In a previous post, we talked about dealing with rejection in the context of submitting manuscripts to literary agents. In this latest edition of Emilie’s Musings, we want to expand on one particular aspect of book submissions, namely “radio silence.”
By “radio silence” we mean a lack of response.
As we’ve come to learn, many agents reject manuscripts by simply failing to send any correspondence whatsoever. In fact, some agents state on their websites that if you don’t hear anything within a given period of time, say four to six weeks, that means a pass.
Accordingly, a non-response, at least in some instances, comes as little surprise. On that note, we certainly appreciate the transparency in terms of knowing what to expect.
Saying that, we can tell you, as educators and mentors, this type of (non)response gets our goat. From speaking to fellow authors who have also gone through the submission process, we know it irks a lot of other people, too.
We don’t want to come across as critical of literary agents because we have a great deal of respect for the job they do. We know some receive, on average, a thousand submissions per month—a staggering workload. This translates into about thirty submission per day!
At the same time, how hard is it, in this technological age, to send a form letter, or a generic email, to communicate that one is passing on a manuscript?
Sometimes, we’ve received a formal response by following up on a query, usually with an email. In fact, some agents encourage authors to do this in their submission guidelines (i.e., to follow up within a given timeframe). So, take advantage of the opportunity, as needed.
But what happens when the follow-up email also fails to elicit a response? We don’t have a definitive answer in that respect but, over time, the likelihood of receiving an answer declines and eventually bottoms out.
An unsuccessful query could be attributable to several factors. This pertains to both the author(s) and the agent. From an author perspective, this could stem from the content and/or tone of the query letter, the first line or paragraph of the manuscript, the narrative voice, the characters, the presence of typos, and the like.
From an agent vantage point, this could be attributable to an initial gut reaction, impressions of the characters, interest in the genre, the quality of the writing, including craft, other authors or works they already represent, and so on.
Most rejection letters we’ve received provide minimal, if any, feedback. Thus, there are no indications regarding areas to improve a given manuscript. More times than not, a typical rejection letter includes a sentence along the lines of: “It wasn’t the right fit for me, but other agents might feel differently.”
Again, we get that agents aren’t in the business of providing feedback to authors. This falls under the purview of professional editors and editorial agencies, invaluable resources for receiving in-depth feedback, improving manuscripts, and, ultimately, getting a book published. At the same time, we’d still value knowing why an agent passed on a manuscript.
In conclusion, if you’re going to submit your manuscript to literary agents, be prepared for some… [cue chirping crickets].