Jill Singer interviews Joe Veltre, founder of the new Artists Literary Group. "The combination of creative and business smarts is a powerful one; Veltre refers to [his and partner Diane Bartoli's] combined experience as "possibly unparalleled in the business," and that may not be idle puffery. Together, the two have worked for five major publishing houses, a film studio, and the foreign rights and film rights department of a major literary agency." Most genres are wide open except for children's books, poetry and Westerns. Query the agents by regular mail. For fiction, send a one-page query and a couple of sample chapters with an SASE. For nonfiction, send a query letter and a proposal. Or, query using the company's website. FYI: Bartoli is on maternity leave until late summer, so if you're pitching her, leave her alone until then.