Progress Report - Queries

Queries, I often think of Michael Jordan's quote to help me cope with the overwhelming feelings of "you are not enough" when it comes to sending out query letters to pitch your book to the elite and unforgiving literary agents. His quote was this:

"I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career.

I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been

entrusted to take the game winning shot and missed. 

I've failed over and over and over again in my life, 

and that is why I succeed."

So cheer up! That's what I would tell myself anyways. After making copious edits to the query letter of my project, I finally trimmed it down to the bare message and delivered "the hook" not giving away too much while referencing the usual taglines such as the "what if's" and "imagine a world...". Every word at that point had a purpose and was not just there to fill up space. And wouldn't you know it? This was the reply that I received in response to my query:

Now keep in mind, nothing did come from it. I was still rejected - BUT the query did cause her to actively respond with requesting more information. To me that was a victory. Something in there did spark an interest to cause her to request more. This leads me to believe that I am on the right track (query-wise). I still have a long ways to go - like a really long ways. If you were to compare this to the Lord of the Rings journey, I am still in the kitchen packing supplies and trying to find someone to watch over my dogs. But that's ok, like Michael Jordan said, the "failed over and over and over..." is necessary to hone in on the success. Have you had experience with query letters? What are your thoughts?