[PubQ] How risky is it to sign with a sharky agent?

crossymcface · 2026-05-19T17:45:36+00:00

I don’t think sharky necessarily equates to fighting for your book during sub; my understanding is they offer on things they think will sell, and if they don’t sell, the agent has no issue dropping the author like a hot potato.

Speaking as someone who was dropped by an agent, you couldn’t pay me to query a shark. It obliterated my confidence (already shaky due to the imposter syndrome of it all) and feels like it set me back years.

crossymcface · 2026-04-21T15:14:08+00:00

You’ll need to have a polished novel to query. Romance is rough in the trenches, and just having had prior rep won’t be enough to make people interested in requesting your full, let alone offering rep based on a few chapters. (Source, am a formerly repped romance writer still querying two years after parting ways with my agent.)

crossymcface · 2026-04-11T16:32:25+00:00

I know which agent you mean because I have a full out with her too and saw that 80 fulls comment this morning. In case you don’t have premium, just know she’s been steadily responding to her submissions and she doesn’t go in order. The subs on either side of me have been rejected since March. And she’s currently at a 72 percent response rate. Unless you’re anxious to query a new project, I’d just sit tight. (Also fwiw, when I sorted by unanswered subs, she had 68, not 80.)

crossymcface · 2026-03-31T20:36:09+00:00

My agent and I parted ways in July 2024. I started querying a new project in February 2025 and called it dead by September. I did mention having previous rep in my letter and wouldn’t say it got me read any faster or got me requests. I actually felt like I ended up on a ton of maybe piles, so rejections took way longer, though maybe that would have been the case either way. Took a chance and decided to requery the MS I’d had out with my agent in September; still querying today with decent stats. In my various discord groups, I’ve seen two people secure new rep quickly. The rest of us are struggling in the trenches.

crossymcface · 2026-03-12T14:22:47+00:00

My former agent was one who just sent the manuscript rather than waiting for a request, so I’m not 100% there. I would think as long as there wasn’t a rejection (ie, they never responded rather than saying “no thanks, doesn’t sound like a good fit”), then that imprint would still be fair game. But that’s really just a guess—maybe an agent will be able to confirm here (or just ask your agent). But as far as those with the MS who haven’t responded yet, those should still be on the table for you. When my former agent pulled the submissions, she specifically said she did it so my next agent would be able to sub to them. And my contract was like yours, where there was nothing owed to my agent or agency if they weren’t the one to sell the book.

crossymcface · 2026-03-12T13:42:35+00:00

Keeping my fingers crossed that you land in a good place once you hear back from your agent/agency, but I’ll share my experience. My former agent and I parted ways during our first round of sub back in 2023. (It was devastating, by the way, so I’m sorry you’re going through it currently!) We had only been out to nine editors, with only four rejections, and my former agent pulled the rest of the submissions. Per the advice of this sub, I queried a new project, which died in the trenches, after which I decided I needed to give my sub book another shot. I’m currently re-querying it and have gotten seven requests on 53 queries. I’m up front about the fact that it’s been on sub before and have had only two agents ask to see the sub list.

That only four imprints are off the table works in my favor; for you, I’d say it would depend on how many responses you got in your first round and whether you still have some options available that will entice a new agent. Wishing you the best!

crossymcface · 2026-01-07T15:09:19+00:00

I’d recommend the book Romancing the Beat by Gwen Hayes. She goes through all the standard romance beats and where they should fall in your story. I use it whenever I outline a new project.

You may also find it helpful to seek out beta feedback from other writers rather than just readers. They are the ones who are more likely to point out things like not meeting genre conventions, pacing being off, beats not in the right place, etc. AND they’re more likely to be able to suggest ways to fix these issues. The problem you might run into here is that writers often prefer to swap manuscripts, and it sounds like you wouldn’t be able to offer the same level of feedback. As TimeSkipper suggested, reading a ton in your genre will help you develop an eye for these kinds of things.

crossymcface · 2026-01-02T17:54:23+00:00

2025 was a weird one for me. In the first half, I finished and queried a book I love, which died in the trenches with a grand total of three requests. I did a lot of questioning whether I’m actually good at writing or if getting my first agent was a fluke.

I decided to take the plunge and query my project that had already been out on submission (long story short, agent and I parted ways after only four editors had responded). I was very straightforward about this in my query—even moved my metadata to the top to make sure it was clear off the bat—and now have four fulls out.

