Expertise Please...Re: Status Queries

[Shady Lane]

Hey.

So anyone who's heard me talk Dream Agent knows that my favorrrrite agent asked me to revise my ms about a month and a half ago. A month ago, I sent her my revised ms. I'm really happy with how it turned out, and completely anxious (obviously) to find out what she thinks.

I got a quick note the day after I sent it letting her know she recieved it, but since then, nothing. This Friday, it's been a month.

Is it time to email her and ask if she's gotten to look at it? If not, how long do I have to wait? Does the 3 month rule still apply when it's a revision she requested?

Since I've spoken with her, I've started and completed the first draft (and almost the second draft) of a new ms. Should I mention this to her in the email? She already knows about my other mss, and has always been interested to know what other projects I have and what I'm working on.

So.

What do I do?

[funidream]

Keep working on your new manuscript and wait until she gets in touch.

[ORION]

NOTHING!!!! She told you she got it. That was really nice of her. DO NOT EMAIL OR CALL - YOU WILL BE THOUGHT OF AS PESTERING. Miss Snark wrote about this very thing in her archives.
Forget about it and keep working on your next project. A month is nothing in this business.
Only contact her if you have an offer from another agent.

[kristie911]

Take a deep breath, eat some chocolate and quit staring at the calender.

Keep working on your new manuscript so when she calls and says she loves the one she has, you have something else wonderful to show her. :)

[Shady Lane]

Gahhhhh.

Okay.

:)

ETA: Does someone have a link to the Miss Snark?

[Esopha]

http://www.misssnark.com

I love Miss Snark.

(PS I was right! :D)

[ORION]

There's a link on my blog. Look on the side bar.

[Shady Lane]

haha, I know how to find Miss Snark. I was wondering about the specific post.

[Esopha]

I tried googling "Miss Snark status query" but nothing useful came up.

You could check out this post to get some perspective, though. (One year?! AAAAAAAAH.)

http://misssnark.blogspot.com/2006/06/be-cool.html

[Ziljon]

Hey Shady, think how I feel; I've got wait for her to get back to you, sign you, sell the book, for the book to be processed and printed and distributed, all before I can read it!

Argh!

[Spiny Norman]

Yeah, I would back off and take up yoga or skiing to get your mind off of things. I have no idea what most agents' daily lives are like (I assume there's a lot of diabolical laughter and a big red button that reads CRUSH DREAMS, naturally) but it's probably ridiculously busy with enough correspondence as it is. Anything that stands out in their minds is either going to be a divine sale or a curse - and the curse category has much more lax rules about entry.

A month has gone by since two agents requested my fulls, one on exclusive til... Today. I realize it's a flake in a snowstorm. But we've all been in the snowstorm for a while now, and it's cold as hell out here...

[lkp]

Shady,
I feel your pain --- I was in a very similar situation. I sent a requested revised manuscript at the end of April. Mid-May I got a nice e-mail --- she was half way through, enjoying it a lot, would be in touch soon, and was anyone else looking at it. And then nothing. I status query e-mailed late June, she answered quickly, gave me an excellent reason why it was taking her a long time, told me she hoped to be in touch soon. And then nothing. I e-mailed again in mid-September and yay, hooray, she is now my agent, fireworks exploded, the sun came out, etc. etc.

Look, once you are at the stage where she is suggesting revisions for you to do, she has invested time and energy into you, and you do have the beginnings of a relationship (sorry to make this sound so much like dating, but alas, it is a bit like dating). Don't be shy about sending a very friendly non-demanding, low stress e-mail checking in. I agree with the rest that a month is too soon. But, pace Miss Snark, I think it would be fine to status query after some more time has past. It didn't bug my agent --- in fact she quite unnecessarily kept thanking me for how patient I was being.
Good luck!