Waiting on agents

[Hazelwood63]

Hello. I'm just looking for company on this long waiting game. Anyone else waiting to hear back from agents at the moment? I sent out five initial submissions at the end of January. So far I've received a really encouraging rejection and two requests for the full. Nothing from the other two so far. It's coming up to a month since I sent off the first full ms, and just over three weeks for the other one. Has anyone else waited over a month for a response to a full and been offered representation, or is it maybe time to think of moving on?

That's amazing @NewWriter ! They must see something good in there. Fingers crossed...

Thanks so much @SnugSheep and good luck with the rest of your queries! You've done the right thing doing it in batches.

Thank you @Moonflowered I'm very happy with the response so far. I had another full request on Wednesday so I'm now up to 5 full manuscript requests. Hopefully at least one of them turns into an offer but even if not this is the polar opposite response to the first manuscript I drafted so I'm thrilled!

Hi everyone! I've had a request for a full MS. Hooray! But I'm looking for some advice...

WWYD about nudging other agents? So a few of the agencies I've queried have a no response policy if they're not interested. I've sent a nudge to an agent at one of those because the website says let us know if you've had any interest.

But, another is a bit vague. It says they try to get back within two months but it could take longer (it has been in my case), and it may not be possible for them to respond. It doesn't mention anything about updates. Should I take the radio silence as a no and move on, or send the update email? I'd bite this agent's hand off if they were interested and so don't want to get missed, but also don't want to piss them off for future queries!

Congratulations @Unsure4589 !!
You should read the submission instructions on each agency’s website. They often differ. Some will ask for a nudge at a FM request, others only when you have an offer of representation. It definitely is worth doing that as it is likely to put you at the top of the slush pile for those who wish to be nudged.
good luck! 😊

Hi @Unsure4589 and congratulations on the request for the full. That's great news. I understand it to be pretty usual practice, once a particular agent expresses interest, to drop a polite note to any others you may have queried, whether they mention it on their website or not. Considering the hundreds of emails agents receive every week, I can't imagine they'd be pissed off by a quick update - especially from an author whose pitch is creating interest elsewhere ...

Thanks both. One agency I queried doesn't even list timeframes for reading, so it seems fair to send them a quick update! 😅

I received two full requests and two partials. Negative response from the partials in two weeks. Still waiting to hear back regarding the full. It’s nerve wracking but I have learned to try and forget about it (for the most part) by focusing on my next project, and luckily Christmas is round the corner so there is some nice times to look forward to in the next few weeks, whatever happens.

Congrats on the interest @HelloEverybody

Are you in the UK? I’m curious as I haven’t heard of agents asking for partials before. How much did they request? I’m sorry it wasn’t the response you were hoping for but no news is good news for the fulls!

@SnugSheep thanks! I’m based in the UK. The two partials came from US agents. They both asked for the first 50 pages after I submitted the first 5 pages to one, and the first chapter to the other. One of the agents who requested the full is based in the US and the other in the UK.
I think UK agents tend to ask for full straight away and initial submission more often longer material for them to read.

Woohoo! Well done on the full requests @HelloEverybody , I've got my fingers crossed for you!

@NewWriter Thanks! Good luck to your writing endeavours too.

Hello fellow pitchers. Great to have come across this place to share.
Has anyone had a request to meet/talk with an agent after submitting a full manuscript and if so how long is usual?
What genres is everyone writing in? Mine is literary fiction / romance.

Good luck to all!

Hi @ferntwist, sorry I don’t have an answer but I suspect it depends! If it’s an in in-person meeting, I’d personally feel a bit rushed/deprioritised if it was less than 30 mins. It’s a significant business relationship and I’d want to know that the agent felt my career, not just my book, was worth the time.

I’ve just had an agent reject a full ms, which stings. The agent sang its praises, but ultimately didn’t love it. So frustrating to get lots of glowing adjectives and no actionable feedback! Sadly, I think it means the end of the road for this novel. There are so few agents who rep the stuff I write and the market is tough for it. I’ve still got a couple of queries out but they’ve all been rotting on the vine a while so no real hopes there. 🤷‍♀️

How do others cheer themselves up after a particularly stingy rejection? I’m looking for new ideas! 😂

I feel your pain @SnugSheep . I've been working on my novel - in its various forms - for six years. I've had full read requests from dream agents but never an offer of representation. I too find myself today wondering if it's the end of the road for this one. Too 'quiet' for a debut in the current market place. What kind of novel do you write?

Hi @ferntwist and welcome to the thread. When you ask 'how long', do you mean how long the wait might be before an agent contacts you, or how long the meeting might run if/when they do? Sorry. Just a bit confused ...

Oh that’s hard. Yes, I was plugging away at mine for a similar amount of time, interrupted by the arrival of my kids. Literary fiction over here. Not the best game to be in as far as saleability goes! How about you?

I'm kind of upmarket/literary suspense/family drama. Not quite 'hooky' enough, I fear ...

Hello both, great to hear from you. I was wondering about the wait between the full request and an initial meeting with a potential agent if they’re interested but it’s good to hear about your experiences thoughts on the process as a while.
This is so hard, isn’t it?

And I had no idea how important a bloody “hook” was before I started to write — I thought it was all about character arc and story (and quality of writing of course).

@ferntwist Good heavens. I'm part-way through writing my first proper attempt at a novel and I've never heard of a "hook" so I just looked it up. It turns out that I already have one. Well, at least I think I do.

That’s a great start!

I’m in the querying trenches at the moment and wishing I’d known more about the industry when I stated writing the novel last summer.

10 rejections so far and one full request so I’m thinking that must mean my pitch and/or opening chapters aren’t strong enough.

Wow, you only started writing your novel last summer and are already querying? It took me a year to write it and another year to rewrite/run it through a crit site. I've now finally sent it off to an agent (not really expecting anything but mainly for the fun of it). How many agents are you sending yours to? I thought it was bad form to send it to more than one at a time.

@salvia90 you can send it to a few at a time. They don't recommend sending to loads so that you can make tweaks and send it to others based on the response you get at the beginning, or any feedback that comes with the inevitable rejections.

I've had quite a few personalised rejections on fulls now, which honestly stings more I think. Agents saying they like x y and z, but it doesnt fit with their list...like, yes, I'm trying to write something original! I am considering self publishing again at this point but its so much work!

@LydiaBennetsBonnet I had an agent say they wouldn't take it on because it was too similar to a book on their list and they have a rule not to take on "competitors" lol feels like you can't win. I looked at the book she said was similar and it actually annoyed me more because the only similarity was they're both Asian FMCs. And they say they want more diverse voices 🙄