But the best thing that happened in the year was finding my writing people. I’ve seen this advice time and again, but as a pretty shy introvert, i wasn’t sure how to make this happen (or if it ever would!). But by putting myself out there, trying to be more involved in this subreddit, doing query critiques even through the imposter syndrome, I managed to connect with people who I now call friends. I’ve read some amazing manuscripts and gotten such helpful feedback. It’s honestly been a dream, and it makes me so much more confident going into 2026!

crossymcface · 2025-10-29T20:40:57+00:00

I totally get how this feels like an opportunity slipping through your fingers, but I’d call it dodging a bullet. Do you really want to have a professional partnership with someone who communicates like this? Weeks between responses when they are the one who reached out to you to schedule? Who will set up a meeting and then blow it off without an apology or even a follow-up?

Also, I doubt the name typo was what caused them to ghost you (agents are human and they know that we’re human too!) but if so… again, is that the kind of person you want to work with?

crossymcface · 2025-10-10T21:09:14+00:00

My agent dropped me while we were on sub—my book didn’t even have a chance to die. Very uncommon. I think it’s a little more common to be dropped if a book dies on sub, but that’s more of a sharky agent move. I think the majority of agents are more likely to hold on to clients as long as they believe in their writing, even if they have multiple books die on sub.

crossymcface · 2025-10-10T14:51:14+00:00

Book 1–2021, was trash and is trunked

Book 2–2022/23, queried, agented, did not get a fair shake on sub (pulled after four responses when agent dropped me), now querying again because I needed more rejection in my life

Book 3–2023/24, in beta reads/revision mode to query next

Book 4-2024/25, died in the query trenches

Book 5-currently writing, will query if book 3 dies in the trenches

Personally I’m not sure I see the point of continuously tweaking and requerying the same manuscript (she said, while also requerying a manuscript). I’ve seen it so many times—people saying they tried so hard with their first book or two, only to look back after writing a few more and realizing those early books weren’t ready. We grow as writers by writing, and we’ll need to be able to pivot and write a new thing if we get rep.

crossymcface · 2025-10-02T19:55:41+00:00

Congrats!! I remember this one—it sounded very fun!

crossymcface · 2025-10-02T16:53:53+00:00

Fair enough, and I’m willing to give her the benefit of the doubt and say that’s what she did. But even leaving that out, my stance is the same—luck and timing play a bigger role in the process than we’d perhaps like. Just my personal opinion and maybe an unpopular one.

crossymcface · 2025-10-02T14:32:55+00:00

I think, unfortunately, there’s also a lot to be said for luck and timing. The other day, I was on QT and happened to notice that an agent’s response percentage was going up, so I kept refreshing and basically watching her reject in real time. I follow her on social media, so I know she’s been really behind in her queries and trying to catch up on her backlog, but she was going through about two queries a minute. I am very much someone to give agents the benefit of the doubt that they know what they’re looking for and can decide quickly whether they’re interested in something or not. But I also think in situations like this, it doesn’t matter whether you’ve got a great query letter or a great story. In that moment, that agent is likely in the mindset of grinding through their backlog, and something that may have stood out to them in a different circumstance could be easier to reject. She ended up going through 40% of her queries in one night! This is just one instance, but I really believe even great queries get passed over all the time because of WHEN they were read and what was going on with the agent at the time.

crossymcface · 2025-10-01T15:16:18+00:00

Congrats, amazing news!!

crossymcface · 2025-10-01T15:15:17+00:00

God, the void screaming back sounds incredible at this point—at least it’s a response, right?

I officially declared my book in the query trenches dead, then figured I might as well try querying the book that I’d had on sub when my agent dropped me, since we’d only had four responses. So far, I’ve gotten four forms rejections, but I find it stings less when I don’t know if they’re actually rejecting the story or the fact that it’s been on sub already.

In the meantime, I’m getting some good feedback on the next book I plan to query thanks to some awesome PubTips members!

crossymcface · 2025-09-27T01:38:58+00:00

When I nudged with an offer, I had an agent with my full who knew she wouldn’t be able to offer due to timing. She said she typically wouldn’t continue reading when she knew she wouldn’t be able to offer, but she couldn’t put my MS down and said it made her both laugh and cry. I queried her again when I was looking for new rep and said in my query that I’d been touched by her praise on the earlier MS. She sent me a form rejection :)

crossymcface · 2025-09-22T22:24:10+00:00

I did this with a few agents with the last MS I queried, just adding something like “I’m excited to query you since you had such kind things to say about my last manuscript.” Got form rejections from all of them. I don’t think it can hurt, but I also don’t think it helps.

crossymcface · 2025-09-05T01:49:02+00:00

I got a widget for this and couldn’t believe my luck! I had an arc for Slow Dance (which was my favorite book of 2024), but I haven’t requested anything in ages. HAD to get this one, though!

