No Response From Requested Work

I always think about it this way: I'm a reader. I buy a lot of books. So many that sometimes it takes months before I can get to a certain book I've wanted to read. Does the wait mean I don't want to read it? No. Does it mean I won't love it? No way. Sometimes I read a book I've had for upwards of a year and it becomes my new favourite and I can't believe I went so long without knowing how glorious that book was.

I'm guessing agents work in much the same way.

Undercover said:

I've racked up 4 agents that requested work over the months and I have nudged and nothing. It's really frustrating to know I've sent a polite nudge and not to be answered. I think that's not only unprofessional, it's rude and mean to just not respond like that. I can understand no response from a query, but these agents requested my work.

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Have you tried nudging via twitter? What if they're not receiving your emails...

Can I ask the question differently? When an agent takes a "long" time to get back to you after requesting a partial or a full, is it ever a yes? I've heard that most agents know as soon as they read a ms whether it's something they want to represent. Of course, it may be your ms is languishing in some pile and they haven't read it yet. But in general, my experience with agents who take a long time to read your partial or full is that the answer is no. I'd love to hear from someone who's had a different experience.

TR Dillon said:

Can I ask the question differently? When an agent takes a "long" time to get back to you after requesting a partial or a full, is it ever a yes? I've heard that most agents know as soon as they read a ms whether it's something they want to represent. Of course, it may be your ms is languishing in some pile and they haven't read it yet. But in general, my experience with agents who take a long time to read your partial or full is that the answer is no. I'd love to hear from someone who's had a different experience.

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Well, here's the thing: how do you know it's "long" vs. "short?" It could very well be that the agent doesn't get to reading it until six months go by because they have 15 other full requests to read that they asked for first, plus clients that they're subbing for. Look at Janet's post earlier in the thread: that's not an uncommon scenario.

Six months could also mean they read it immediately, and are thinking over if they want to rep. The odds are less in your favor for representation than in scenario one, sure. But it's impossible to know which you're dealing with. The time may be the same--six months--but it's not at all the same as far as how long the agent is thinking it over.

I wouldn't sweat "long" versus "short." There are too many unknown variables in looking at it that way. Until you get a "no" I wouldn't write a full request off. I'd also recommend deep breathing so you don't panic. Patience is an asset in this business, and not spamming agents with nudges could be considered a virtue. Especially if you know they received the ms. I'm not saying it's never okay to nudge (and Undercover's frustration is more w/ lack of response to a nudge than time to get a "yes" or "no"). Just that if you do nudge do it carefully, respectfully, and minimally.

I hear you, but I'd still be interested in hearing a success story from someone who sent a full to an agent and then didn't hear for, say, six months, but then the agent finally got back to them and said yes, I want to represent you and your book. Most of the success stories I read about on this website seem to involve relatively quick timelines.

That's my sense as well. And also, look at it from the perspective of an agent (which I'm not, I might add). If you request material, and then you just toss it into a slush pile to read in six months, you've almost guaranteed yourself that anything "special" that comes to you won't be available when you get around to reading it. If S. Collins sends you Hunger Games, and you wait six months to read it, it's not going to be still on the market by then. I have to believe that every agent sneaks a peak, or does a quick read, or enough of a read, of every manuscript when it comes in the door to check to see if it's "special." If it is, then the agent jumps on it. If it's not, then it goes into the slush pile and the agent will get to it whenever.

That's not the perspective of any agent I've ever heard from.

A requested manuscript isn't anywhere near the slushpile. It may have come out of the slushpile, but once it's requested, it goes into a TBR queue. Granted, there are agents/agencies that operate on a strict in-line basis where things are read as they're reached, but at other places, several factors can impact where in the line a MS ends up.

Are you a celebrity? Top of the line.
Are you writing in a hot genre? Top of the line.
Do you have a referral from a client or colleague? Top of the line.
Do you have previous, paid or prestigious writing credits? Top of the line.
Did you win the partial read in a contest sponsored by the agent? Top of the line.
Is your writing solid, but maybe in a glutted or not-yet-hot genre? It's in the line, but not a priority.
Is the story solid, but the voice seems off? It's in the line, but not a priority.
Was the agent on the fence about requesting the partial? It's in the line, but not a priority.
Do you write in a tough-sell genre, even though your writing is excellent? It's in the line, but not a priority.
Is the "fit" with an editor not an obvious one for the agent? It's in the line, but not a priority.

And by priority, I mean "the things the agent can get to when he/she isn't doing work he/she is paid for." Clients come first. Their books come first. Their "could you take a look at this' partials come first.

If an agent is working on a sale or auction or contracts, etc, (or several at once) then their day is pretty full.

As to "special" projects - those are the ones the agent connects to right off. They're not waiting six months to read them because something in the writing, setting or voice clicked and they want to read it straight off.

S. Collins isn't the example you want to use for someone pulled out of the slush based on something special. She's an example of how an agent makes a great deal for an existing client. THG wasn't her first series.

Undercover said:

I understand that there may be things that come into play, like the agent's busy or perhaps multiple agents need to read it before they make a decision, but when months go by and you nudge them and you still don't get a response, in many if not all cases, it's a "no."

It shouldn't take that long for an agent to get back to you-- an editor yes, I can understand, but not an agent. And you shouldn't have to nudge them to find out.

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I agree with the nudge and no response part, Undercover. That's why I mentioned to TR that your frustration was something different than just the long time to read.

All I can say about them not getting back on your nudge is: well--if it's bugging you now it'll bug you more as their client, if they're not on top of their correspondence. So maybe them not getting back on it is a good thing. You know in advance that they're not going to communicate with you in a way you can work with. Consider it them failing a job interview, and go out and find that agent who's going to love your work and not drive you crazy.

I can't help but wonder... were the nudges sent as new emails, or replies to the original query and request? You'd have a much better chance of the agent seeing your email in their inbox if it was a reply rather than a new email.

Becca C. said:

I can't help but wonder... were the nudges sent as new emails, or replies to the original query and request? You'd have a much better chance of the agent seeing your email in their inbox if it was a reply rather than a new email.

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Definitely. ALWAYS keep the chain of communication in tact (unless it's one of the few agents who will send you a different "secret" email used solely for requested material, then you sort of have to start fresh.)

New emails get into the line with new queries.

An agent who takes time to respond to submissions and requested fulls is not necessarily going to be so slow to respond to you once you are her client. Clients take priority over submissions; with a good agent, things will be different once you sign that contract.

I was lucky with agents, I guess (though not really lucky, because I'm still without one.) None of the full reads took more than three months--some took less than a month--and I only once had a no-response requested partial. I think if I had a full ms with an agent for more than six months, I'd nudge, sure, but I'd mentally write it off. If they read it after all, fine. But I wouldn't be holding my breath for it. If they really wanted to read it, they would have made time by now, busy or not. It means I'm third rate for them... and that is fine while I'm nobody, but if they aren't so hot for my book, wouldn't it mean I'd be treated like a third rate client if we sign up, too? I dunno, but my guts prefer an agent who's hot for my book. The one who wanted it right from the start without wavering.

TR Dillon said:

Can I ask the question differently? When an agent takes a "long" time to get back to you after requesting a partial or a full, is it ever a yes? I've heard that most agents know as soon as they read a ms whether it's something they want to represent. Of course, it may be your ms is languishing in some pile and they haven't read it yet. But in general, my experience with agents who take a long time to read your partial or full is that the answer is no. I'd love to hear from someone who's had a different experience.

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I heard of several extremely successful authors who had their ms with an agent for a long time. One of them said the agent took about 1.5 years to read it.
Though there's also a lot of fast deals: requested two weeks ago, sold two weeks later kind of deals. In fact, most hot new sales I hear about happen that way. Lots of requests during the first month or two of querying, fast responses, fast sales.

I don't know... maybe my experience is unusual. But all the positive responses I ever got from agents happened within 1-3 months of querying. In fact, about 50% of them happened within 1-3 weeks of querying. I don't have a single positive response (even a simple partial request) which arrived later than 4 months after querying.

I don't have a single response of *any* kind that arrived later than 6 months after the initial email (I started actively querying about a year ago.)

Windcutter said:

I think if I had a full ms with an agent for more than six months, I'd nudge, sure, but I'd mentally write it off. If they read it after all, fine. But I wouldn't be holding my breath for it. If they really wanted to read it, they would have made time by now, busy or not. It means I'm third rate for them... and that is fine while I'm nobody, but if they aren't so hot for my book, wouldn't it mean I'd be treated like a third rate client if we sign up, too? I dunno, but my guts prefer an agent who's hot for my book. The one who wanted it right from the start without wavering.

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I really disagree with you here.

Perhaps I'm lucky enough to be acquainted with some really good agents, but the ones I know treat all their clients with equal care and respect, and don't have any "third rate" clients.

Because they do go to such pains to represent their author-clients well, though, they're really busy; and so they don't have much time to read manuscripts from potential new clients. It does take time for them to get round to submissions, but that's simply because they are so determined to represent their existing clients as well as they can. And if you were to become one of those clients that's what you'd want, isn't it?

Windcutter said:

I heard of several extremely successful authors who had their ms with an agent for a long time. One of them said the agent took about 1.5 years to read it.
Though there's also a lot of fast deals: requested two weeks ago, sold two weeks later kind of deals. In fact, most hot new sales I hear about happen that way. Lots of requests during the first month or two of querying, fast responses, fast sales.

I don't know... maybe my experience is unusual. But all the positive responses I ever got from agents happened within 1-3 months of querying. In fact, about 50% of them happened within 1-3 weeks of querying. I don't have a single positive response (even a simple partial request) which arrived later than 4 months after querying.

