12/1/2025: Sci-fi, 70k

I had a watch notice on Ms. Smith, which said she was open to queries yesterday, so I did; however, I'm not expecting a reply. She's supposedly only open for the first 10 days of every month (except December), so perhaps the "open to queries" setting was an automated feature, because she went back to "closed to queries" shortly after I submitted. We'll see.

Or...maybe my manuscript was an early Christmas wish for her and she thought, "That's it. It can't get any better. No more queries this month."

@Gillian_McQwerty, I like how you think!

This agent's automatic submission response says she aims to respond within a month, but she rarely meets that timeframe. Her response times are taking well over 120 days (if you take off the automatic CNR at 120 days), and she doesn't seem to respond to updates or nudges.

In the past year, she has received 3337 queries (as of the moment I checked). Only 132 have received responses, and only 39 of those have been within 30 days. Of the 12 manuscripts she requested in the year timeframe, the request came at 7-130 days later. Rejections have gone over 130 days.

It seems like she will get to you eventually if you remove Query Tracker's automatic CNR at 120 days. But I wouldn't count on her responding to any nudges or updates unless (possibly) it's about an offer.

If you think another agent might be a better fit at the agency, it might be a good idea to cancel after 3 months or 120 days with this agent. If you want to see if she will request your manuscript, you might have to extend the automatic CNR time and wait. Though she might not respond to your updates today, she will eventually see them whenever she finally gets to your query.

It's frustrating and unfair, but that seems to be the way of the publishing industry. Good luck!