Time to start the dreaded querying...yuck!

    Okay, so I've written two novels...Now what?  Querying, that's what.  What a pain (a necessary one, of course, but a pain nonetheless.)  When I started writing Out of the Broom Closet back a few years ago I really had no clue how all this stuff works.  (I still feel a bit clueless, to tell you the truth.)  I wrote my book, had my "fan club" give me feedback, made some edits, then sent about 20 queries out to different agents to try to get representation.
    See, for those you not in the field, it turns out that generally you are supposed to get an agent to rep you before you even approach a publisher.  I can't just go up to HarperCollins, for example, and say, "Hey dude!  You want my book or not?"  You have to have an agent do that for you.  However, much to my frustration you can't just "hire" an agent.  It's not like they are all waiting out there for writers to come along and pluck them from a lineup.  It's quite the opposite!  Think of it as a job interview.  The agent has to be interested in your query letter (your "resume") enough to give your book a chance (the "interview") and then they decide whether to rep you ("hire you") or not.  
   When I did my first batch of OOTBC queries I got all "no thank you" responses (or NO response which sucks even more) except for one.  I had one agent who was interested in reading the first 50 pages of OOTBC.  When I got this email I was THROUGH THE ROOF with excitement.  I bundled up the first part of my baby and sent her off...waiting patiently for a few weeks until...I got a rejection letter.
   This bummed the hell out of me but I realized (after much researching on the internet, talking to other writer-type folk, and doing some soul searching) that I need to BUCK UP and that rejections would be much more plentiful than the elusive "YES, I WANT TO REPRESENT/PUBLISH YOU"  response. 
    Since this all went down a couple years ago I have half heartedly sent out another dozen queries for OOTBC, all to be met with negatives.  My thought is that my manuscript is too long...approximately 140,000 words (which is AT LEAST 20,000 too long for a first time author in the paranormal romance category.)  See, publishers don't want to take a chance on printing a large book if the author is new and untested.  More pages means higher pub costs, less copies fitting on the shelf at Borders, etc.  Realizing that OOTBC was probably too long I dropped it like a hot potato (for now...) and decided to focus on a YA project, SHADOW GIRL, keeping the wordcount in mind the whole time.
    Now SHADOW GIRL is done (and only 65,000 words...a proper length) and the first round of edits are finished.  I need to start querying for it but, man, I'm just a huge slackass procrastinator when it comes down to it. Every week I say, "This is the week I'm going to write my query letter and start sending it out." Alas, I've yet to write it.  Instead I spend my time reading OTHER writers' books or doing possibly pointless things like creating blogs no one will read.
    I'm putting it down on paper (well, internet-y blog faux paper) that I WILL get my query letter done in the next week OR ELSE I'M A HUGE SHAMEFUL LOSER WHO DOESN'T DESERVE TO HAVE HER DREAMS COME TRUE OR EXPERIENCE FULFILLING HAPPINESS!  (Think that will work?  Too dramatic?)
    While I'm at it, I need to get my stinkin' synopsis done too.  That's usually a several page summary of the book.  Harder, IMHO, than writing the freakin' book.  One problem at a time though.  Get the damn query written and then I won't have to live with the self-imposed shame waiting for me.  Today is 1/23/11...I've got until 1/30/11.  Better get crackin'!  
     In the mean time, I'll post my query for OOTBC so you can see what I'm talking about.  I LIKE my OOTBC query (this was not my first draft at all.  I changed it a lot.)  Apparently the agents don't like it though...Still think it's the 140,000 words scaring them away.