Advice please: Full request on an old query after I've done significant revisions.

Corvid

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This is kind of a long story that requires a bit of explaining.

7 months ago I sent a query to one of my dream agents, and today I received a full request. Now normally this would be a really exciting thing, but I'm finding myself with a lot of anxiety!

The problem is, I've started on a very involved Revise and Resubmit for a small publisher in the meantime--and in the process, I've lost a bit of faith in my original manuscript. It's honestly closer to a complete rewrite than an R&R and I've changed some major plot elements while keeping the heart of the original. Quite frankly, I feel like the one I'm working on now is a lot better than the original. Is there any way I can ask her for a "rain check" on this one until I finish the R&R, or should I stand by my original manuscript? She read three chapters so far and must have apparently liked it, since she asked for the full.

Now it's important to keep in mind that when I sent the original query, the manuscript was 100% finished and fully edited. I even had feedback from another agent on a full that it was "among the cleanest manuscripts he'd ever seen." I know agents really frown on people who seem flaky, and I really don't want to come across as being disorganized or wasting her time. I'm worried that she'll feel like I communicated poorly if I ask to send the R&R version later on, if that makes sense.

Part of me thinks I should stand by the original manuscript, while the other part really wants to make sure she sees my best work. What would you do in this situation?

At one point I had a lot of faith in the original manuscript, so do you think I should just stick with it and give the original "one last hurrah?" I'd love to hear some feedback from someone experienced.

Thank you very much for your time!
 
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heza

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I'm not an agent and I'm not published, so consider that along with this advice...


R&Rs are a standard practice in the industry, so it will not surprise this agent (or shouldn't, at any rate) to find out you received and are acting on one from another agent. Just let the agent know you're in the process of revising based on compelling revisions you received from another agent and that you can send the new manuscript when it is ready. At the same time, not all agents have the same taste or vision for a book, so if you're wavering about whether to send the original, I'd just give the agent the option, letting them know the plot elements are changing significantly and the original manuscript is still available if they want it.

But don't worry about seeming flaky or wasting the agent's time. "Flaky" is when someone sends a query or manuscript and then keeps sending "revised" queries and manuscripts because they "keep finding mistakes" or just wanted to change something arbitrary.

(Some side advice: Also consider what form the R&R took. If it was just a couple of lines about changing something, okay then. But if the agent provided extensive feedback for the R&R, I have seen agents say it's a courtesy to give that agent a short exclusive on the new manuscript because they invested the time to offer the feedback to improve it.)


Another thing to think about (and this is a completely subjective opinion) is what version of your work do you want out there? It's totally normal to get feedback that makes you want to go in a new direction with your book. Seeing that a revision makes your work stronger than it originally was isn't a matter of being flaky or wishy-washy or losing faith in your original work. Works evolve, and that's fine. So think about whether you really love your original story or whether you really love this new story that's coming into being. Would it disappoint you, ultimately, to have the old story published instead of the new story? If so, don't offer the old one. It doesn't do you any good to get an offer on a story you no longer want to have published.