After your Agent Pitch's your Work...

Undercover

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When you finally land an agent and they pitch it to publishers and then you hear the targeted editors are reading the full after the pitch, how likely is it that they will want it? What are the ratios and odds and break downs...? (which I know is a stupid question) but still. I think it's like 0.0001% chance or something but I thought I'd ask anyway.

And this is another stupid question but it is a good sign that the editors gave the okay and want to read after the pitch, right?

Just wondering cause that's the stage I'm at now with my third one which is a YA Novel.

Anyone at this stage too? Or further along?
 

ChaosTitan

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Once again, no odds. No figures. No ratios. It all just depends.

Yes, it's a good sign when the editor agrees to read the manuscript. :)

After that, everything just depends. When my first novel went on submission, my agent pitched to six editors and all six asked to read it. Responses came pretty quickly, and within a few weeks we had three rejections. Then a week later, three offers.

Right now, I've been on submission for over two months with a YA series. Because I have a track record, a lot of editors were excited to get it. It went to thirteen editors. A little over half have responded with no's, and we're still waiting on the rest.

This "waiting and wondering" is the hard part.
 

Undercover

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Yeah I know. Thanks for sharing your experience.

Right now my agent pitched it to four editors, two are reading the full and she's waiting to hear on the other two.

I'm just surprised I even got this far.

Congrats on all your accomplishments, I love all your covers. So pretty.
 

raburrell

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Just going out on sub too - when I spoke to my agent last week, she indicated that the pitch is often somewhat of a formality. Presuming the agent has a good relationship with the editor being pitched, the editor asks to see the MS in most cases. Beyond that point, there are too many variables and making odds is a fool's game.

btw, just as a pet peeve (and nothing against the OP), I hate the expression 'land' an agent - it conjures up a mental image of some poor person flopping on a 5th Ave sidewalk with a hook in their mouth, next to a spilled latte. It's about finding someone who loves your work and can help get it out to the reading public, pure and simple :)
 

firedrake

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Just going out on sub too - when I spoke to my agent last week, she indicated that the pitch is often somewhat of a formality. Presuming the agent has a good relationship with the editor being pitched, the editor asks to see the MS in most cases. Beyond that point, there are too many variables and making odds is a fool's game.

btw, just as a pet peeve (and nothing against the OP), I hate the expression 'land' an agent - it conjures up a mental image of some poor person flopping on a 5th Ave sidewalk with a hook in their mouth, next to a spilled latte. It's about finding someone who loves your work and can help get it out to the reading public, pure and simple :)

That is such a brilliant mental image:ROFL: