Cover letters?
Dear Horace Greeley,
What should I put in a cover letter? It seems a bit pointless to me, do you ever read them and what are they for....apart from the writer's bio, of course. I'm sure it's fascinating to read them all. But am I ok to just put something like: Thank you for considering my work.
Thank you for answering my question,
Jackie
Dear Jackie,
There are a few things you should absolutely put in your cover letter, even if the publication in question doesn’t read them (kind of like we don’t read them).
A bio that specifically calls out other places you have published, because if readers like your work (and we’re sure they will), they’ll want to know where to find more of it.
Your real name and your publication name (if it’s different).
If it’s a market that accepts reprints, mention where it was first printed and when.
Whether it’s a simultaneous submission. A lot of paying markets don’t accept simultaneous submissions because they pay a (usually very small) staff of editors to read submissions, and they don’t appreciate finding a good submission only to discover that it was already accepted elsewhere. On the other hand, editors increasingly understand that the balance of power in publishing is changing - it’s no longer the editors who wield all the power and can therefore make all the demands. With more outlets for publication than ever, it’s just not reasonable for any publication to assume they’re the only outlet to whom a writer is sending their material.
If you’re really nice, it would be great if you mentioned where you heard about a given publishing opportunity, since most indie journals have only a few ways of getting their calls out there, and it’s often hard to tell which ones are the most effective.
Ever your humble servant,
Horace Greeley