Dodgy moves by a writer friend…

[SnugSheep]

I’m a part of a large writer’s group and a few of us are querying atm. Went for drinks with some of them last night and one of them had gotten a few really positive responses from agents - a meeting and requests for full ms. We celebrated but later on she told a couple of us that she couldn’t bear the waiting and radio silence so she’d emailed all her queries and lied about getting a request for full ms in order to jockey the agents along. She was a little guilty about it but it obviously worked for her. I’ve read bits of her novel and I think it’s good!

It’s not something I’d do (even though like most in this game, I’d prefer a negative response to no response) and I’m judging her a bit now. 🫤 It surprised me I guess! Wondering if that’s fair or if it’s just a case of ‘don’t hate the player, hate the game …’ 😂

This is a really bad idea. Publishing is a small world and agents talk. If she gets found out, it could blow up in her face.

Oh dear. I didn’t even think of that. She’s a nice woman (who gives great feedback!), just very anxious, so I hope it doesn’t come back to bite her.

Do you honestly think agents haven't seen or suspected this happening many times before!? It's naive IMHO, not clever, possibly a dumb self-defeating, deluded move. Better to focus on doing everything you can to improve your writing and understanding the market and the competition... getting published is an unhelpful polarising force that gives too many writers tunnel vision IMHO, unless of course, you're a seasoned writer earning a living from writing and publishing on a very regular basis.

You should email those agents anonymously and tell them.

Lol why? It won't work. All it could possible lead to is them reading her query a bit sooner, it won't make them like it! Writing is not really the game for someone who can't be patient, she'll find that out sooner or later.

This is a bad idea. I've done this twice (as in, I actually did get requests and needed to keep them informed) and on both occasions multiple agents have pulled out, explaining that they just didn't have the time or capacity to read my MS in time. So "jockeying agents along" can also backfire and reduce your chances.

As someone upthread said, agents know to expect this and would have had it before. That said, if her writing is exceptional and an agent thinks she'll make them some money, they'd be interested. The trust would be gone though, so it seems like the most pointless and self-destructive thing to do for your career. An agent and writer are supposed to be on the same side, not distrustful or wary of each other.

Yes, exactly this. I did this recently (like you, had an offer and updated other agents who hadn't yet said no, or who had a full) and had a few say 'OK, I'm bowing out at this point -- good luck!'

I've certainly also had one agent ask who the agent who'd offered representation was.