# The Modern Guide to Querying Literary Agents *By Alyssa Matesic and Patrick McDonald, with the subtitle "From Rejection to Representation in 8 Steps". A 2026 guide to finding and pitching literary agents.* > I did not read this book for this note. It is in copyright and was published in August 2026. The facts below come from the Publishers Weekly listing and review, the author's own book page, and the vault's 15 Alyssa Matesic video notes that mention it. Her statements about the book's data are her own promotion and were not checked against the book. ## 1. Book facts | | | |---|---| | Title | *The Modern Guide to Querying Literary Agents: From Rejection to Representation in 8 Steps* | | Authors | Alyssa Matesic and Patrick McDonald (founder of QueryTracker) | | Publisher | Matt Holt (per the [Publishers Weekly listing](https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781637749005)) | | Published | 25 August 2026 (paperback; the date shown on screen in the videos, and PW's "(Aug.)") | | ISBN | 9781637749005 (PW) | | Pages | 240 (PW) | | Price | $21 trade paper (PW; Matesic also says "$21, not $25,000") | | Format | Paperback. I did not check an ebook or audiobook edition | | Cover | None found on Open Library (404), so the cover field is blank | **Where it came up.** Matesic mentions it in 15 videos in the vault: - [Does It Really Cost $25,000 to Get Published](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r15y57eBoB8&t=348s), 5:48. Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/Does It Really Cost $25,000 to Get Published]] - [I'm a Book Editor. Here's Everything Writers WASTE Money On](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wpnxvLR620). Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/I'm a Book Editor. Here's Everything Writers WASTE Money On]] - [It’s Boring, But It’s How You Write a Bestseller](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CktFySXS9Sk). Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/It’s Boring, But It’s How You Write a Bestseller]] - [6 Publishing Trends That Are Changing Everything in 2026](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=391s), 6:31. Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/6 Publishing Trends That Are Changing Everything in 2026]] - [I Read the WORST Book of 2026 So You Don’t Have To](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMk0mNE5cGI). Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/I Read the WORST Book of 2026 So You Don’t Have To]] - [I’m an Editor. Is It Even Worth Writing a Book in 2026](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUC_Hdczmek&t=296s), 4:56. Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/I’m an Editor. Is It Even Worth Writing a Book in 2026]] - [Everyone Loves This Genre. But No One Is Writing It](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxU0E1sh1XI&t=679s), 11:19. Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/Everyone Loves This Genre. But No One Is Writing It]] - [I Edited a Bestselling Author's New Novel. Here's What Shocked Me](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQ1U9xpAA7g). Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/I Edited a Bestselling Author's New Novel. Here's What Shocked Me]] - [A $2.5m Book Deal Was Cancelled. Every Author Should Worry](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvTRLBdebPs). Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/A $2.5m Book Deal Was Cancelled. Every Author Should Worry]] - [I'm an Editor. Here Are 7 Signs Your Book Will Flop](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79Y1hHVOi9I&t=312s), 5:12. Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/I'm an Editor. Here Are 7 Signs Your Book Will Flop]] - [I Read 219 Novel Openings. This One Always Fails](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-l04swWr6M). Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/I Read 219 Novel Openings. This One Always Fails]] - [Their Books Got 190+ Rejections. Then This Changed Everything](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCD7bYL6PP8&t=652s), 10:52. Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/Their Books Got 190+ Rejections. Then This Changed Everything]] - [I’m an Editor. Please Don't Take Freida McFadden's Writing Advice](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0lB7bAOH9E). Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/I’m an Editor. Please Don't Take Freida McFadden's Writing Advice]] - [I Read My Subscribers' Fantasy Novels…67% Would Get Rejected](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJkaYGOfMOM&t=993s), 16:33. Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/I Read My Subscribers' Fantasy Novels…67% Would Get Rejected]] - [You Sent Me Your Query Letters…They ALL Would Get Rejected](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_Vsz09AWdY&t=91s), 1:31. Vault note: [[Video Summaries/Alyssa Matesic/You Sent Me Your Query Letters…They ALL Would Get Rejected]] ## 2. Book resources - [Author's book page](https://www.alyssamatesic.com/querying-guide), with agent endorsements and a summary of what the book covers - [Publishers Weekly listing and review](https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781637749005) (reviewed 12 May 2026) - [QueryTracker](https://querytracker.net), McDonald's site for finding agents (the front page needs JavaScript; I opened it only to confirm it exists) **Where to get it (legal, free).