Once you’ve sent out your queries, waiting can seem interminable. Editors can be very busy, which mean your query may legitimately fall through the cracks, requiring you to follow up; however, you don’t want to seem pushy or become a nuisance. Here are some tips for deciding how long to wait patiently…and how to make your move.

Look up the publication’s estimated response time. You can usually find out when you should expect an answer by, on the publication’s website, in their writer’s guidelines, or in The Writer’s Market. You should probably wait a week or two beyond this estimate, to account for mailing times and other reasonable delays, but if the expected response time has come and gone, you may want to start formulating a follow-up letter.

Be polite. There may be a legitimate reason for the delay. If you are demanding and impatient, you’ll ruin your chances, perhaps before the editor has even seen your query.

Remind the recipient of the original letter and date. Clearly state that you are following up on your query, and provide the date of the letter. You should also enclose a copy of the original letter with your follow-up.

Request a response. Don’t forget to give your contact information. Ask that the editor get back to you, at the very least for a status update.

Be patient. Give your follow-up a reasonable amount of time to generate a response – a few weeks should be sufficient. If you still don’t receive a response, it may be time to move on to other markets (or other assignments, as the case may be).

There’s a dual need for respect here. Writers need to respect the workload most editors face, but editors need to also realize that writers are trying to make a living and cannot be put on hold for extended periods of time. If an editor goes way beyond the stated response time, or repeatedly makes excuses to buy more time, you should consider withdrawing your offer. There’s too much of a chance that the editor won’t abide by a timeline for paying you, either. Try to be as reasonable as you can when dealing with publishers, but recognize when giving the benefit of the doubt begins to hurt yourself.

For more tips for writers, check out Swan’s blog.