Writer Beware

Latest Posts

The Two Faces of Woodside Motion Co.

MAR 20, 2026March 20, 202612 COMMENTS

Last spring, I began hearing from writers who'd received the email below. (Note the phrase I've highlighted; you will see it again.)

Judging by the number of reports I received, as well as this lengthy Facebook discussion thread (which includes responses from Woodside), a lot of these emails were going out.

Emails received later in the summer looked a bit different. References to "proof of concept" and "visual representation" were gone, and, contrary to the first email's caution that "this isn't a submission to studios just yet", Woodside now indicated that its interest was in finding books to present to "our network of producers and investors."

Deadline Approaching to File a Claim in the Anthropic Settlement

MAR 13, 2026March 13, 20266 COMMENTS

Just a reminder: if your book or books are included in the $1.5 billion Anthropic copyright settlement, the deadline to file a claim is fast approaching: March 30, 2026.

Relevant resources:

A note for Amazon Publishing authors like myself: Amazon will not be a claimant, and is assigning all rights of recovery to authors--i.e., if you're an APub author, you don't have to split your payout with your publisher. You can download the assignment letter--which can be included with your claim, or submitted to amend your claim if you've already filed it--here.

OVERSEAS SCAMS

Not Simon & Schuster: Deconstructing an Impersonation Scam

Header image: white full-face mask lying on a textured gray background, surrounded by a black splatter-pattern halo (Credit: Photo by Edilson Borges on Unsplash.com)

FEB 28, 2026February 28, 202636 COMMENTS

For writers chasing a traditional publishing contract, an email from Big 5 publisher Simon & Schuster inviting submission might seem like a dream come true.

Just one problem: major publishers like S&S, which acquire mainly via reputable literary agents and expect manuscripts to come to them rather than the other way around, don't email random authors out of the blue. Also, impersonation scams are extremely common these days, with fraudsters posing as publishers, literary agents, film production companies, even editors (see my previous post on this subject). Any publishing- or movie rights-related email or phone call that you can't tie directly to a submission or a contact you yourself made is highly likely to be a scam--and with generative AI infesting every aspect of the writing scam industry, the scams can be quite elaborate and authentic-seeming.

Given the amount of time I spend writing and warning about such things, it's always funny (well, kind of) when an impersonation scammer tries to target me.

CONTRACTS

Authors and Authors’ Estates Sue The Topps Company for Unpaid Royalties

FEB 20, 2026February 21, 20266 COMMENTS

This is yet another Writer Beware post about allegations of royalties long left unpaid. But it's also about the challenges of work-for-hire arrangements, and what can potentially go wrong when intellectual property repeatedly changes hands.

The BattleTech and Shadowrun franchises--which included both games and novels--were originally developed and published in the 1980s and 1990s by FASA Corporation, a publisher of role-playing and board games. FASA closed down in 2001, and the two franchises were transferred to a new company called WizKids, founded by former FASA employees.

In 2003, the Topps Company, which manufactures trading cards and other collectibles (and candy, including the iconic Bazooka bubble gum), acquired WizKids and its IP, in a bid to expand its entertainment holdings. Topps closed WizKids down in 2008, citing economic factors; it subsequently sold WizKids and its IP to the National Entertainment Collectibles Association, but retained rights to BattleTech and Shadowrun.

CONTESTS AND AWARDS

Unhappy Returns: Harper’s Bazaar Short Story Contest, America Star Books

Header image: round wooden block with a red angry face graphic, standing on end on a blond wood table against a pale blue background (Credit: VRVIRUS / Shutterstock.com)

FEB 6, 2026February 6, 202618 COMMENTS

I always try to keep track of the stories I write, and to update my posts when new information comes to light. Sometimes, though, it's worth re-visiting the stories themselves--as in the two cases below, where "bewares" that appeared to have resolved return, unhappily, for a second go-around (or seem to).

In 2019, I wrote a post about a rights grab in the guidelines for the annual short story contest conducted by Harper's Bazaar magazine, the wording of which included a surrender of copyright. Here's what I wrote at the time (Hearst is Harper's parent company):

The bolded language isn't completely clear, at least as I see it. Read narrowly (by entering and in consideration for publication, i.e., as a consideration for publication only), it requires the winner or winners only to surrender their copyrights and all the rights that copyright includes for zero financial compensation. It could also, however, be read more broadly, to indicate that merely entering the contest constitutes a surrender of copyright ownership.

EDITING SCAMS

Two New Impersonation Scams to Watch For

Header Image: funny fake face disguise: black glasses, nose, and mouth on bright yellow background (Credit: nito / Shutterstock.com)

JAN 30, 2026January 30, 202631 COMMENTS

Impersonation scams in publishing tend to be variations on a theme, since the goal is always the same: to sell you something. In that sense, the scams below, which are aimed at tricking writers into paying for editing, don't break new ground. Still, the approaches are distinctive, and I've seen enough examples at this point to be sure they are A Thing (as opposed to isolated occurrences), so I'm highlighting them here.

As you'll see, they appear to be yet another variant of the AI-driven scams from Nigeria. One of the characteristics of such scams--along with Gmail addresses and effusive fake personalization--is how closely each variant sticks to a specific M.O, customizing the approach to the targeted writer but otherwise pulling from the same playbook.

For tips on vetting an independent editor, see the Editors and Editing Services page of the Writer Beware website.