How many of you landed your manager off of a Cold Query?

[sppeterson]

Originally Posted by Bono

Don't write query.... it's not a trick.

TITLE -- GENRE

I'll second that in general.

Though if querying managers it seems Management Inquiry -- My Name has been working okay too. In those case I also have a longer query letter that includes a little more biographical information.

[Bono]

Query might be one of those words that people block too... can create a filter to put in trash any email with that word. And it's a pointless word. Like logline...

You want them to read the email quickly, so that means, good title, great logline. And then in 2 seconds they'll say, yes, send me it or not.

[zenplato]

Originally Posted by Bono

Don't write query.... it's not a trick.

TITLE -- GENRE

Yes, it is a trick...a trick in a sense that you want them to read it and not dispose of it.

Come on now...let's not play with words.

Not to mention, you're tricking the filters so they don't put your email in the trash, fyi.

[docgonzo]

I landed my first manager through a referral.

I landed my second, and current, manager through a referral.

All cold queries have resulted in jack squat.

[Bono]

Let's spend 10 pages arguing over the word "trick". Or.... (Barney Stinson voice).... we could get back to the point.

Most of us here, actually got our reps by sending out equeries.

We want them to read our email, not throw it in the trash. So come at them with confidence. You put a title and the genre in the subject line. They all know it's a "query". You send out 100 emails and if you have a good logline, you'll get some people wanting to read it.

A trick would be lying about what you have done and what your script is.

Do you think managers read the subject line "Molly The Whore -- Comedy" and think, I wonder if this is from my mom? They know. They always know...

If it's not from their clients or another rep or a person they know, then it's a query from a writer. I'm sure 90 out of 100 emails are queries. It's their job.

[sppeterson]

Also, not putting "query" in the subject line is how you make clear that this is an email hand-sent by you and not blasted out to 3000 people on a list by a query service.

[nathanq]

I really don't see why people are arguing in this thread about querying. A manager's job is to read scripts and not much else. They'll read scripts if they think they're promising, that's it. And you do whatever you can to get them to do that.

[brubenow]

Anyone want to post a logline that got them a read?

[sppeterson]

Originally Posted by brubenow

Anyone want to post a logline that got them a read?

Lots of reads off this one:

**************
Hi XX,

I was hoping you might be interested in my family adventure, SPY DOG:

A troubled teen finds an injured dog and nurses it back to health. But as the dog's memories return, we discover that it's a highly trained, expertly bred espionage canine that got amnesia in the middle of a mission. Now the boy must protect the dog from hostile agents and help it complete its mission.

Think The Bourne Identity, but Jason Bourne is a dog.


I'd be happy to send this over to you. Thanks for your time,

-Steve Peterson
sppeters@fastmail.fm

******
But actually every query I've written has generated some reads -- just need to hit up enough people.

[MontanaHans]

@sppeterson: SPY DOG sounds friggin HI-larious. How has that not been made yet...? Thanks for sharing. I like your letter's opening.