Literary Agent Query Letter

Overview

The title of my book is Matriculation: Fall Semester 2012. I am not attached to the title it is a work in progress. The book itself is finished. It is intended to be the first part of a series entitled Matriculation, which follows the adventures of Jillian Peters a twenty-two-year-old grad student getting her first taste of true independents by pursuing her master’s at a university in south Florida. The first volume of the series encompasses Jill’s first semester at her new university and in her first apartment. An older student, Aaron Michaels attempts to insinuate himself into every aspect of her life, and attempts to alienate her from what he considers bad influences. I would classify this book as drama with a subgenre of erotica. The demographic I am attempting to reach with this series is the eighteen plus crowd. I expect it will mostly be read by young women, and I hope they get the message I am trying to get across in this first volume; which is no amount of money or charm gives a man the right to treat them like shit.

Competitive Titles

I know when the word drama is mentioned people are inclined to think of Shakespeare’s work. I will freely admit this is nowhere near the caliber of Romeo and Juliet, but it is definitely dramatic. To me this is a more realistic representation of the relationships in Twilight and Fifty Shades of Grey. I have all of the books in bother series, and I have to say as a woman I’m a bit concerned about the message being sent by those particular stories. I would hope most women don’t turn to fictional stories when setting the standards for their relationships, but I have heard one too many women say “every man should read Fifty Shades of Grey”, or “I wish I or my daughter could meet someone like Edward.” Both Christian Grey and Edward Cullen are rich powerful men who use their charm, money, and power to manipulate impressionable naïve young women. Again the goal of my book is to portray a strong young female who’s not afraid to tell Mr. charming rich and powerful “Back off. This behavior is not ok. No matter how much you buy me or how many fantastic freaky orgasms you give me.” I have also read the Crossfire series and though Eva and Gideon are both possessive and jealous they both realize their behavior is not ok, and they talk about it with each other.

Author Biography

I am a thirty-two year old woman with a bachelor’s of science in psychology and a bachelor of arts in anthropology, and a minor in women’s studies. During my second to final semester at college I participated in a sixty-hour training program to become an advocate for victims of domestic and sexual violence. I was also a member of the Feminist Majority Leadership Association. I participated in two of their performances of Eve Enzler’s Vagina Monologues; specifically the monologue Hair and My Short Skirt. Up until this point writing has been a hobby for me. I have numerous short stories published on writing.com under the handle J. L. Henry (Jenn). Most of these stories have been entered in erotic romance writing contests, and some have even placed or earned honorable mention. A few of these pieces are Tail Gating, which won first place, and Persona, which won second place in the same contest under a different prompt. I have also written a few short stories in the fantasy genre. I enjoy reading erotic romance and fantasy novels.

Marketing and Promotion

I will be the first to admit this is where I may falter. My husband has a degree in web development so he would have no problem helping me set up a webpage to help me promote my books. I can also promote my books on writing.com and Facebook. Other than that I am not sure how else to do it except word of mouth through friends and family.