AGENT BOOK-READING TIME

tim powell said:

I'm a new novel-writer.

How long does it customarily take, for an agent to read a new book? I have a reputable--but slow--agent. I've sent him my new book. Would love input on how long a wait a new novel (about 75,000 words) would entail. Thanks!

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EDIT: Apologies. I completely misunderstood. Your post sounded like you had just started the querying process -- I didn't realize you were talking about the agent currently representing you.

This is outside my area of knowledge, so I'll let the agented authors step in on this one.

It depends on the agent, the agency, work loads, time of year, priority, etc.

I've had an agent blow through a book in a weekend and give first pass notes. I've also had an agent take weeks on a book to give more detailed feedback.

We're into the summer. Assuming you're in the US publishing powers down until September, so things slow down. A LOT of agents/editors are going to be taking vacation time over the next few weeks. If you're in the UK, then the Olympics will have things tied up for probably a week after the games end, as people get back into the swing of normal business.

If your agent has multiple clients, then he's not just working on your book, most likely. And if one of those clients is on submission, then that's going to be a priority if there are offers coming in. ("powered down" doesn't mean "dead stop." There are still people working in the industry.)

Have you tried asking his other clients about his average reading time?

Have you tried just asking your agent for an eta? Not to put the pressure on, just so you have a sense of timeline?

I don't see anything wrong with that.

I would definitely ask your agent for an estimated response time, just to get some idea of when you can expect notes, etc. Each agent works so differently. Some of my friends' agents take a couple of months to read over a new client MS while others turn it around in a week. I can usually count on my agent to turn things around anywhere between two weeks to a month, but again it varies because of circumstances. Say I turn in a MS in early July. She probably already has some reading in her queue, not to mention she may or may not attend some of the big writers' conferences such as RWA National which takes time to prep for and unwind from. Any of those things can bump reading time out to longer than I'd initially anticipated. The best thing you can do is start a conversation with your agent about the issue.