New Writing Scams

[vampiredust]

Vanity publishing is back with a new name: 'Contract publishing'

I was browsing through the adverts in a writing magazine when I came across several dubious adverts from publishers 'wanting writers'

The words 'vanity publishing' came to mind. I checked out one of the websites. It seemed to be genuine until I delved deeper and found that if the manuscript is accepted (which it will be) then the author must pay 50% of the cost

No mention of THAT in the advert.

Scam number two: New York Literary Agency

Has anyone heard of this particular 'agency'? I think they are a con. You can find a link to their website here
There are no mention of any poets that they represent (they have a poetry division, too) or a telephone number.

The only testimonial they have looks fake and I have gut feeling that they take a huge cut from anything they can sell (if anything at all) or take the money and run.

Anybody had any experiences with them?

 

[BlackShanglan]

No leads on the latter group, but thank you for posting - the sharks really are circling out there.

 

[Svenskaflicka]

I once entered a poetry contest and -surprise, surprise - I "won". UNFORTUNATELY, there were so many people that had won, that the only way for me to make sure that MY poem would be included in the anthology of winning poems, was to pay them $XX... for each copy of the anthology I wanted, ofcourse. Wouldn't it be nice to give such books away to family and friends for christmas?

I found it fascinating, though, that they bothered with postage to try and scam someone outside their country.

 

[Guest]

Vanity publishing is back with a new name: 'Contract publishing'

Scam number two: New York Literary Agency

Has anyone heard of this particular 'agency'? I think they are a con. You can find a link to their website here
There are no mention of any poets that they represent (they have a poetry division, too) or a telephone number.

The only testimonial they have looks fake and I have gut feeling that they take a huge cut from anything they can sell (if anything at all) or take the money and run.

Anybody had any experiences with them?

There are always scummy people ready to take advantage of eagerness and inexperience of a writer. From what I've gleaned in conversations with editors (I've met only one agent and he was also an editor) for book publishing companies, the things to look for are

1) any money from the author paid up front -- NEVER pay to have your work published and be careful about agents charging "reading fees". The idea is the agent/publisher will make their money by selling and publishing your work, and they will pay YOU. Anything else is suspect.

2) Anyone who guarantees publication -- there are no guarantees until you've got a signed contract and a check.

3) Agents make money from selling your work -- you pay AFTER the sale, not before. Check any agent's references. Find out who else they represent and ask a LOT of questions.

4) Any promise that sounds too good most likely is. Professional publishing is a very ruthless, competitive market. Publishers and agents are looking for what will sell. Because of the long amount of time it takes from manuscript purchase to actual publication, they are trying to predict the future. Sometimes getting your story published really is all about the timing. If someone tells you that you will be the next [insert famous author], be skeptical. AUthor success is at least a portion timing. John Irving had 3-4 books published before he put out The World According to Garp and became well known.

There are (or were) lists online/websites that were about exposing fraudulent agents and deceptive vanity presses. I think Writer's Digest ran one, once upon a time.

Links for information

Writing.org
Science Fiction Writers of America
Washington Post Article

Just running a search on "Writing Scams Vanity press" turned up pages of links, some from very good sources.

 

[Stella_Omega]

I once entered a poetry contest and -surprise, surprise - I "won". UNFORTUNATELY, there were so many people that had won, that the only way for me to make sure that MY poem would be included in the anthology of winning poems, was to pay them $XX... for each copy of the anthology I wanted, ofcourse. Wouldn't it be nice to give such books away to family and friends for christmas?

I found it fascinating, though, that they bothered with postage to try and scam someone outside their country.

My daughter "won" that contest when she was seven years old. She's good, but not THAT good!

 

[CopyCarver]

There are always scummy people ready to take advantage of eagerness and inexperience of a writer. From what I've gleaned in conversations with editors (I've met only one agent and he was also an editor) for book publishing companies, the things to look for are

1) any money from the author paid up front -- NEVER pay to have your work published and be careful about agents charging "reading fees". The idea is the agent/publisher will make their money by selling and publishing your work, and they will pay YOU. Anything else is suspect.

