A Word on Submissions

  • By: Jessica Faust | Date: Mar 03 2015

I know not every agent works this way, not even in our office, but I want to put it out there that if I send you a helpful rejection I am alway happy to see the material again should you make dramatic changes based on my suggestions.

In fact, my guess would be that most agents would rather see a query again than hear later how the book sold, with another agent, based on the suggestions she made.

So even if I fail to ask you send the book to me again, the door is open. Because I hate to lose out on something I liked enough to give revision suggestions on.

–jhf

5 responses to “A Word on Submissions”

  1. Avatar Artemis Grey says:
    March 3, 2015 at 2:42 pm

    Thanks for this! It's so hard to know where the line between a resilient and determined submitter, and obnoxious doing-it-wrong submitter lies.

  2. Avatar LynnRodz says:
    March 3, 2015 at 6:42 pm

    I have to agree with Artemis, there's a fine line knowing what to do and it's different for each agent. Thank you for letting us know where you stand.

  3. Avatar Traci Kenworth says:
    March 3, 2015 at 7:10 pm

    Thanks for the tip!!

  4. Avatar Colin Smith says:
    March 4, 2015 at 2:55 am

    Jessica: Good to know. Thanks for putting that out there. 🙂

    Diane: Unlike the "to personalize or not to personalize" question, "to drink or not to drink" is a no-brainer. I wish all query conundrums were that easy. 🙂

  5. Avatar Carolynnwith2Ns says:
    March 4, 2015 at 11:29 am

    The last time I queried my novels to you it was 2011. After numerous rewrites and a couple of queries that have been put through the wringer, be on the lookout, my work and I have changed. It's better and I'm grayer.