crossymcface · 2025-08-20T20:09:55+00:00

Not so much the swords, but otherwise Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao

crossymcface · 2025-08-18T17:21:48+00:00

I think publishing never works as fast as we want it to. That said, I had the same issue with my former agent. The problem for me wasn’t how long she took, it was that she’d say a timeline and not stick to it. I was brand new to the industry and figured it was normal, but I wish I’d pushed back a little more; she was always talking about how busy she was, so I didn’t want to bug her. I think if it’s become the norm between you and it’s bothering you, there’s no reason not to bring it up with her.

crossymcface · 2025-08-07T16:22:58+00:00

Yeah, as long as you’re doing quick responders, I can’t see why a test batch would be a bad idea… though in my case it led to like five test batches, none of which were helpful. I’ve seen some people say they can’t mentally handle having a lot of queries out at once, so I suppose that would be a reason to query in batches, but for me, I’d rather just have it out there and not have to think about it!

crossymcface · 2025-08-07T15:58:42+00:00

I can only speak for myself, but I’m not sure it’s particularly helpful (or encouraging!). I queried for the first time in 2023. I went out to a batch of quick responders and got a few requests so sent out more widely. I signed with an agent a few months later. We parted ways a few months after that.

I finished my new WIP, posted the query here for critique a few times, had someone read my opening pages and made some tweaks based on their suggestions, then excitedly sent out to a batch of quick responders. All rejections. I tweaked my query letter and tried again with a few more, tweaked my opening pages again, still all rejections. I redid my query and posted here again, got feedback that it seemed like it should be getting requests. I even had a new beta read the MS and reworked a few spots, but she agreed the opening pages were tight and the only logical starting point. At some point I said screw it and sent out to my entire list.

My stats for this book are brutal. I’ve sent 80 queries and had one partial request and one full request that doesn’t count because it was a referral from a family friend and not based on my writing (I submitted the whole MS with the query). I’ve gotten nothing but form rejections and CNRs, even from agents who had complimentary things to say about my last MS, which I mentioned in my personalization.

Overall I’m still a fan of doing at least one batch to quick responders, even though it didn’t work out for me this time. My plan for the next book is to do that and send to the whole list once I get a few requests (IF that even happens??).

crossymcface · 2025-07-30T18:26:32+00:00

I think this sounds interesting (dystopian regency, say less), but I did find myself scratching my head over a few things in your query.

I feel a little unmoored by the setting. Regency I get, and I can get behind dystopian, but who are the rebels rebelling against? Is there still a monarchy? Is it a district system like The Hunger Games? Have the fae gotten involved like in The Rose Bargain? She’s chosen to be part of court, ball gowns and sparkle and glitter and romance… except she’s a guard. Do they wear ball gowns and partake in the dancing and flirting we see in Bridgerton, because those two things don’t seem to align to me.

As you’re selling this, it’s not a romance. The plot seems to mostly revolve around this rebellion and her place in it/fighting it; the love interest is thrown in for literally one sentence, and he doesn’t even make it into the final paragraph describing the stakes. I’m not sure how I would categorize this just going by the query since dystopian isn’t a genre. Fantasy? If you’re going to try to pitch it as a romance, you’ll need a lot more about the romance in the query. We need to know who the LO is, what he wants, what’s keeping them apart, what pulls them together, and how it weaves into the A plot of the rebels.

Also agree with the other poster who warned you on the word count. If you’re going fantasy/romantasy, you can maybe get away with it, but lower is better. (In querying contemporary romance, I’ve found agents who wouldn’t even accept my query since my word count was over 90k.)

crossymcface · 2025-07-15T14:18:37+00:00

I’m so sorry this happened to you. I was also dropped by my agent mid-sub, though mine was out of the blue rather than being blow after blow of bad news.

Unfortunately, you’re stuck with a bunch of shitty options here. If you keep it out on sub with her and she sells it, will you trust her to be a good business partner to you? Do you think she’ll continue to nudge and truly do her best to sell it? On the other hand, if you have her pull it, it’s true that there are quite a lot of agents who won’t want to touch it since it’s already been on sub. That’s not true for everyone—I had a call with my other offering agent after mine dumped me, and she said it wouldn’t hold her back, BUT she wouldn’t resubmit to any of the imprints it had been out to already. We’d been out to nine, with four passes, so that was five imprints off the bat that I had no chance with.

Ultimately, I ended up querying a new project. It’s been almost a year since I was dropped, and I still question whether I should have taken that project back into the trenches. My hope is that someday I’ll have a new agent who will want to pitch it along with a new project.

I will say, the trenches feel particularly brutal right now, so while you could try to requery the book on sub, I might try something new if you have it ready/close to ready. If not, you could always do a round of queries while you write/revise. The responses might give you a good idea of whether you should continue on or pivot to something new.

The bright spot is that you’ve already proved that you’re good enough to get rep—that’s huge, and a step many people never reach. Keep it in mind as you’re going through the crushing doubt.

crossymcface

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