** No legal free full text located; it is in copyright and was published months ago. Borrow it from a library or buy it. Matesic says in a video that people who send her a receipt can get her free query-letter templates; that offer was not checked. ## 3. Author biography **Alyssa Matesic** is a developmental editor and YouTube creator. PW calls her a "former Henry Holt editor". Her videos describe more than a decade in publishing, including reading queries in a top literary agency's slush pile and working at a Penguin Random House imprint, and about ten years as a developmental editor. She runs Query Academy query reviews and the newsletter *Chapter Break*. Sources: the vault's video notes and her [website](https://www.alyssamatesic.com). The employer descriptions differ (Henry Holt in PW; Penguin Random House in the videos), and I could not verify either. **Patrick McDonald** is the founder of QueryTracker, per PW; the on-screen product description in one video adds that he created QueryManager (from the vault note, not checked). ## 4. Author interviews and talks I found no interview about the book outside Matesic's own channel. Her videos are the best sources for what she says about it: - [Does It Really Cost $25,000 to Get Published](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r15y57eBoB8&t=348s), 5:48 and 9:41: describes the 145-agent survey and the book's scope (finding agents, writing the query, interpreting responses). - [6 Publishing Trends That Are Changing Everything in 2026](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMzmaPplg3A&t=391s), 6:31: the pre-order offer of query-letter templates. - [Everyone Loves This Genre. But No One Is Writing It](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxU0E1sh1XI&t=679s), 11:19: the book covers positioning your book, writing a query and querying strategy. - I did not watch the videos; the descriptions come from the vault notes. ## 5. Summary **Thesis.** Matesic and McDonald argue that querying agents works without paying for credentials or referrals, and that a data-driven approach beats guesswork. PW's reviewer sums up the premise as: an agent is making a business decision, so authors must present their work well and handle rejection. **Outline.** I found no table of contents. The subtitle promises eight steps, and the author's page lists four promises: know when you are query-ready, write a query that works, target the right agents, and decode the responses (response times, rejection rates and timelines). One video note shows a chart labelled "Figure 8.11", so the book has at least eight chapters, but I could not confirm chapter titles. **Key ideas (from the author's page and PW).** - Data from real queries and surveys of agents (the author's page calls it "the first querying guide built on real data"). - PW cites survey figures: 83 percent of agents receive more than 100 queries a month, and 25 percent receive more than 500. - Matesic says in one video that a 145-agent survey found 60.0 percent of new clients had no formal writing credentials and 3.4 percent had an MFA. ## 6. Fact-check Overall verdict: **mixed**. The book exists and its basic facts are confirmed. Its data claims come from the authors' own promotion, which I could not check. | Claim | Verdict | Evidence | |---|---|---| | The book exists, co-written with the QueryTracker founder, titled with "8 Steps" | Supported | [PW listing](https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781637749005) and the [author's page](https://www.alyssamatesic.com/querying-guide) | | Paperback dated 25 August 2026, $21 | Supported | PW lists $21 and "(Aug.)"; the 25 August date comes from the on-screen listing and a web search summary | | Publisher Matt Holt, 240 pages, ISBN 978-1-63774-900-5 | Supported | PW | | Statistics from "4 million real query letters" | Unverified | Promotional claim in the videos; not in PW's excerpt | | 145-agent survey; 60.0% of new clients had no credentials, 3.4% an MFA | Unverified | From the video chart; the book was not read | | 83% of agents get more than 100 queries a month; 25% more than 500 | Supported as the reviewer's reported figure | PW review; the underlying data was not seen | | Matesic worked at a Penguin Random House imprint | Discrepancy | The videos say so; PW calls her a "former Henry Holt editor" | | Paying for an MFA, conferences or editing is not needed to get an agent (Matesic's rebuttal of a viral Substack article) | Opinion, with the survey data above as support | I did not read the article | | The "$25,000" claim by the Substack author, Michael O. Church | Not checked | I did not open the article; I report it only as the video describes it | ## 7. Citations and references - [Publishers Weekly listing and review](https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781637749005) - [Author's book page](https://www.alyssamatesic.com/querying-guide); [author's website](https://www.alyssamatesic.com) - [QueryTracker](https://querytracker.net) - Videos: see section 1.