Should I continue or not?

[billz015]

A few months ago I sent a manuscript to some agents. I never recieved a reply from either and I'm curious should I continue patiently waiting for a reply, or should I forget about them and continue sending queries and such out?

So I don't have to start another topic about it:

I sent the manuscript mentioned above to some publishing houses(2 of which replied with rejection), and I'm curious which route I should pursue more agents or publishing houses?

Any bit of help with these two matters would be highly appreciated.

[CrazyWriter]

Generally agents will respond between 8-10 weeks. If you've not heard back, move on. Actually, unless they ask that they be the only one you submit to, move on anyway! It's a tough market, and while you shouldn't send out too many queries at once, don't send out too few either. Also, make sure you follow the particular agent's submission guidelines! Many agents have specific ways they like to be contacted, and if you don't want to take the time to learn about them, they aren't likely to give you the time you’d like.



There are MANY schools of thought as to whether you need an agent or not to break into the business. Unless you've got a marketing background and are familiar with publishing houses, I would go the agent route. Not only will they do the selling for you, but they'll also have some fantastic suggestions as to how to improve what you've got--at least the really good ones will--so publishers will give it more of a shot.



I hope things work out!

[Julie Worth]

I assume you mean the full ms, manuscripts that were solicited? If so, the agents should respond in 1 to 6 months, with some going a lot longer. Sadly, not all of them will respond. If they’ve requested the ms, the least they could do is stick a form rejection in your envelope. But some don’t bother. Which is terribly rude, don’t you think? One day I’m going to get in my car, drive around the country and find those people. I'll ask them why they’re so rude. Could be a best seller, like Blue Highways.

As to your second question, don't give up on agents until you have 200 rejections. Then start on the publishers. Most of the publishers will respond, which is good. The bad thing is that most of them will send your stuff back unread, with a form letter saying to get an agent first.

[Andrew Zack]

I'd say 8-10 weeks is optimistic. Maybe there are some agencies who have readers who can respond that fast, but I suspect most take longer.

You should always get an agent first. Why? Because:

(1) Most publishers require submissions to come through agents. They are using agents as filters. Presumably if you found an agent, your work doesn't TOTALLY suck.

(2) Most authors have no idea what anything in a publishing contract means and they don't know what they can and cannot negotiate. A publisher's contract is a starting point. A good agent can find you a finish that's far more profitable over the long run.

As for whether or not agents are rude for not responding, I feel there's this crazy impression that agencies are these paragons of efficiency, well-oiled machines where material comes in and gets logged, then sent for review, etc. That the money flows like water from the faucet to pay for these things. You are sorely mistaken. Most agents are operating on their own, or with a partner, or with a support person or two. Many are working from home offices. They have lives, wives, husbands, children, just like you. Do you do YOUR job with 100% efficiency? Do you never drop the ball, let something slide, lose something between the cracks? If so, I'd like to get you to write a book on how you do that.

What's funny is that if agents COULD charge reading fees without being hammered as scammers and unethical, I bet you'd see a massive increase in turnaround time. Colleges charge application fees. My co-op charges an application fee if you want to buy an apartment here. Cell phone companies charge set-up fees. CompUSA will charge you to give you an estimate of the cost of repairing your computer. If I could charge the $90 that colleges charge for applications for every sample chapter I receive, I could hire an assistant whose sole job would be to deal with the mail, which would give me far more time to work with my clients on their projects.

Alas, if I tried that, I'd be virtually--if not literally--tarred and feathered, so I don't. But you have to wonder if all of the incredible expectations that authors seem to have of agents isn't hurting them as much as helping.

Best,
Andy

[Julie Worth]

<Checking my list of non-responders> Nope, Andy's not on it.

[waylander]

IF the submissions were requested full manuscripts then I think that after 3 months you should get in touch with the agents politely asking what the current status of the manuscript is. If the submissions were unsolicited partials then move on.

[aruna]

Originally Posted by Andrew Zack

(1) Most publishers require submissions to come through agents. They are using agents as filters. Presumably if you found an agent, your work doesn't TOTALLY suck.

So, if you haven't found an agent, your work sucks?

Two incidents where I found agents were lacking in basic courtesy:

I had several requests for a full manuscript, which was already being read, exclusively, by one agent. One of the requesting agents suggested that I give the agent who had the full one week to make a decision, and give her the manuscript next, on an exclusive basis; she promised to read it in a few days. I did that, but I gave her three weeks, as I knew that the Frankfurt Book Fair was coming up and she'd be busy. At the end of those three weeks I still hadn't heard, and so enquired, politely. She said she hadn't had time to read it yet and needed more time; meanwhile, she accepted that she coulod no longer have exclusivity. I do think if you make a promise you should try and keep it; or at least contact the other person yourself to explain the delay.

This agent was not my first choice; I'd only sent it to her because of the promise of "a few days". So, what do I do? Withdraw it? No. I sent it out to the others who had requested it, none of whom had asked for exclusivity; I told them the situation, and went ahead to query others.
One other agent is interested; but as she wants an exclusive read, I have to wait till all of these who now have it have made a decision before I can send it to her.

One agent asked for the full manuscript; I sent it to the agency and a few days later I got a form letter saying that they had read it "with interest" but it didn't fit their needs at the moment. That ws patently untrue; the ms had been solicited but nobody took the time to check that.

That said, I have to say that many have been courteous, sending me emails to say they have received the ms. I appreciated that.

Nobody likes to have their time wasted. Our time is also important, to us; we also have lives to live, and families to support. During the process of looking for an agent an author is in the position of a supplicant; but that is no reason to treat him/her with discourtesy. Because that same author, at a later stage in the game, could be the agent's bread and butter.

[Andrew Zack]

No, I didn't say if you haven't found an agent, your work sucks. However, I'm sure many an editor thinks many of the projects that hit their desks from agents suck. Thus publishing houses see agents as filters and push authors to use agents for that reason. Another reason, though, is that publishing houses may, over the long run, find it easier to deal with an agent who is knowledgeable regarding the business than with an author who is clueless. I've had plenty of editors call me up and ask me to stop an author from calling so often. Of course, the author is calling because the editor isn't communicating with them, but in a buyers' marketplace, the editor gets to call the shots most of the time.

[LloydBrown]

Originally Posted by aruna

One agent asked for the full manuscript; I sent it to the agency and a few days later I got a form letter saying that they had read it "with interest" but it didn't fit their needs at the moment. That ws patently untrue; the ms had been solicited but nobody took the time to check that.

I've had this happen before, and I didn't understand it, either. At the time, I was about 21 and new to writing.

There's a huge difference between a paragraph description and a full manuscript. Asking for a ms doesn't necessarily mean that the topic is something they need. It means it *could* be something they want, depending on the exact execution (I've also been solicited by one editor and rejected by another, but I'm assuming you addressed your submission to the person who asked for it).