As someone just beginning my middle-grade writing journey, I’ve quickly discovered that finding the right literary agent is a crucial first step. Among the many resources recommended to me, QueryTracker has already proven to be an amazing tool. It not not only helps with research but also provides a way to organize my agent query lists. Here I’m sharing what I’ve learned so far in the hopes it might someone else who is new to querying and QueryTracker.
What Exactly Is QueryTracker?
QueryTracker is a tool designed specifically for finding and tracking literary agents. Here’s the straightforward truth: less than 1% of publishers accept unsolicited manuscripts from authors. This means for most of us, securing a literary agent is not an optional task. QueryTracker helps you identify potential agents, organize your submissions, and track your progress throughout this key process to seeing your work in print.
Surprisingly Affordable
At just $25 per year (as of September 2025), I found QueryTracker to be remarkably accessible. Since I decided to hire a developmental editor, I have been watching every penny. I felt that this was definitely worth the expense.
Creating Projects
QueryTracker allows writers to create projects and then attach agents that they want to query to them. Even if you only have one book to query right now, having agents attached to a project can be quite helpful. For me, I have a second book I’m working on and if agents don’t ‘bite’ on my first attempt, I will create a new project and start again.
Finding Agents by Genre
The genre search function has been a lifesaver for me. As someone who didn’t know where to begin, being able to filter agents by their interest in middle-grade fiction narrowed my search considerably and helped me build my initial list. I used this in conjunction with research on others sites including Publisher’s Marketplace, allowing me to pull from many sources to create my personal agent list. I’m able to attach any agent I search for to my project even thought I’m not quite ready to submit yet, helping me be ready to go as soon as my manuscript it polished.
Keeping Track of Submissions
The ability to record query dates seems straightforward but from my research appears to be quite helpful. Each agent is different. Some respond quickly. Some never respond. QueryTracker highlights which queries become “stale,” helping me know when it’s time to follow up or regretfully move on to someone else.
Comments Are Where It’s At
As I’m researching agents, I’ve discovered that the comments are truly a treasure trove of information. Here other aspiring writers share their querying experiences including if agents ask for pages or simply send form letter responses. These are insights I don’t think I could easily find elsewhere. I typically read the comments and then skip to the Response Rate tab to see what has been self-reported. If an agent hasn’t asked for pages in the last year, I’m counting that as a red flag.
Agent Profiles Provide Research Starting Points
Each agent’s profile contains a lot of information including links to interviews, manuscript wish lists, and social media links if those are available. This centralized information has helped me learn nuggets about what each agent really wants that I wouldn’t be able to find on their agency pages. In addition, if you scroll to the bottom, you can often find success stories of writers who ended up signing with a particular agent. These interviews often provide additional insights when approaching a specific agent.
Just the Beginning
I’m still learning the ropes of QueryTracker and the querying process in general. As soon as I start querying my manuscript, I promise to come back and write an update to this blog. But so far, this tool has been a home run for me.
Are you also new to the querying process? What tools have you found helpful so far? I’d love to compare notes in the comments below!