I agree that if this is a memoir it should all be in one voice, your own, as in...Each chapter ends with a recipe developed at MY Inn. I like that idea, by the way. People love good recipes! Isn't 40,000 short for a memoir? Not sure about that. I wouldn't tell them it's humorous and poignant. Let that be obvious by the letter. Great title.

I meant that agents who might like the sound of the material perhaps would not request to read it because of the too-short length.  

But I may be wrong about that.  Some very popular non-fiction over the years has been short.  But an "average" paperback book is about 80k.

Again with the recipes--if they make up a great deal of the book, then the word count would be understandably lower.  So if that's the case, be clear about it because then the word count won't look low.

S.

I have a couple of suggestions.  Your first paragraph is so colorful, but then your title repeats two of the three examples from it.  Consider using one different example of a colorful guests in the first 'graf.  For example, keep the Irishman but substitute the diva for a different type of demanding guest in the first sentence.  Then, when we read your title it will seem fresher, but we'll still understand the title's meaning.  An agent should read this and immediately feel that your bag of stories is deep, and that you've just pulled one or two out for the query.

Then, I'd like one more sentence about the recipes, something that ties them a little tighter to the narrative.  Perhaps drop the clause "rewards of a second career" and substitute something about "serving breakfast to new characters every morning."  There are a lot of narratives out there with recipes included (including *cough* my soon to be pubbed novel).  As it reads now, the recipes seem a bit like an afterthought.

Does that make sense?

I'm a little worried that 40,000 words is too short, and that your request rate might suffer as a result.  Just be sure that's your final length before you go out with this.

Sounds like a fun book!

S.

Nancy, great job!!! I love the first paragraph! I put in about 8-10 hours a week for a B & B here in my hometown--I know those guests!:))

Carolyn gave you some solid advice, I'm glad to see you've followed it, and in the long-run, have completed a solid query. Best of luck!

                                                           SECOND REWRITE

Dear Agent,
 
Demanding operatic divas, naked Irishmen walking in their sleep, and honeymooners leaving remnants of unforgettable wedding nights are all part of the flamboyant and interesting guests who came in and out of my life as an innkeeper.

Despite being an asocial retired school teacher with no business experience and little startup money, I took a risk, purchased  a turn-of-the-century mansion, and turned it into into a charming bed and breakfast. In Operatic Divas and naked Irishmen: An Innkeeper’s Tale, I tell the humorous and sometimes poignant story of how I reinvented myself.

In this personal and in-depth look at what it's like to be an Innkeeper and the challenges and rewards of a second career, I take the reader on a sixteen year journey through a minefield of contractors, housekeepers and eccentric guests. Each chapter ends with a recipe developed by me and my assistants at my Inn.

I am co-author and editor of Room at the Table, a cookbook written for the Bed and Breakfast Association of Kentucky for which I won the BBAK President's Award in 2008. In addition to maintaining several websites and blogs, I write online for Examiner.com, Eye on Life, Pink Magazine, and Hub Pages. Holder of degrees in music and special education and certified to teach English, I have taught and written creative nonfiction and poetry throughout my adult life.

Operatic Divas and Naked Irishmen, a memoir, is approximately 40,000 words and combines wit and humor with delicious recipes, a subject that may appeal to a wide audience. More specifically, it may appeal to women ready to re-invent themselves, whether they are starting a second career late in life, coming out of a divorce, or forced by the recession to stop mid-career and rethink their options.

Thank you for your time and consideration.  A completed manuscript  is available upon request.