Something both bizarre and fascinating happened this week in the agenting world. In response to the controversial twitter event #Queryfail in which dozens of agents tweeted on why they were passing on queries in real time, the wonderful agent ladies over at Bookends LCC innocently asked "what do agents do that fails you?" on their blog... and all Hell broke loose.
Check it out here: http://bookendslitagency.blogspot.com/2009/04/agentfail-right-here.html.
I honestly think they were trying to get feedback to make sure they and their agent friends were doing a good job of serving authors. What they got was a crushing wave of author-rage overflowing their comments section. I mean... whoa. Writers definitely had a lot to say and most of it wasn't pretty.
Since then, I've seen several agent websites responding in the vein of "Hey, WTF, guys?"
What do you guys think? Is it fair to rip on agents in light of #Queryfail, or is this backlash simply childish and bizarre? Are the agents right to be upset?
My own experience with the now infamous #Queryfail event was that I went in hopeful and excited, hoping to get some tips on things to avoid. What I got, though, were helpful gems in a sea of "Lulz! Prisoners query me!" While the stories were funny, I was a little sad there wasn't more helpful information. I can see why some authors felt attacked, but then again, isn't everyone allowed to blow off a little steam now and again? I don't have a problem with it, but I also didn't find what I was looking for.
What do you all think? #Queryfail Vs. #Agentfail--valuable or vindictive?
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