2) Anyone who guarantees publication -- there are no guarantees until you've got a signed contract and a check.

3) Agents make money from selling your work -- you pay AFTER the sale, not before. Check any agent's references. Find out who else they represent and ask a LOT of questions.

4) Any promise that sounds too good most likely is. Professional publishing is a very ruthless, competitive market. Publishers and agents are looking for what will sell. Because of the long amount of time it takes from manuscript purchase to actual publication, they are trying to predict the future. Sometimes getting your story published really is all about the timing. If someone tells you that you will be the next [insert famous author], be skeptical. AUthor success is at least a portion timing. John Irving had 3-4 books published before he put out The World According to Garp and became well known.

There are (or were) lists online/websites that were about exposing fraudulent agents and deceptive vanity presses. I think Writer's Digest ran one, once upon a time.

Links for information

Writing.org
Science Fiction Writers of America
Washington Post Article

Just running a search on "Writing Scams Vanity press" turned up pages of links, some from very good sources.

As a pro editor and undocumented (but ethical) agent, I'll swear that you're right on target. All of the above are warning signs equal to a ski mask over the face and a shotgun in hand.

Another point--not yet mentioned--but almost as slimy is the phrase "work for hire" which translates from legalese into English as "we've found an end run around copyright law." There may be a few specific instances where work-for-hire is legitimate, but more often it's a scam that transfers ALL rights to your manuscript to a publisher who can then use it (without paying you an additional dime) as many times as ythe publisher wants, and in ways totally different from the one to which you agreed.

 

[Guest]

As a pro editor and undocumented (but ethical) agent, I'll swear that you're right on target. All of the above are warning signs equal to a ski mask over the face and a shotgun in hand.

Another point--not yet mentioned--but almost as slimy is the phrase "work for hire" which translates from legalese into English as "we've found an end run around copyright law." There may be a few specific instances where work-for-hire is legitimate, but more often it's a scam that transfers ALL rights to your manuscript to a publisher who can then use it (without paying you an additional dime) as many times as ythe publisher wants, and in ways totally different from the one to which you agreed.

Thank you Copy Carver! I hadn't even THOUGHT about copyright scams!

There are parasites for every situation, aren't there?

 

[BlackShanglan]

Thank you Copy Carver! I hadn't even THOUGHT about copyright scams!

There are parasites for every situation, aren't there?

Make sure you know what rights you're selling, indeed. I've heard of someone who was at first delighted and then shocked when her book came out as a movie; turns out that she's sold all of the rights, including some she hadn't thought about. She didn't see a dime from the movie.

 

[CopyCarver]

Make sure you know what rights you're selling, indeed. I've heard of someone who was at first delighted and then shocked when her book came out as a movie; turns out that she's sold all of the rights, including some she hadn't thought about. She didn't see a dime from the movie.

This same thing happened to one of my former students. She was encouraged to rework her doctoral thesis into less academic form and sell it--as a work for hire--to a small publishing house who claimed $1,000 was a "generous" payment for a book that would sell only a few hundred copies. The book was on the New York Times Bestseler List for weeks, was sold by several book clubs, and is currently being developed as a major movie. "Generous" might not be the most accurate terminology.

 

[Guest]

This same thing happened to one of my former students. She was encouraged to rework her doctoral thesis into less academic form and sell it--as a work for hire--to a small publishing house who claimed $1,000 was a "generous" payment for a book that would sell only a few hundred copies. The book was on the New York Times Bestseler List for weeks, was sold by several book clubs, and is currently being developed as a major movie. "Generous" might not be the most accurate terminology.

OUCH!

Talk about no lube and no reacharound!

 

[CopyCarver]

OUCH!

