Literary agent Janet Reid writes that she can’t understand why authors would send out a query just before going on vacation:

I surrendered to the modern age only after a great deal of whining, moaning and complaining. Yes, I now take queries by email. Yes, I like the ecology of saving paper. Yes, I love the speed. Yes, I love the time savings.

No, I don’t love the queryworts who haven’t figured out “auto respond.”

More correctly, I don’t love the people who can’t figure out when NOT to engage their vacation message.

I don’t understand vacation auto-reply at all. It once had a purpose; long ago in the last century, we only read our e-mail from one location, and when we left that location, we didn’t read our e-mail. But I never liked them, and I don’t use them anymore. E-mail has long since left the realm of paper mail. In today’s world where we can read our e-mail sporadically from anywhere, I don’t see the point of vacation auto-replies.

I suggest that all auto-reply default text be changed to “Hi! I’m currently out of town. If you’d like to burglarize my office or home, now is a good time to do it.”