Cathie Hedrick-Armstrong

UPDATED March 10, 2026 at 15:06 Central Time Zone

**CATHIE IS CLOSED TO QUERIES UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE**

TO QUERYING AUTHORS:

I’m truly sorry that I will be closed to queries for the foreseeable future—probably until at least May or June. At the present time, my workload is so heavy that I not only am having difficulty getting to the last dozen or so full requests waiting for me in my queue, but I’m hesitant to open widely until I know I have space on my list to add new authors. If you can hang in there, though, I hope to open again by sometimes this summer, and hopefully by then I’ll be in a position to take additional authors.

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WORKING WITH ME:

Before I sign every author, we have a “heart to heart” conversation about the importance of communication. For me, the open lines of communication are the most important aspect of any relationship, and an agent-client relationship must have this key component to be successful. My clients will always be able to count on me for honesty–sometimes painful, but always done with as much kindness as possible–and I absolutely require the same, asking that they never hold back their thoughts or concerns. I must understand fully what their concerns are in order to address them, and a straight-forward, honest approach is always the best way to resolve issues or conflict, if any arise. We are partners in this journey, and partners must communicate effectively to be successful.

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STILL WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT ME?

In all things, I strive to be authentic—so “what you see is what you get.” To get a better feel for who I am, feel free to follow me and say hello on social media. I’m active on Blue Sky, Threads, Instagram, or TikTok. Additionally, I’m a twice monthly guest on KTTC’s daily lifestyle program, Midwest Access, with Vivien Williams where we discuss all things books and publishing during the show’s Novel Access segment (links below). I also co-write the Agent Antics substack with CMA Agent Vicky Weber. Together (mostly Vicky lately, due to my workload) we cover topics authors want to know about publishing, querying, and working with an agent. You can see clips from Midwest Access and recent podcast I’ve been featured on below:

PODCASTS

• The Prose Pros Podcast (March 10, 2026)
• Tea and Tales Podcast (November 16, 2025)
• Writers Workout Podcast (March 25, 2025)
• Midwest Writers Room Podcast (January 26, 2025)
• You, Me, & the Writing Journey (January 6, 2025)
• Writers with Wrinkles Podcast (September 30, 2024)

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MIDWEST ACCESS WITH VIVIEN WILLIAMS

• Midwest Access Announces New Book Club: Novel Access (February 13, 2026)
• Midwest Access Chooses First Book Club Title—Chasing Stardust by Erica Lucke Dean (February 27, 2026)

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WHERE YOU CAN FIND ME ONLINE:

I do regular TikTok Lives where I do my best to answer author questions about the querying process and publishing, as well as hosting published authors with the hope of helping them widen their platforms to reach more readers. These are scheduled on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of every month at 8:30 PM Central Time and sometimes on miscellaneous Tuesdays in between. If you’re a published (or a debut author with an impending release date), feel free to reach out. I’d love to welcome you as my guest for the Live. Otherwise, feel free to join me on any of those Tuesdays to ask questions—I’ll do my best to answer. My TikTok handle is @c_h_armstrong.

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CONFERENCES:

Are you interested in having me attend your conference or pitch event? I am available for in-person and online conferences and pitch events. For my bio and a list of workshops currently available, you can use this link. To schedule me for your conference, please feel free to send me an email with the details, and I’ll get back to you ASAP.

I will be at the following conferences in 2026. If you’re interested in whether I’m taking pitches, teaching a workshop, offering critiques, or heading a roundtable at any of the following conferences, feel free to email me at Ca****@**********************cy.com.

• APRIL 7, 2026: Minnesota Writers Workshop / Bloomington, MN
• APRIL 17 – 19, 2026: Pike’s Peak Writers Conference / Colorado Springs, CO
• APRIL 30 – MAY 2, 2026: OWFI Writers Conference / Oklahoma City, OK
• JUNE 5 – JUNE 7, 2026: Wyoming Writers, Inc. Annual Conference / Casper, WY
• JUNE 25 – JUNE 27, 2026:  Novel-in-Progress Book Camp / Racine, WI
• SEPTEMBER 3 – SEPTEMBER 6, 2026: WriterCon / OKC, OK
• OCTOBER 2 – OCTOBER 6, 2026: Writing Away Refuge Retreat 

Submission Guidelines

Submissions should be emailed to querymanager.com/querycathie

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How to Query Me:

Queries may be sent to me through www.querymanager.com/querycathie when I am open. Under no circumstances will I accept queries by email, US mail, or social media DMs. While I respond to all queries sent through the link above, I do not and will not respond to queries sent by email, US mail or social media DMs.

