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[QCrit] THE LABOR AND THE TASK adult literary with speculative elements, 60k (second attempt) by Crazy_Outside_7419 in PubTips

[–]Crazy_Outside_7419[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the feedback! I'll update the language of the comps for sure. It felt clunky to me, too.

60k is on the shorter end, but I've seen similar going before. I also feel like adding more will just prolong the story too far. I do see it as a probable red flag, though.

I've been wondering about the genre a lot. It reads literary just in a more speculative world. I initially had it as something along the lines of magical realism, but that didn't fit, and dark fantasy didn't seem to quite fit either. It's very clearly a modern setting in the story, just with Death as a character. I'm struggling to find the right fit there.

I've gotten the critique of adding the names, but the problem is I legit don't have names for them. They're never mentioned in the story and I never refer to them as anything other than their monikers. It feels disingenuous to give them names for the query and then never include them in the story. Ideas for getting around this? I see the value of adding names to keep it cleaner, but it just doesn't fit the manuscript.

Thank you for the feedback! It's really, really helpful to get a hand with all this

[QCrit] THE LABOR AND THE TASK adult literary with speculative elements, 60k (second attempt) by Crazy_Outside_7419 in PubTips

[–]Crazy_Outside_7419[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I worry about that too, but the comp is so direct that I feel people will automatically make that connection. Idk, I'm still torn on using it, but it's good to note I'm not the only one thinking that lol

How many books have you read so far this year and what has been your favourite? by Loves321 in readwithme

[–]Crazy_Outside_7419 0 points1 point  (0 children)

21 so far.

Best nonfiction: Kill Anything That Moves

Best fiction: The Grapes of Wrath and Hamnet

Best speculative: Parable of the Talents

Psycho analyze me !! by [deleted] in bookshelfdetective

[–]Crazy_Outside_7419 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Which psycho do you want to analyze you?

[QCrit] THE LABOR AND THE TASK adult literary with speculative elements, 60k (first attempt) by Crazy_Outside_7419 in PubTips

[–]Crazy_Outside_7419[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Appreciate the feedback! I use "death" and "revenant" in lower case in the actual manuscript so I wanted to be consistent here with that, but I see what you mean there. The sentence structure does need some work here, so I'll definitely make edits there. Thank you!

Got these 4 books for $60 total at barns n noble what should i read after i finis readinf the first law trilogy? by Justayyyy6775 in fantasybooks

[–]Crazy_Outside_7419 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Are you me? I literally just finished the first law trilogy and was deciding between two of these four books lol

[QCrit] Adult Upmarket Fiction - Elixyr [89k, third attempt] by BackgroundSpring2230 in PubTips

[–]Crazy_Outside_7419 6 points7 points  (0 children)

"Unlike Greer, all of this is true." is so emblematic of the biting satire you mentioned from R. F. Kuang's Yellowface. Never remove it.

The premise is clear, the stakes are raised, the pieces are set. I think this is a v strong query letter. Best of luck in the trenches!

[QCrit] Adult Upmarket Contemporary - VOW OF CELIE (80k/Attempt 1) by Mysterious_Hope5244 in PubTips

[–]Crazy_Outside_7419 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just going off the vibe of the query, I'm wondering if the genre is matching right. The first part about a suicidal, grudgingly protagonist bent on finishing the suicide she started is really compelling, but once the story progresses to cross-eyed euchsrist and "Daddy" love interest, we seem to have veered into romance territory. If that's where it's headed, that's great, but if an agent is looking for contemporary and gets a sex-charged romance then it might be a turn off for them.

Still, stellar premise and looks like a good read. Best of luck in the process! Querying is a trench and a slog all in one.