What to expect after agented submissions?

You should direct those questions to your agent. They all operate differently, especially when it comes to things like status updates. Some agents may not communicate at all until they have something important to let you know, while others may update more frequently. Your agent can let you know how they submit and what their typical time frames look like.

Don't be scared to ask your agent questions. You won't look like a nitwit if you send an email or two asking questions about the process!

My first response to those questions is: Ask your agent. They are there to answer your questions, as well as sell your book.

ETA: cross-posted with blueobsidian.

wrtaway said:

- How often should I reasonably expect to get status updates from my agent?
- How long do publishers typically take to consider submissions?
- Do publishers often offer feedback if the answer is no?
- To how many publishers should I reasonably expect my agent to submit? (my book is a YA novel, if that makes a difference)

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In my experience:

- My agent let me know that there would be an auction, and I didn't bug her about anything else. I figured she was working hard on the MS and didn't want me asking if she'd heard anything every five minutes. (Which I had to fight myself not to do.)

- It took us exactly one week. I've heard of cases where it takes months to hear anything.

- Yes. My agent never shared my rejections, but would have if I would have asked. I didn't really care after the book sold, to be honest.

- Mine went out to about 20. I've heard of situations where an agent will send to just 2 or 3 to get a feel for what the response may be, however.

Learn how to wait. That, and work on something else. That's all you really need to do at this point. And maybe you'll get lucky and you won't have to do the wait part.

Will Lavender said:

My agent never shared my rejections, but would have if I would have asked.

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I don't think I'd want to hear about all the rejections.

Man, that would be a jagged pill to swallow.

SisterSue said:

I don't think I'd want to hear about all the rejections.

Man, that would be a jagged pill to swallow.

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Not always. Two of the rejections my agent showed me were very nice. One complimented my worldbuilding and writing, for instance, and said that the editor would be interested in anything else I'd got. If you're going to be rejected, that's a very large spoonful of ice cream to make the medicine go down!

That is nice. I always expected publishers to be a bunch of Simon Cowell characters just waiting to tell you how much you suck.

Hey wrtaway. Welcome to AW. Congrats on the agent. I don't have any advice on this being one of the unagented among us. But there is an interesting ongoing thread you might want to join here:

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=93652

Ditto the congrats on the agent! Also ditto asking your agent those questions. From my own experience, I can tell you that I let my agent know from the beginning that I wanted to know about all submissions and all bounces. I didn't ask for periodic updates, but I did keep in light touch with his assistant every few weeks or so, and she was great about passing on pass letters to me.

It's also important to establish a good dialogue with your agent from the beginning in the event that your book doesn't sell right out of the gate--which is what happened to me. The book received several passes, plus there were a number of editors who took months to respond, and after about six months of no sale I asked my agent if he could set aside time for an extended phone conference. We had a long discussion about the submissions, where else he planned to send it, what I should write next, and whether it was time to switch gears.

A week later he called to tell me he had an offer for my book and the (unfinished) sequel.

So, try not to get too discouraged if it doesn't sell right away!

SisterSue said:

That is nice. I always expected publishers to be a bunch of Simon Cowell characters just waiting to tell you how much you suck.

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Nah. Also, the agents are going to be their colleagues for a long time, and they don't want to be unprofessional with them.

Plus the publishers WANT to love your stuff. They WANT to be wowed. The WANT that next ms they see to fabulous. Not only is it their job, but I've yet to find someone in the business who doesn't love books.