I don't have a single response of *any* kind that arrived later than 6 months after the initial email (I started actively querying about a year ago.)

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The more writers there are, the more submissions there are and the longer it takes to get through the slush pile. I've seen writers find an agent and a publishing deal all within a few weeks; I've also seen it take years. I don't think there's any average, nor any conclusions to be drawn from response times: they are what they are.

Old Hack said:

I really disagree with you here.

Perhaps I'm lucky enough to be acquainted with some really good agents, but the ones I know treat all their clients with equal care and respect, and don't have any "third rate" clients.

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That's nice to hear. Maybe I'm a cynic, but I always imagined it like Cyia said about requests. There are "top of the line" clients (bestselling authors) and "not first priority" clients (the rest of them) and maybe even some "suitcase without a handle" clients (not really doing all that well, but not ready to part with them yet).

Old Hack said:

Because they do go to such pains to represent their author-clients well, though, they're really busy; and so they don't have much time to read manuscripts from potential new clients. It does take time for them to get round to submissions, but that's simply because they are so determined to represent their existing clients as well as they can. And if you were to become one of those clients that's what you'd want, isn't it?

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Oh this is one of those questions I always wondered about. If an agent has a great list of clients and is so extremely busy it takes a year to read a book... why would such an agent need or want new clients anyway?

Old Hack said:

I've seen writers find an agent and a publishing deal all within a few weeks; I've also seen it take years. I don't think there's any average, nor any conclusions to be drawn from response times: they are what they are.

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Probably, but I just dunno... if I'm an agent who sees this partial and thinks "wow so good that's new NYT bestseller right on my table love love love those chapters omg awesome"... and then I put it away for ten months and forget all about it? Just how likely is it?

Windcutter said:

That's nice to hear. Maybe I'm a cynic, but I always imagined it like Cyia said about requests. There are "top of the line" clients (bestselling authors) and "not first priority" clients (the rest of them) and maybe even some "suitcase without a handle" clients (not really doing all that well, but not ready to part with them yet).

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Some agents are going to think of their clients in that way. Others don't. And the best agents never do.

It's difficult, sometimes, to work out which are the best agents. You need to look at their client list, and their history. Do they have loads of clients? Do they take on lots of writers, but then fail to sell many of them? Do their clients have both home and foreign sales, and have they sold subsidiary rights? And how do they talk about their clients? Are they positive about them all or do they clearly favour one or two above all the others?

Oh this is one of those questions I always wondered about. If an agent has a great list of clients and is so extremely busy it takes a year to read a book... why would such an agent need or want new clients anyway?

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They don't. But sometimes a stunner of a book comes along and it sings to them, and so they make room for one new client. It does happen, but very rarely.

Probably, but I just dunno... if I'm an agent who sees this partial and thinks "wow so good that's new NYT bestseller right on my table love love love those chapters omg awesome"... and then I put it away for ten months and forget all about it? Just how likely is it?

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It's very likely, because the agent's clients will be turning in new ms at relatively regular intervals, and the agent has to read them ahead of all submissions; the agent has to read and negotiate clients' contracts ahead of submissions; the agent has to read just about everything ahead of submissions. Bear in mind that most agents don't read manuscripts during office hours, and that most agents work very long days, and you'll begin to see how it can take a long time for an agent to read those submissions, even when they've been requested.

Undercover said:

I have never come across a request for work 3 months or more when querying.

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I've seen it happen. Not so much with submissions sent by agents to editors: but definitely with submissions to agents. In fact, I have a friend whose debut novel was published a couple of months ago: she's represented by a top-tier agent who took nearly a year to respond to her submission.

It's my impression that agents pick the hot novels up quickly, what's trending now and all that. I do believe agents also take on work that is secondary to them, being that the author may need a few rounds of revisions but have a brilliant idea and the writing is sound.

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"What's trending now" is very unlikely to get you an agent, though. It takes too long to sell a book and bring it to the market for fashion to count for much in deciding to represent an author: and agents--good ones, at least--represent writers for their careers, not for single books.

I also do believe that if the work's been on submission for months and months and it's not quite catching with the editors after the agent submits it, the agent will start to lose interest and you then become at the bottoms tiers. It only makes sense for that.

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Some agents work like this, for sure. But there are a few--who I've talked to, and who I know--who don't treat their clients like this.

I wish I could give you more details because I'm sure it would hearten you to hear them, but I can't: I have to respect people's privacy, and so can't tell you some of the stories I've heard. But trust me: the good agents care very much about all their clients, and represent them very well indeed.

But everyone has to realize agents don't all work the same. Some agents are just slow or unorganized or buried in work. It just all depends on the situation and the desire to sell.

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Absolutely. Some agents who have excellent reputations are not on my list of good agents, because I don't think they treat their newer clients very well, and I don't think they're loyal enough to their existing clients. That's why I try to impress on people how important it is to find the best agents there are, and to research carefully before submitting.