How do you stay sane while querying agents?

[CakeRage]

I finished my first book earlier this year (after saying for years I was going to write it), and started submitting to agents 3 weeks ago.

I’ve had a couple of replies, both really encouraging, but ultimately both rejections, and I feel like I’m losing my marbles. How do you keep it together while waiting? Not sure I can take the emotional rollercoaster

The first agent replied within hours to ask for the full manuscript, emailed again the following day to say she was halfway through and absolutely blown away by it, then a few days later to say she did love it, but thought it needed a few changes making. I revised the whole thing (10,000 extra words of work), then she replied just to say it wasn’t working, and she wouldn’t be taking it further.

To be honest I’ve been pretty gutted by it. How do you stop the little judgy voice in your head which tells you you were an idiot for getting your hopes up?

The second agent replied to say she was really impressed by my writing, but didn’t feel I was a good fit for her list at the moment, and recommended another agent (different agency) who she thought would like it. I handled that one much better, even though I guess it was more of an abrupt no.

Please tell me how you cope with this stage - or come commiserate with me at its horribleness!

(Sorry for my crazed rambling - feeling all my feelings this week!)

No it's not! It's been a few weeks, book fairs have been cancelled all over the shop, they have many existing responsibilities and clients at the best of times.

It's not feasible to expect a personalised response, or any response, from someone who isn't going to take you on and has a full-time job to do. But you're not even at the stage where any kind of response, positive or negative, is expected. Get on with writing your next book.

Thanks bah, just feeling a bit sorry for myself at the moment, when really, I have a lot to be grateful for.

End of Feb is nothing; most agents give a response time of up to 12 weeks. I know the waiting is very hard but there’s nothing for it but to get on with your next project.

I may have said this before on this thread, can't remember.

But after coming from writing and sending out loads of short story submissions, where the vast majority of the (scifi/fantasy) magazines send out rejections, I've been surprised by the level of agent no replies.

I know it's the nature of the business but still...

I subbed to loads of SF/F agents last year and had a handful of form Rs and majority no response. Decided maybe the genre I was writing in was a bit stale.

Sending out a commercial fic one now to different agents and still nothing. One form R. I know, I know... they're busy. Maybe it means my sample writing is dreadful. Maybe the topic isn't right.

All the same, I was surprised. I've sent out hundreds of short story subs in the last few years and usually got a personal reply for at least I don't know, one in five subs? A handful of acceptances. Quite happy with that. Responses from 99% eventually.

To get nothing from agents?! I do wish they'd get themselves organised into sending out form Rs at least. I can't believe they get more submissions than Clarkesworld or F&SF magazine for example and they are amazing responders (and two of the top SFF mags!).

(At the mo they can have a pass, everything is uncertain and even writing a book set in a 'normal' world feels not quite right)

Yes, a standard rejection would be better than nothing. I take it the longer one waits, the more likely it is that you have to accept that your work has been rejected. The only thing I've got so far, was a very quick rejection! I could have waited a couple of weeks longer for that, it least I could have imagined they were hesitating over my work. I am researching self publishing but struggling to speak to anyone in real life about this. Mainly because the one person I know who has done this, has done it all via Amazon whereas I would like someone to proof read and design a cover (with my input).

But you could outsource proofing, copy-editing and cover design yourself and then self-publish via KDP or others much more cheaply than you it would cost to use a ‘self-publishing company’ which will do exactly the same but charge you a whacking premium. God knows how they suck anyone in these days.

There is a lot of information on threads in this forum, and this is a perfectly sensible sketch of the possibilities from a reputable Irish writers’ site, though I can’t speak for whether the rough costings (in euro) are still accurate:

www.writing.ie/resources/how-much-does-it-cost-to-self-publish/

But if you’ve still got four agents to hear from and only queried last month, I’d hold off a bit and get on with another project.

And if you think it’s rude that agents don’t reply, I warn you that even once you’ve signed with an agent, revised the novel through several drafts, and seen it sent out as a well-crafted submission to publishers, some editors, including some at major imprints, don’t reply either.

