As a prospective academic author, you may be aware that you can send a proposal to multiple publishers at the same time. This can be a good strategy for maximizing your chances of success and saving yourself some waiting time. But it also introduces questions, such as what to do when you receive a response from one press but not others.
Here’s a question I received from an author about a situation like this:
About three weeks ago, I sent my proposal (w/ letter of inquiry, CV and two sample chapters) to three university presses. One responded immediately, and she sent it out for review. The reviews that came back were encouraging, and I'm currently writing my response now. My questions are: (1) can I follow up with the other two editors; (2) if so, should I mention my progress at the one university press?
Here’s how I answered:
Follow up with the other editors to let them know you have a status update. This isn’t weird to do — it’s actually helpful to the editors because it lets them know they need to move quickly if they’re interested in the project and want to have a chance at it. If they aren’t interested in the project, a follow-up can also prompt a quicker decision, which is useful for you to have, even if it’s a no.
You don't need to name the other press but you can say that one publisher has moved forward swiftly with peer review of the proposal and sample chapters and you believe they will be making an advance contract offer soon (I assume that's the subtext of the first editor having you write a response to the reviews: they're hopefully going to take it to their editorial board or internal committee for approval to offer you an advance contract.)
You can say to the unresponsive publisher X that you have not yet made a commitment to publish with the first press and you are still hoping to explore the possibility of publishing with Press X. And then just ask if they are still considering your proposal submission or have an update on its status.
It sounds like the first press really fast-tracked the process, which is great and indicates strong interest on their part. Have you told them that you have submitted the proposal for consideration at other presses? They might be trying to preempt any offers from other publishers by moving so quickly.
If you haven't told the first press that you are still exploring multiple publishers, that might be a good idea, just so the editor knows where they stand.
You can definitely tell them that you'll need more time before making a decision, or you may be able to use their eagerness as leverage to improve their offer in order to keep you from going elsewhere (though tread carefully—you don’t want to give the impression that you’re trying to force their hand and you do want to show gratitude for them making the effort to move quickly for you).
How you proceed kind of depends on how you've ranked the presses in your mind. If you're very happy with the first press, you could just go with them. They seem invested in your project and eager to partner with you.
If you think another press would be better for your book or career, then don't stress about asking the first press to wait for you. They might not love it, but it's your book and your career, and you have the right to take time to make such big decisions. Just do them the courtesy of giving them a time frame within which they can expect your decision, and try to not stretch it out too long. Their interest may wane if you go months without being in touch.
Follow up: The author implemented this advice and immediately heard back from one of the other publishers, who also expressed interest in the author’s project. A good outcome!