The official blog of Writer Beware® shines a bright light into the dark corners of the shadow-world of literary scams, schemes, and pitfalls. Also providing advice for writers, industry news, and commentary. Writer Beware® is sponsored by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association.
Today’s guest blog post, from journalist Mridu Khullar Relph, explores the world of writing schemes and scams from an international perspective–something that’s increasingly an issue for Western writers looking to find work overseas. Some of the scams Mridu identifies below may sound familiar, but there’s nearly always an international twist. Other resources: see my 2011Read More
Over the past few days I’ve gotten a number of inquiries from authors wondering about the reputation of a PR firm called The Albee Agency. Albee bills itself as [A] new breed of book publicists- We offer a proven track record… we have a global reach, we provide individual personal service and our staff isRead More
Well, it's happened again. Another traditional publisher has added a pay-to-play "division."
Yesterday, venerable trade publisher (and one of the Big 5) Simon & Schuster announced the launch of Archway Publishing, a self-publishing services provider.
"Through Archway Publishing, Simon & Schuster is pleased to be part of the rapidly expanding self-publishing segment of our industry," said Carolyn Reidy, president and CEO of Simon & Schuster. "Self-publishing has become a viable and popular route to publication for many authors, and increasingly a source of content for traditional publishers, including Simon & Schuster. We're excited that we'll be able to help more authors find their own path to publication and at the same time create a more direct connection to those self-published authors ready to make the leap to traditional publishing."
Without a doubt, the silliest publishing-related article I read this week was this one: “Why Book Publishers Hate Authors” by Michael Levin. (Although this one, which argues that e-reading isn’t really reading, runs a close second.) Levin’s article is exactly what its title suggests: a screed on how, no matter how things might seem toRead More
I’ve seen a slew of bad publishing contracts lately, which makes this guest blog post by author Kfir Luzatto especially resonant for me. Turning down a publishing offer when you have one in hand is one of the toughest decisions you will ever have to make…but sometimes, if the publisher has a poor reputation orRead More
Posted by Victoria Strauss We don’t often do self-promotion here at Writer Beware–but yesterday was publication day for my young adult historical fantasy Passion Blue–a novel of art, astrology, and romance set in Renaissance Italy. I’m incredibly excited to have it out there in the world at last, and for the wonderful reviews it hasRead More
