After being rejected by one agent in an agency, is it a good idea to send a query for the same book to another agent in the same agency?
Another Question On Query Etiquette
- Thread starter scottishpunk
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It is frowned upon, read the submission guidelines they should tell you if they allow it. However, I did it to a agency that didn't allow it and it did work out for me. I didn't end up signing with them but the story goes:
I received a rude rejection from an assistant editor at the company whereas the owner asked for 20 pages via snailmail.
My personal advice would be, go for it, what do you have to lose?
BUT, it is frowned up Check the submission guidelines and then go with your gut. Some agencies have a submissions process that involves every agent, if this is the case you will be doomed.
My route is an unconventional one and I have been told that I was the exception to the rule. You should probably wait and hear what others reply.
Good luck!
I received a rude rejection from an assistant editor at the company whereas the owner asked for 20 pages via snailmail.
My personal advice would be, go for it, what do you have to lose?
BUT, it is frowned up Check the submission guidelines and then go with your gut. Some agencies have a submissions process that involves every agent, if this is the case you will be doomed.
My route is an unconventional one and I have been told that I was the exception to the rule. You should probably wait and hear what others reply.
Good luck!
Like many things, it depends on the agency. There isn't an established best practice (at least, not that I am aware of).
Check the agency guidelines. Some will say not to, others will say that it's okay. If the agency doesn't say anything, I would do it IF there is more than one agent there that might be a good match.
If you were talking about a case where an agent requested a full and then passed, I might hesitate. If, however, you are talking about a query, then check the guidelines.
Don't, however, query both at the same time.
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I disgaree that it is frowned upon in general - that seems to be an overstatement.
I will second, however, that you need to read the submission guidelines for each agency to know if that specific agency allows/encourages you to query multiple agents in the agency.
If the guidelines don't say a no from one agent is a no from the whole agency, then it is perfectly acceptable to query the other agents in the agency if one rejects the query.
But, I agree with Kathleen that you should not query more than one agent in an agency at the same time.
Additionally, I do think there is a difference between querying other agents if the query is rejected, and if a full is rejected. If an agent in an agency rejects the full, especially a smaller agency, then even if it's permissable to query another agent in the agency, you might be better off looking at other agencies since agents within agencies often talk about manuscripts and often pass manuscripts around.
good luck.
~suki
No, it's not a good idea. Very, very few agencies have more than one agent for a particular type of book, and when a query comes in, that agent is the one who reads it, no matter who the query was addressed to.
I strongly disagree. There are some genres that most agents represent, if you have a popular genre then most agents at the same agency will cover it. One might like it, one might reject it.
It's not frowned upon in general.
Many agencies - like Writers House - say that if you're rejected by one agent, you can feel free to query another one so long as the submissions aren't simultaneous. The exceptions - like Prospect - always state "do not requery" on their site. Usually the exceptions are smaller agencies where each considered MS is taken to committee, so it's already been seen by all of the agents who might rep it. The larger agencies like William Morris-Endeavor have dozens of agents and there's overlap as to what each one will represent. One may not like it, another may love it.
If there's no specific warning not to resubmit, you should be fine.
Many agencies - like Writers House - say that if you're rejected by one agent, you can feel free to query another one so long as the submissions aren't simultaneous. The exceptions - like Prospect - always state "do not requery" on their site. Usually the exceptions are smaller agencies where each considered MS is taken to committee, so it's already been seen by all of the agents who might rep it. The larger agencies like William Morris-Endeavor have dozens of agents and there's overlap as to what each one will represent. One may not like it, another may love it.
If there's no specific warning not to resubmit, you should be fine.
I think the answer is somewhere in the middle. There are certainly well respected agencies with multiple agents accepting the same genre.
There's no absolute wrong or right here: so much depends on the agency concerned. I think the important thing is to read the various agencies' guidelines, and act accordingly.
I very much agree! In our agency, I am the one ALL queries go to first, and so I know if I see a double, and can very easily ask if someone had earlier rejected it! However, our agency is a boutique agency, meaning we meet regularly face-to-face and discuss all projects we are interested in, and so querying twice would not be to your benefit with us! But, with an agency like Writer's House, where they specifically tell you you are welcome to query multiple agents, it is acceptable. So, just look up the guidelines before you (re)submit!
We have several agents at FinePrint who work in the same categories. Querying all of us is fine; just not at the same time.
There is no industry standard on this as far as I know. It varies by agency and the policy is usually mentioned on the website.
And frankly, if you query multiple time, politely, the worst you'll do is annoy us. And sadly, that's not fatal. Fatal to you I mean.
There is no industry standard on this as far as I know. It varies by agency and the policy is usually mentioned on the website.
And frankly, if you query multiple time, politely, the worst you'll do is annoy us. And sadly, that's not fatal. Fatal to you I mean.
When I first started seriously thinking about getting published and wanting to make my life work in writing books, I jumped in cold and stupid and sent out queries. Of course I was rejected time after time because my query clearly sucked and agents could not get past it. Well, after 4 years of redoing my query, I finally got an agent rejection with some advice. The first advice in 80 rejections.. I have taken her advice and rewritten my query using her guidelines and now I am doing a major rewrite on my book which I must say is really doing what she said it would do........NOT BORE THE READERS!
SO...my question is....I have agents from four years ago who rejected me. Can I requery them with my new title and new query? Also the agent who gave me the advice said nothing about requerying. Can I requery her when my rewrites are done? She did give me positive feedback on my writing, just the way I had it put together was boring...
SO...my question is....I have agents from four years ago who rejected me. Can I requery them with my new title and new query? Also the agent who gave me the advice said nothing about requerying. Can I requery her when my rewrites are done? She did give me positive feedback on my writing, just the way I had it put together was boring...
4 years ago with a different title - they will not remember you if they simply rejected your query.
That is great to hear...yeah, it was only my query......ok, that gives me hope. I won't lose anything by trying.Thanks.....