a long time?

RoccoMom

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is 3 weeks an inordinately long time for a manuscript to be considered by a senior editor/acquisitions board? I dont have much experience with the acceptance process - is it a bad sign when they take a long time. I was kind of under the impression that once it went to the Board, they either said yes or no and the decision was fairly quick after that.
 

Eric San Juan

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No, not even remotely a long time. Three weeks is very reasonable. For instance, my experience was much, much longer. Three weeks is nothing at all to sweat. Not even a little.

Good luck!
 

RoccoMom

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Wow, that was interesting. Good thing I'm working on several other manuscripts.

I keep hearing "will have news by the end of the week" but so far no news is good news, I take it. Publishing is S L O W.
 

scope

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Editorial board meeting times vary by agency or publisher. Some meet weekly, semi-monthly, monthly, and so on. Also, there are times when the board doesn't have enough time to get to everything on the agenda, and some items have to be carried over to the next meeting.

3 weeks is nothing. 2-3 months without word is something to be concerned about. Nevertheless, if you have an agent, and are talking about a publishers editorial board meeting, she should know what going on and keep you appraised.
 

YukonMike

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Three weeks seems rather quick.

I had one that took about a month (declined *sigh*) and another took about six weeks (Declined: "Your book was fantastic, We loved it! But because of the current economic situation we have to be absolutely certain about your book...blah blah blah" **double sigh because it was with Penguin**).
I have a third publisher still interested and she's had the book proposal for about 10 weeks now. I'm not sure if she has had the editorial board meeting yet, but she's e-mailed me twice saying she really likes the book proposal and asked me a few followup questions.

Does it say how long it takes on the publisher's website guidelines? The one I'm still waiting on says they take anywhere from two weeks to six months.
I say wait a few more weeks and if you haven't heard anything, send a short, polite e-mail asking for an update.

Good luck Toni1953!
 
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Danthia

Editors mean well, but they're usually overworked and "by the end of the week" often stretches into two or three (or even more). Three weeks isn't a long time. Just hang in there :) You can always check with your agent and see if they have any news or insights. They might know which editors tend to be slower and can set your mind at ease.