should I write the publisher?

[Leaf Face]

Not sure what to do, but maybe someone can answer this question. A publisher asked for my manuscript and wrote that it would take six months for a review. Six months have gone by and I am wondering if I should write them about the status of the manuscript, as I haven't heard from them yet. Is that a no-no? Should I keep waiting?

Thanks!

[jackokent]

Hi Leaf Face

I'm no expert but I can't see that anyone would mind a gentle, polight enquiry. You could always make it sound like you weren't hassling them by, for instance, saying you'd had a problem with your own post and were simply checking that nothing had been sent from there end

[Stormpirate]

I personally would send a short inquiry. I think it's perfectly reasonable that if they advised six months, and that time frame has passed and you haven't heard anything yet, to send a follow up.

[John Jarrold]

Absolutely. If you haven't heard in a stipulated period, it's fine to ask politely. I get e-mails like that when I'm running late!!!

[SJAB]

Be professional and polite is all the advice I can give.

[Daniel Hetberg]

6 months... wow. Is that a usual time frame if you have gotten so far, that a publisher wants your whole manuscript?

[John Jarrold]

It can simply mean that the publisher hasn't yet looked at your book.

[Daniel Hetberg]

Yeah, but I mean, the publisher _asked_ for the book and then needs 6 months to look at it? If he knows he won't have the time to look at it, why would he ask for it now, rather than when he has the time?

[roddglenn]

A polite enquiry just to ask on their progress with it is perfectly acceptable.

[Teresa Edgerton]

If it's a very small start-up publisher, the editor may not be good at estimating how long these things take. If it's a large publisher, the book may have to be approved by a number of different people, all of whom have their own projects going, and who may not get around to looking at the manuscript as quickly as the editor hopes they will.

If they ask for it later when they know they'll have the time ... well, there is no later when they know they'll have the time. Things come up. So they fit things in when they can.

[John Jarrold]

Yep, it's not exact. If an author writes to a publisher and asks to submit their work, and is told 'Yes, please do' - obviously I don't know if that's your situation - then it's just one of many submitted that week. In the UK, each editor receives around thirty typescripts every week. And editors vary. Some take one week to turn down 95% of what they see, others can sit on scripts for over a year.

But the basic point - yes, just ask politely!

[Leaf Face]

Hi and thanks all for your responses.

I did write an email and now I am waiting for a reply. It is a smaller publisher that mainly does e-books. I queried first and they asked for the manuscript, then wrote back that they were sending it to their readers, so I think it has to go through a group of people. Everything is done through the Internet.

~~

[John Jarrold]

Good luck!

[StevenSavile]

To the chap who asked if 6 months was regular in the biz - Leisure currently take around 2 to 3 years to respond to slush submissions. I have heard the same of Tor.

One of the reasons to have a guy like John around is so that HE can do the polite nudging... I'd never do it myself, the logic in my head is that it just gives someone an easy excuse to reject you - writing a one line rejection is such an easy thing to do and you never know what kind of day they are having... but when your agent drops them a little nudge, well that's not so bad, because everyone expects them to be a writer's rottweiler

Good luck with the mss!

[Leaf Face]

Thank you for the good lucks!
They wrote back that they are still reviewing it and will contact me "soon"... How many weeks is soon? Can I write another letter and politely say, "It has been soon, and I was wondering..."?