Talk about no lube and no reacharound!

No lube...and no legal recourse. It REALLY pays for writers to learn the distinctions between similar-sounding contract terms ("second rights" and "secondary rights" aren't on the same page, for example.)

Unfortunately, the problem is getting worse since once-reputable publishing houses are being taken over by huge conglomerates that peddle everything from paperbacks to petrochemicals with no concern for anything except their own mega-profits

 

[BlackShanglan]

This same thing happened to one of my former students. She was encouraged to rework her doctoral thesis into less academic form and sell it--as a work for hire--to a small publishing house who claimed $1,000 was a "generous" payment for a book that would sell only a few hundred copies. The book was on the New York Times Bestseler List for weeks, was sold by several book clubs, and is currently being developed as a major movie. "Generous" might not be the most accurate terminology.

Ugh. What a horrible experience. I hope that she is not crushed entirely by it. At least she knows that she damned well has worth, even if it took ruthless bastards to show her that.

 

[Guest]

No lube...and no legal recourse. It REALLY pays for writers to learn the distinctions between similar-sounding contract terms ("second rights" and "secondary rights" aren't on the same page, for example.)

Unfortunately, the problem is getting worse since once-reputable publishing houses are being taken over by huge conglomerates that peddle everything from paperbacks to petrochemicals with no concern for anything except their own mega-profits

I've heard it said that any contract a writer receives is worth the laywer's fee to have it reviewed and explained before signing. Also, I know some agents know more about the legal proceedings than anything else, and since they make their money as a percentage of what their client makes, they are really the legal eagles.

I just want an agent to read all the rejections for me and mail things out. I'm crappy at marketing myself Too many internal demons in my head.

 

[Carmenica Diaz]

A good agent is worth their weight in gold – unfortunately they’re as rare as a dodo.

 

[CopyCarver]

I've heard it said that any contract a writer receives is worth the laywer's fee to have it reviewed and explained before signing. Also, I know some agents know more about the legal proceedings than anything else, and since they make their money as a percentage of what their client makes, they are really the legal eagles.

I just want an agent to read all the rejections for me and mail things out. I'm crappy at marketing myself Too many internal demons in my head.

Lawyer's fees are well worthwhile. The problem is that many attorneys deal with writers and publishers very rarely, if at all, and know little about the industry. Traditionally, the few that know publishing law have been clustered in New York, LA, or other publishing centers--although that's breaking down somewhat in the Internet Age. The writer living in Three Holer, Utah is still semi-SOL.

Have you tried Writer's Digest magazine, either in print or online, and their annual Writer's Market directory? Both are excellent, albeit slightly less than current.

Don't feel too hostile toward rejection letters. A flock that some of "my" writers accumulated years ago inspired me to write a silly humor piece that I sold for $2,500.

 

[CopyCarver]

A good agent is worth their weight in gold – unfortunately they’re as rare as a dodo.

Rare--and often harder to get than a publisher. People who are essentially sharecroppers can't live on 15% of $40 per year. They need clients with proven track records, who are eminently publishable and extremely prolific. Sad news for beginners, but undeniably true.

 

[vampiredust]

I heard from New York Literary Agency today and their answer to my questions doesn't exactly fill me with confidence:

I asked them who they represented and how many of their clients' manuscripts had actually been published.

This is what they said:

We never sugarcoat the odds. The odds are long, long, and long. However,
when hard work meets the right opportunity, then magic sometimes occurs!

Best regards,
Sherry Fine - VP Acquisitions

 

[Svenskaflicka]

My daughter "won" that contest when she was seven years old. She's good, but not THAT good!

Darned, and I thought I was special!

 

[Guest]

I heard from New York Literary Agency today and their answer to my questions doesn't exactly fill me with confidence:

I asked them who they represented and how many of their clients' manuscripts had actually been published.

This is what they said:

We never sugarcoat the odds. The odds are long, long, and long. However,
when hard work meets the right opportunity, then magic sometimes occurs!

