The agent’s answer
Don’t query until the complete proposal is ready, Kelly says, even though the manuscript itself usually is not. She recommends a brief elevator pitch that leads with the nonfiction genre, then who the author is, why they are the best person to write it and why this book now. Kelly also explains that many of her own clients arrived through events, professional networks or referrals. That is evidence from her practice, not a rule that cold querying is ineffective; writers should use the route available to them and follow each agent’s stated process.