Query Letter Critiques with Antöinette Van Sluytman (R&R), fall 2025
October 1st, 2025 - November 5th, 2025
with Antoinette Van Sluytman
Non-members may register on September 1st at 10:00 (EDT).
This class is geared toward the writer who seeks a pitch-perfect submission package, and who would like a professional eye on their query material.
You will post your query letter to the critique workspace, where Antoinëtte will give you her feedback to help you strengthen it. You then have a week to revise and resubmit your query letter time for further feedback. The group concludes with a call where each participant has a short one-on-one to get answers to any lingering questions from Antoinëtte.
You may optionally peer critique the other manuscripts submitted to your small group, and you will also be able to read Antoinëtte's comments on the other submissions. Past workshop participants have found this element of our workshops to be especially valuable.
To prepare for this class, we recommend watching Antoinëtte's query letter class. Members can access this in our archive here, and nonmembers will have access on signup for this querying workshop. In this class, Antoinëtte deconstructs the key elements of successful query writing, including what makes a query compelling and attention grabbing to stand out in the slush pile. The class also includes things that should be avoided in a query, successful query examples, and how to balance telling too much vs too little in your synopsis.
<p>Writers are welcome to take this workshop concurrently with other Inked Voices workshops.</p>
Notes
Who this workshop is for: <p>This class is especially for writers in the querying trenches or preparing to query. While your premise, manuscript pages, and fit with a particular agent's list are the most important factors in your "yes," the query package is the first thing the agent will see about you. Our goal is to help you stand out in the agent's inbox.</p>
Focus: Adult - Novels - Literary - Adult - Novels - Upmarket - Adult - Novel…
Group size: 10 writers
Submissions: <p>There will be two submissions in this group. You will submit your query at the group start. And then you will submit the revised query after reading Antoinëtte's comments. Your query letters should be no longer than 450 words. </p>
Fee
Members: $95; Non-members: $140
About Antoinette Van Sluytman
Antoinëtte Van Sluytman is a scholartist who was raised and homeschooled in Baja, California. She graduated with a Bachelors of Science in Graphic Design and Interactive Media and is an accomplished artist in a range of media. Her work has been showcased in many prominent art shows in San Diego and she has won multiple Scholastic Art and Writing awards from the Alliance for Young Writers & Artists for her illustration, poetry, and short fiction.
Antoinëtte is a writer, illustrator, graphic designer, full time associate literary agent at the New York agency, IGLA, film & media coordinator, and is a member of the AALA and Media & Digital innovations committee. She is the co-founder of the upcoming multimedia studio, Broken Chalice Studios, and a black belt student who has studied the Korean arts of taekwondo/hapkido.
Antoinëtte lectures on the literary circuit, including at writing conventions and events, about the essence of decolonizing fiction and countering literary hegemony in the industry.
Schedule:
- Wed, Oct 1 - Submissions due
- Wed, Oct 15- Critiques due
- Wed, Oct 22 - Revised submissions due
- Wed, Oct 29 - Critiques due
- Tues, Nov 4, 7:30-8:30pm ET - Q&A call*