I get a lot of questions from other writers in regards to follow ups. When should you follow up on a query? How (and how often) should you follow up on a letter of intro? I'm curious how others handles follow ups, so please chime in with your two cents.
For me, it totally depends on the publication and the timeliness of my idea. If the writer's guidelines say I should wait six weeks before following up, then I generally wait six weeks. If an editor writes back to say she's presenting the idea at an editorial meeting that week, I'll follow up after that. Often we don't get a timeline, so I might wait 2-4 weeks. If it's an idea I'm really psyched about, I might send two follow ups about a month apart.
The first follow up might go something like this:
Hi [editor's name],
Just wanted to follow up on the query I sent last month (copied below for your convenience). I'd love to contribute to [name of magazine or website], and I look forward to hearing from you soon. Please let me know if you have any questions. Thanks!
Best,
Susan
The second follow-up might read like this:
Hi [editor's name],
Just wondering if you've had a chance to consider the query I sent a few months ago? I'd love to contribute to [name of magazine of website], but if I don't hear from you by [date], I plan to shop this idea elsewhere. Thanks for your consideration, and I hope to hear from you soon.
Best,
Susan
I hope that you're taking the time to send follow ups, because I've gotten several assignments this way. Sometimes the editor misses the first email or it gets stuck in a spam filter or she starts to draft a response and gets distracted. What's your follow-up formula?