to no fee. While this isn't talked about a whole lot, it is a fairly standard practice within the industry for "un-agented" writers. And the attorney does not have to be an entertainment law attorney. Even an ambulance chaser will do. The critical factor is that s/he be a member of some state's bar.
Last, but not least, ONLY deal with reputable companies, whether they be literary agencies or prodcos. In this business, very often it is the most successful people who generously spend their time helping new talent. Those who want to charge you for "services" such as writing query letters or working with you to perfect your script so they can sell it aren't worth your time. There are no secret handshakes or magic words to write on a query envelope that will guarantee a sale. The only reliable way to open doors is with a damned good script.
Good luck!
Caroline

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]My suggestion is DON'T. Do research. Find out who bought ... and didn't even read your letter. Sound harsh? Welcome toHollywood.[/nq]
[nq:1]Let me add my voice to the above, seconding everything. While I'm sure that there are examples of people getting ... others, like query letter services, to do this for you, can be a very expensive form of "kidding yourself." NMS[/nq]
Amen, baby. (And this came from a guy, NMS, who did one of the most clever things I've ever heard to start selling scripts, other than writing good ones. I'll let him explain it if he wishes.)

You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.
Kahil Gibran

Usenet · Answer

Everyone, this has been extremely valuable advice; thank you. I'm glad I posted before I bought into a service. Thanks again; I'll let you know when I sell the script!
Robin

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