WalledGarden, thank you so much for your post, this is really helpful. And sums up my theory for progressing with a self publishing project.

After my moaning above, I sent two more submissions on Sunday or Monday, and had a full MS request from one of them on Tuesday.

I've sent it off after looking at it again this morning - you don't tell other agents about full requests do you, just if you get an offer (seems unlikely but you never know I guess)?

To be honest, I can't imagine there's many big book deals happening at the moment with everyone at home (though I hear book sales are doing well), but again who knows!

Yes definitely tell other agents about a request for a full! I've attended a seminar with agents and they said to always tell the others because they are always worried they might miss out. It never does any harm you don't need to say who requested it.

And congrats on getting a full MS request woo hoo!

I'm not sure if anyone is still about on this thread but I thought I'd update to say that I have a publishing contract for the book I was querying last October! I've been writing seriously for 4 years so this has taken a long while and several books before I felt ready to start querying but I'm very chuffed.

Congratulations @LouisaMayAlcott, well done! I check this thread regularly for updates. I was offered a publishing contract a few weeks ago for my teen historical murder mystery which I started querying in September, and I'm just waiting for all the paperwork to come through.

Yay soma well done that's great news! I'm finding good news is all the better in the current climate, so chuffed for you!

Congrats both, excellent cheery news!

Thank you so much @LouiseMayAlcott and @InescapableDeath, it was a total surprise as I queried them back in September and they didn't ask for my full until December.

I should be editing and rewriting like crazy, but I'm in thinking mode at the moment. Also, I was trying to press on with other stuff while I was waiting for agents and publishers to get back to me. I'm 14,000 words into book two of a potential series and 11,000 on a upper YA /NA story. Both are a struggle - maybe I should start a thread on that.

inescapabledeath thank you!

Congrats Louisa and Soma, delighted for you both! What an achievement Exciting times ahead!

Wow, huge congrats Louisa and Soma! Super exciting news.

I’m still in the throes of agent edits at the moment, hoping to be submitting to publishers at some point this year, but it’s been a funny one so far.

Hello is anyone still around submitting? I sent mine to 6 last Friday, so far one form rejection and one very enthusiastic request for a full. Trying not to get too excited after reading this thread however and I’ve previously had an r and r involving visiting the offices and then been ghosted so I know how tough it is out there. What I wondered is when telling others you’ve had a full request (which I hadn’t realised was done before reading this thread!), what do you put in the email subject? It feels scary to bother them, I’d thought you only did that if you had an offer from someone. Thanks

Well done on getting a request for a full! When that happened to me I sent an email to everyone else saying something along the lines of 'further to my recent submission of xxx I am just emailing to inform you that I have now had a request for the full manuscript from another agency.' in my case I have been at a seminar at a conference with a panel of agents who all said they like to know if someone else requests the full because they're always afraid of missing out, so I referenced that as my excuse for telling them all. I sent mine to 8/9 agencies and got 5 requests for the full. Very best of luck with yours!

Thank you that’s super helpful, I will send those emails tomorrow.
I will also send to the next agent on my list I think, to replace the rejection. It’s nail biting stuff isn’t it! Amazing feeling though to even get confirmation that what you’ve produced is good enough to get this far. You feel like you’re in such a vacuum sometimes!

Can I just ask, which agents are people on here contacting? The ones I've tried in the past two weeks are ones that seem to feature on "Top ten agents in the Uk" lists. Suffice to say I haven't heard a thing!

Most of these ones, and others, are stating 10-12 weeks to hear back from them, but I see some of you hear back straight away if they are keen?

I’m so happy to have found this thread and to read your experiences! I have finished my second draft and am starting to pitch. Sounds like quite the rollercoaster!

@blackrabbitwhiterabbit, you need to target agents who represent the kind of thing you write — if you’re querying a commercial psychological thriller, there’s no point sending it to an agent who specialises in literary fiction.

I agree with Limpet if you're submitting to agents you need to look for ones that are open to submissions in the genre you write, they all have different wants. And unfortunately they mostly take 10-12 weeks to come back to you, if at all! I had requests for the full but then it was radio silence for months afterwards.