9 Common Querying Mistakes for Screenwriters to Avoid so Literary Managers Don't Delete Your Email

Are these easy-to-avoid mistakes killing your chances of being read?

Since starting to post advice on LinkedIn about a month ago, I have received an influx of query emails.

This is exciting! I’m proud of writers for taking the opportunity to reach out to managers that they feel would be effective champions to have in their corner. However, I’ve also read comments from writers saying that no matter what they do, they’re not able to get through to any entertainment industry gatekeepers.

Make sure you’re not making one of these fatal mistakes when you compose your query email.

Mistake #1: Jarring Fonts or Abrasive Colors

Source: Unlayer

You might think you’re being creative, but if your email hurts my eyes, I’m going to immediately delete it.

When trying to get someone to consider you as a client, you want to minimize as much friction as possible. This means making your email easy to read, which gives your content a chance to shine. If the aesthetics of your email are an obstacle, that’s going to give your reader one more reason to not want to look at its contents.

Additionally, if your font is too big or too juvenile, your email will make you look unprofessional or too inexperienced.

Mistake #2: Email is Too Long

Source: Adobe Stock

I have thousands of emails in my inbox right now.

About half of them are work-related and client-related. These are the emails I prioritize throughout the day. 40% of my Inbox is Deadline announcements; these are action items for me to sift through, as I use them to chase staffing opportunities on new TV shows and pilots.

A manager’s job is to get work for our clients. It’s not to read query letters. That is something we do on the side when we can.

If your email is too long, a manager will be less motivated (and less able) to take time out of our busy schedule to consider reading your script.

Mistake #3: Tone is Too Self-Deprecating

Many writers think they’re being charming by putting themselves down in their query.

Creatives in general find it uncomfortable to toot their own horn or champion their own work. But if you don’t believe in yourself and your abilities, why should I? At the end of the day, a query letter is a sales letter.

Sell yourself to your reader!

Mistake #4: Tone is Too Cocky

Source: Lizzie Logan (from 30 Rock)

On the other hand, you don’t want to come across as too bold.

I often receive emails from writers using lines like “I am offering you the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with me.” This comes across as trying too hard. Be honest, be humble, and be confident. I know it’s a tricky balance to find, but if you can do so, it will make you stand out as someone worth working with.

Quiet confidence is everything.

Mistake #5: Tone is Too Formal

For better or for worse, the entertainment industry is a notoriously informal place.

Managers dress in casual clothing, even when we’re in the office or at work lunches. We use “Hi” to greet colleagues when we reach out via email, even in cold outreach. If you open with “Dear Ms. Knox,” it’s going to tell me that you’re an outsider who doesn’t understand the warm, familiar vibe that people in Los Angeles bring to professional situations.

This will make you sound like an inexperienced outsider (notice a pattern here?)

Mistake #6: Tone is Too Informal

Alternatively, I have received query emails that have a subject line that simply reads “Hi” and the body of the email consists of, “Will you rep me?”

Surely if you’ve read this far, I don’t need to explain to you why this approach won’t get you very far. But there are less exaggerated examples of a potential client getting too familiar. Maybe they send multiple separate emails, they look at my social media and make comments about my personal life, or they use language that implies that we’re friends who already know each other, thinking they can trick me into assuming we’ve met before.

Remember that this is professional correspondence. Keep it casual and light but still focused on your material and what you have to offer.

Mistake #7: Too Many Loglines

For the same reason I don’t want to read a long query email, I don’t want to read a long list of loglines.

If you’re entering a manager’s inbox to ask for their time and consideration, it should be with the strongest, most marketable sample that you have. If you have multiple samples, do some research on the rep that you’re targeting and try to figure out what they are most likely looking for or most likely to enjoy.

You’re better off taking more time to write one effective email than rushing through your queries and writing ineffictive emails to multiple managers.

Mistake #8: Summary is Too Long

A logline should be 1-3 sentences, max.

If you can’t sum up what makes your script exciting in a summary that short, then you don’t have a solid handle on what the hook of your premise is. If a manager sees a giant wall of text or a PDF one-pager, they’re going to move past your email; either because they don’t have time to read it, or they’re going to assume that this idea is too complicated to be viable in the marketplace.

Keep it short and to the point.

Mistake #9: Attaching Your Script Unrequested

Many of my LinkedIn followers have been reaching out to ask if I’ll consider their script.

I have consistently been telling eeryone to send their query to my work email. That doesn’t mean that I am ready to read the script. It means I want all queries going to the same place. If I have to start fielding loglines and writer bios on LinkedIn, it’s going to get confusing for me, and projects will fall through the cracks.

Don’t send your script to an agent or manager unless they specifically tell you “I’d love to read it! Please send over a copy of your script.” They’ll often include a submission release form for you to sign. This is very normal.

Most managers won’t read unsolicited submissions from a writer without some form of legal protection. We don’t know who you are or what frivolous lawsuits you could potentially bring against our company. This means that for legal reasons, company policy usually requires us to delete and not read any query emails we receive with a script attached to them.

Make sure you don’t put us in that position.