Full Manuscript Exclusivity

Exclusivity is not automatic, if they didn't ask for it--then by all means send a note that says you plan on subbing elsewhere. But really, 4 months is not that long. What time line did they give you? Is it past that time?

Shawn

Call tomorrow

and see if they even received it. Did you receive delivery confirmation?
It is fine to call and ask the status of your submission.

When I was an Editorial Assistant at the "Prairie Schooner" and got a call about a ms, I would pull it and give it to the appropriate editor that day. Often times, it is lost and at the bottom of a HUGE pile.

For example, at St. Martin's in NY their editors will get it back in one week when agented.

Do you have an agent? A good agent will get you read in a short time.

I hope you hear good news soon!

This makes me curious. Is it a big no-no to send a MS with a return receipt, or is that a good idea?

How much can a koala bear?

Who do these people think they are? (he said, spluttering with self-righteous indignation.)

While it is flattering to be asked for a full with exclusivity, IMO they have a damned cheek to be still sitting on it 3-4 months later without a word of explanation. Sure, they've got other things to do, but so do you. This party is frittering away your time, time you will never have again, and possibly costing you opportunities elsewhere.

It's like making an appointment to see a doctor, when they insist you arrive promptly at 2pm and then see you promptly at 4pm. It's just one more expression of the power game played by those who for whatever reason feel they have ascendancy over you, and that as a poor supplicant bunny you will wait patiently for them to dispense the largesse within their gift.

I believe most agents do try to play the game when they've requested an exclusive and respond within a reasonable period -- but 3-4 months is not reasonable.

There are possible explanations -- stuff lost in the mail, illness etc. But if I were you, Anders, I'd send a gentle reminder, and if you receive no satisfactory response regarding their intentions within a week, keep sending your mss out.

Return receipt

Mistook: it is "wrong" to send something that requires an agent's signature, but it is good sense to pay 45 cents for "delivery confirmation", and it's OK to include a return postcard that tells you the agent has the manuscript.

It's not unusual for a publisher to sit on a ms for months, sometimes up to a year or more.

You can always send an inquiry for status. I'm not sure if "exclusivity" is implied when a publisher requests your ms, but you could always ping them and ask.

Time enough? Probably

Remember that the agency received the book right on the cusp of the holiday season, and many agencies virtually shut down then (in concert with publishers).

But it's now about time for you to receive an update. I'd simply give them a phone call and ask, politely.

I will however say that you should not send out other queries until you hear something. My rule of thumb is that when an agency requests the full manuscript, I treat it as an exclusive "reading" period.

Getting in a huffy manner and being obtuse with them will not work to anyone's advantage. But simply inquiring for an update is perfectly acceptable.

And I'm assuming that you know for certain that they did receive the mailing?

Here's my experience -- I was asked for the complete manuscript of my mystery novel last fall, and sent it to an agency. They told me via email that the evaluation would take 3-4 weeks.

At 5 weeks I emailed them and asked for an update. They replied that the book was still under review and that they were now passing it around. They said I should hear in 1 more week.

It actually took 2 weeks, but at the end of this time, I received a contract! Their time estimates were just a bit too short, and they did apologize later, saying that they wanted everyone in the agency to read the book.

So if the agency said "4 weeks" and it's now been 5, don't sweat it. Factor in the holiday season and it may account for the delay. But it doesn't hurt to ask.

Erratum

Just re-read your original post, Anders, and realised that I got the wrong end of the stick before - they didn't demand an exclusive.

It's customary for agents to ask for an exclusive with a full, just to make sure they're not wasting their time reading it when you might otherwise adopt a scattergun approach. Part of the deal is that when they do so, they do try to read it and respond within a reasonable period.

As they haven't asked for one, you're free of obligation. But since they've shown at least some interest, as a matter of courtesy you might want to remind them they have your ms by phone/letter/e-mail to give them the chance to respond before you march bravely on towards publication via another agency. The fact that it's been so long suggests that they're either hugely overworked or they've given your piece a low priority, in which case your own interests - the interests that matter here - may be better served by submitting elsewhere with reckless abandon.

arainsb123 said:

The full manuscript for my novel was requested, based on a query, by a publisher on October 31, 2004. I sent it that night, and since then I have gotten no feedback from the editor.

She didn't ask for exclusivity, and since it's been so long since I submitted (I've emailed the editor since then, but she's said nothing of the MS), can I start querying other publishers? Or is exclusivity automatic in these cases?

Click to expand...

Check the publisher's guidelines. Some publishers specifically state that they won't consider simultaneous submissions. In that case, you shouldn't be querying other publishers.

If there's nothing in the guidelines excluding simultaneous submissions, then you're OK to query--but you'll be facing the same issue if you then get a request from a publisher that doesn't want simsubs.

- Victoria

Holidays

arainsb123 said:

I don't have an agent. The publisher doesn't say anything about simsubs.

Click to expand...

I misread your original post, and thought you were submitting to an agent instead of a publisher.

That makes my holiday statement all the more applicable. Publishers practically shut down through the Thanksgiving-Christmas-New Year season.

Furthermore, publishers usually take longer to respond than agencies.

The timeframe regarding your submission is fine, and your decision is correct -- wait a bit longer and then inquire.