Withdrawing A Submission

Whew, that was a long weekend. At some point, my roommate's dog ran away, but the good news is, he spent the night with some friendly people from New Hampshire and arrived safely home this afternoon. (I made sure to cuddle Baxter extra tight because I couldn't imagine him being gone for any length of time.)

Other than that, I received an e-mail yesterday from a gentleman asking if I had any advice on how to craft a letter that withdraws a submission. (This is kind of the flip side of Nudging an Agent :) )

So here's my advice (Fancy style):

Dear Baxter* 

 It is with great regret (or some very eloquent word here) that I must withdraw my query/submission/etc, The Night Baxter Slept on the Floor**, from your agency. 

Thank you for your time and consideration (this is always my favorite closing),

Lynne Schmidt


Another way (Super simple):

Dear Baxter*,

 I would like to withdraw my submission/query/etc, The Night Baxter Slept on the Floor**. 

Thank you so much for your time and consideration,

Lynne Schmidt

*Baxter is not actually an agent. Well, I mean, I do read some of my stuff out loud to him, but in all reality, he is my dog (see his page above?). So, with that--Be sure to address it as Mr. or Ms. Agent, but use their actual last name.

 **Include the name of your submission


Here's the key:
You don't actually have to say why you're withdrawing it; you just need to tell them that you are withdrawing it. You can thank them for their time, you can wish them a great day. It doesn't really matter, just be sure to get it to the correct agent (and agency), make sure they know which work is yours, and that you're withdrawing it.

I hope this helps :)