Best regards,
Sherry Fine - VP Acquisitions

I'd call that an EVASION! I don't think it's even good bullshit...

 

[Rumple Foreskin]

AVOID! AVOID!

I found this on the Preditors and Editors site http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/
note: This link should be in the favorites list of any writer who has ever considered writing for pay.

Rumple Foreskin

==

New York Literary Agency, The: Strongly not recommended. A literary agency. A division of The Literary Agency Group

--

Literary Agency Group, Inc., The (aka LAG): Strongly not recommended. The parent organization for the Children's Literary Agency, the Christian Literary Agency, the New York Literary Agency, The Poets Literary Agency, The Screenplay Agency, and Stylus Literary Agency (formerly Sydra-Tech Literary Agency and later as ST Literary Agency). The following address is a mail drop. None of the agencies are actually located there. Contact at :
275 Madison Ave, 4th Floor
New York, NY 10016


If you're a writer, why would you want an agency representing you that has such a poor track record as this multi-named agency for the years it has claimed to be in business?

Why would a writer even consider going with an agency that threatens to sue its critics for telling the truth about its lack of sales as Stylus is currently threatening to do to Writer Beware?

Why would a writer want to go with an agency that doesn't divulge its connections with the editing and illustrating services it recommends to those who believe it is legitimate?

Why would an agency need to change its name so frequently or use multiple names at the same time? Could it be on account of its past reputation?
Here are some of their contact forms and letters:

ST Literary Agency PreContract Author Intake Form
ST Literary Agency Contract
ST Literary Agency Response to a Writer's Concerns

 

[Guest]

AVOID! AVOID!

I found this on the Preditors and Editors site http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/
note: This link should be in the favorites list of any writer who has ever considered writing for pay.

Rumple Foreskin

YIKES! I think that's the equivalent of red and yellow and orange stripes, or plaid with polkadots and a propellor beanie -- nature's way of saying "Don't Touch!"

 

[vampiredust]

AVOID! AVOID!

I found this on the Preditors and Editors site http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/
note: This link should be in the favorites list of any writer who has ever considered writing for pay.

Rumple Foreskin

==

New York Literary Agency, The: Strongly not recommended. A literary agency. A division of The Literary Agency Group

--

Literary Agency Group, Inc., The (aka LAG): Strongly not recommended. The parent organization for the Children's Literary Agency, the Christian Literary Agency, the New York Literary Agency, The Poets Literary Agency, The Screenplay Agency, and Stylus Literary Agency (formerly Sydra-Tech Literary Agency and later as ST Literary Agency). The following address is a mail drop. None of the agencies are actually located there. Contact at :
275 Madison Ave, 4th Floor
New York, NY 10016


If you're a writer, why would you want an agency representing you that has such a poor track record as this multi-named agency for the years it has claimed to be in business?

Why would a writer even consider going with an agency that threatens to sue its critics for telling the truth about its lack of sales as Stylus is currently threatening to do to Writer Beware?

Why would a writer want to go with an agency that doesn't divulge its connections with the editing and illustrating services it recommends to those who believe it is legitimate?

Why would an agency need to change its name so frequently or use multiple names at the same time? Could it be on account of its past reputation?
Here are some of their contact forms and letters:

ST Literary Agency PreContract Author Intake Form
ST Literary Agency Contract
ST Literary Agency Response to a Writer's Concerns

Thanks for the info

 

[Selena_Kitt]

Anyone heard of Group MVP Publishing? It's not on Rumple's list at all... got an email from them, but I'm suspicious...

anyone???

 

[CopyCarver]

Anyone heard of Group MVP Publishing? It's not on Rumple's list at all... got an email from them, but I'm suspicious...

anyone???

According to the "storm warnings" in Writer's Digest, MVP is exceedingly bad news.

 

[Selena_Kitt]

Thank you