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My Response Time:

30 days on an Initial Query
90 days from date received for 50-Page Requests
90 days from date received for Full Manuscript Requests

ALWAYS feel free to nudge after 90 days on a partial or full request
if you have not received a disposition on your submission!

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Tips for Your Query:

All good queries should include the Title, Genre, Word Count and a 2-4 paragraph BRIEF Synopsis of your manuscript, 2-3 Comp Titles, and a short Author Bio.

For your brief synopsis, think of it like the back cover of your book. It should include the following 5 elements:

1. Who is your main character?
2. What does your main character want?
3. What or who is standing in your main character’s way of getting what they want?
4. What must your main character overcome to get what they want?
5. What are the consequences of reaching for that goal? What might they gain or lose. **NOTE: this is called the stakes of your story. Without the stakes, your query is incomplete**

For your Comp Titles, you’re looking for books released within the last 2-3 years, and preferably by a traditionally published author. You want titles that are the same genre as your own and similar in tone, voice, tropes, or elements. Think: “If you liked ____ then try _____.” With your comp titles, you’ll want to include the title, author, publisher, and year published. For example: LIGHTS OUT by Navessa Allen (Slowburn, August 2024) or NEVER LIE by Frieda McFadden (Poisoned Pen Press, December 2023) or PLAYING FLIRTY by Shameez Patel (Forever, January 2025).

Do you see how I’ve listed the title in all caps, followed by the author, then the publisher and publish date in parenthesis?

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Should You Have Your Manuscript Professionally Edited?

There is no need to have your manuscript professionally edited before querying; however, you do want it to be in the best possible shape you can make it prior to sending. If it’s helpful to you, here’s my editing document for querying authors. It might be helpful as a last editing pass before you begin querying. Please keep in mind that your word count is important. While it’s unlikely you’ll receive a pass for going a few thousand words over the genre standard, one you start hitting ten-thousand words over, it’s easier for an agent to send a pass without reading. For help cutting your word count without cutting scenes or other important content, give Save Your Darlings a try.

If you feel strongly that you need extra help beyond the above tools, the creator of QueryTracker has developed an online community where authors can share Query Letters, Opening Pages, and Synopses for feedback from other writers. This platform, qtCritique, is free and works on a point-based system where the more you help others, the more you can ask for help. Additionally, there’s a section available to purchase a variety of critique types from industry professionals. Because it’s unethical for literary agents to accept payment from an author who might even land in an agent’s query inbox, the identities of all industry professionals are anonymous and fully vetted by the creators of qtCritique who accept payment for these services at prices set individually by the agency professional. This anonymous system bypasses the foul taste of “pay to play” model because the author never knows the agents’ identities, so there is never an expectation of future representation from that agent because an author paid a fee for the critique. For a quick overview of how qtCritique works, use this link.

If qtCritique isn’t the right model for you and you need something more substantial, I try to keep an updated list of professional editors on which I feel comfortable recommending. You can find that list here.

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What Makes Me Pass on Opening Pages?

• An incomplete query. I must know what the story is about or I have no incentive to read. (See the 5 elements above).
• A query that drones on for multiple paragraphs and doesn’t get to the point. Your entire query should be no more than about 400 words, and that includes your salutation and bio.
• A manuscript that is far too long or far too short for the genre—so make sure you know what the genre norms are for what you’re writing.
• Bad or “loose” writing. I’m looking for a manuscript that needs minimal editorial help. While I can help with edits and often do, editing is time-intensive and it takes time away from my other clients. So before submitting, make sure it’s in the best condition you can make it and consdier using critique partners who aren’t afraid to give you honest feedback.

Above and beyond everything else, have fun and good luck! Remember that a pass from an agent or editor does not mean your work is bad or that you’ll never find an agent. It simply means that what you’ve written is not a good fit for that person. Most querying authors receive upwards of a hundred passes before finding an agent. So take each no with your chin high and know you’re in good company!

Guidelines & Details