I queried Ali on the very first day she opened in August 2023 and have just received an email saying I’m in her maybe pile, a year later.

She does reply to all queries, you just need to be super patient!

@patrick she's open to queries

Ali seems very nice. Even though it takes her a long time to respond, the personalized emails are very appreciated. Still in the maybe pile after a year, but good to know it is still a maybe.

Queried September 2023.

Received this message August 2024, almost a year later:

"I know it's been a long wait, and I'm sorry to have put you through it. However, I wanted to get in touch and let you know that out of the MULTIPLE thousands of queries I've received, yours for [TITLE] is one of the 195 that remain in my "Maybe Pile." Congratulations!

I think this is an important milestone to celebrate, and even though this may eventually lead to a request or a pass, it's nice to know that something stood out in your work to land you here. It's also a double-edged sword because sometimes my maybes hang out even longer in "No-Answer-Yet-Ville." It's a balance of giving something that makes it to this level a fair shake, yet also having enough time to give it said fair review.

Thank you for your patience and again congratulations!"

I've been in the query trenches for 4 years now, across 4 different novels, and I'll say that I LOVE her for this message. I am more than happy to wait as long as needed, I've got all the patience in the world. I think it's so kind of her to even keep me updated like this and to know she really takes queries seriously and is so encouraging.

Whoever her clients are, they are lucky!