The query letter

Dear ________:

My young-adult novel, A Door Just Opened, is the story of a farm family in New Jersey in the early 1900s. The family is shocked by the unsuspected pregnancy of 16-year-old Mary Ellen, the oldest of their three daughters. The surprise birth of her baby throws the family into a state of emotional upheaval, but eventually draws them closer.
 
Anna, the 13-year-old daughter, hides her passionate desire to go to high school, and instead serves as a strong ally and support to her parents during the difficult months after the baby’s birth, when Mary Ellen succumbs to postpartum depression. The climax comes when some startling developments lead to Anna achieving her yearned-for goal of being the first girl from her small farming community to attend high school.
 
I am a freelance writer whose work has appeared in a number of national magazines, newspapers and journals. I was a finalist for the 1996 Blank Literary Competition Prize in creative nonfiction and a scholar at the 1997 [Blank] Writers Conference. My memoir, [Blank], was published in 2006. I also co-authored the book [Blank].
 
As a former teacher, I have many contacts among educators and parents, as well as a considerable platform here in this part of New England due to my appearances connected to my memoir. In the past three years, I have participated in more than 60 book events: readings, signings, book talks, panels and interviews in northern Massachusetts, southern New Hampshire and Maine, and Hood River and Portland, Ore.
 
Thank you very much for taking the time to consider my book. I would be happy to send you part or all of the manuscript.

Sincerely,

[Name withheld]