When you're asked vs when you submit...

Sheryl Nantus

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Yeah, sounds a bit kinky...

;)

In a nutshell - did a pitch yesterday on Twitter and got a few nibbles asking me to send queries to agents. Looked at their webpages and stats say to wait 4 wks or so for a response...

... but I'm wondering if that's different when THEY ask for the info. I understand totally if I'm in the slush pile but when they ask via a Twitter pitch should I wait the 4 wks. or....

Thoughts?

Thanks in advance!

:)
 

Undercover

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Yeah, sounds a bit kinky...

;)

In a nutshell - did a pitch yesterday on Twitter and got a few nibbles asking me to send queries to agents. Looked at their webpages and stats say to wait 4 wks or so for a response...

... but I'm wondering if that's different when THEY ask for the info. I understand totally if I'm in the slush pile but when they ask via a Twitter pitch should I wait the 4 wks. or....

Thoughts?

Thanks in advance!

:)

Should you wait the 4 weeks or what? Not wait and self publish instead? Or submit to publishers? There's not much else you can do, but wait.
 

Toothpaste

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I would imagine the kinds of the things that make an agent take 4 weeks (or however many) are the same kinds of the things when they request an MS. Maybe if you are lucky they will be so keen to read your work they will drop everything to read yours. But they also have likely requested other MSs and they still have their existing clients and conferences and contract negotiations etc etc.

I don't think you ought to think much about it. Expect it to take as long as normal and if it doesn't be pleasantly surprised :) .
 

Osulagh

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Unless they contacted you personally and now you're directly talking to them, there is no fast lane. Query and I would make a note that they were interested by a previous pitch you twitted.
 
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Corinne Duyvis

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Yeah, usually you'll still end up in the same slush. A request from a pitch just means they want to make sure you're IN that slush so they have a chance to consider it. I mean, if they're super hella excited they might open your email straightaway, sure, but the odds are it'll be treated like any other query.
 

Jamesaritchie

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Sometimes yes, and sometimes no. It all depends on the agent.

Many put things the specifically ask for in the immediate read pile, but others do not.

And sometimes an agent, or an editor, can read a query today, and still not make a decision for quite a while. Not everything is hell, yes, or hell, no. Things are often, I need to think about this.

All you can do is submit and wait.
 

Filigree

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Even when you are with an agent, it can take a while. Mine got a requested fantasy mms from me on 3 October, and she'll make time to read it by mid-November at the latest. She's got a lot of other clients and this is a busy season.

I'd wait it out and see what happens. You can always work on something else.
 

KTC

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Just wait.

Congrats on the nibbles! That's wonderful. Best of luck!
 

Sage

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I'm not sure what exactly you're waiting for. I mean, I know it's a response, but if we say that the agent will read it tonight in a fit of excitement, what does that mean for you if the agent takes a month?

All agents have their own system of how they read submissions. Some do it in order they requested, some do it based on what they're most excited about, some do a combination of both. Some say, "we'll take x time," and then take shorter or longer. Some say, "Nudge us at 3 months" and then ignore the nudge and respond two months after that. The thing is that we can't predict what this agent will do because they're all different. And it doesn't matter because it will take as long as it takes.
 

Old Hack

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If an agent requests something which interests her she might well read it as soon as it comes in. Much depends on what's going on at the time. You might well hear more quickly than the standard four weeks; but then again, you might not.
 

Debbie V

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This is why they say to work on something else.

If they say four weeks, they could still take ten. Patience is more than a virtue in this industry. It's a necessity.