An excerpt from my article on Writing a Query Letter People Will Read which will be available 12/08/14:
Letter Structure
Quick introduction of yourself, past credits, contest wins, etc. (If you don’t have any, keep it brief, and thank them for their time.)
Title: Write to Reel
Page Count: 100 pages (OPTIONAL)
Genre: Contained drama, adult coming of age
Logline: A man sets out to teach screenwriting, but stumbles upon the self-realization that the students he’s mentoring outshine him in every way.
Quick, original closing. (Stan “The Man” Lee always signs off with “Excelsior!”)
How to Start
First and foremost…BE POLITE.
You’re not owed a single second of their time, so respect that fact.
Second, you are SELLING them something.
I know I harp on this a lot, but get over the fact that this is ART.
It’s only art if you write a script for yourself, and don’t feel the need to show it to anyone else…ever.
Sad to say, but you’ve entered the world of business if you hope to receive any sort of payment for your work.
Let that set in, because again, you’re selling YOURSELF and YOUR WRITING.
(And since writers are by nature reclusive, this may be a hard fact to overcome.)
Hollywood is in the business of entertainment, and just like any business they hope to turn a profit.
When addressing the email’s subject, use some sort of variation of this thread title (probably not a good idea to copy it exactly) so your targeted industry pro will know you’re respecting their time by not expecting too much of it.
“Painless Query”
“30 Second Query”
“Short and Simple Query”
Etc.
The idea is they’ll look at it and think, “Ah, why the hell not? Even I can spare 30 seconds.”
As with your writing, BE CREATIVE.
You’re trying to get them to BUY INTO your idea, and the first step is catching their eye out of the 100+ emails that are currently sitting unopened on their desktop.
Want the full article? Follow this link to Query Letter Tips.
