There is sometimes a point when a writer is willing to just take on any publisher just to get published. This happens especially after a trying time of straight rejections and insecurities. The non stop questioning of one’s own skill and future in the writing world.
The problem is that although there are plenty of publishers out there, there are also many fakes preying on new writers. I bumped into one of them. Thankfully, another author friend was able to let me know of a list of predators online (NOTE: Has since been removed). And indeed I found the “publisher” that almost conned me.
The signs
There were some signs that led me to question the legitimacy of that said con publisher. When I sent them my query letter and sample chapters, they replied with a whole bunch of critiques. Not very nice ones too. Then they said they would consider my work only after it has been edited by their editor. Basically, I had to hire their editor before they consider my work – and the fee is a lot of money.
Thankfully I’ve been made aware of scams all around to know one when I see one. Plus, it was such an obvious con because when I checked the site of the said editor there were heaps of typos. I mean seriously if you were going to pretend to be an editor your site should not have any typos.
I never replied back and from then on, I was careful to check the list when sending query letters.
These people are great with the con. They know the vulnerability of authors, they prey on it. They will tell you what you want to hear then disappear with your money. It’s bad enough that most authors don’t earn much from their work, you end up losing all your hard-earned money because of these scammers.
Don’t be fooled. Bookmark the page for your own safety.
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