Scams and Cheats and Crooks, Oh My!

~ janispattersonmysteries

by Janis Patterson

Okay, I am officially livid. How long are people going to have to put up with such blatant criminality?

To explain – a couple of days ago I went to a meeting at one of my ladies’ clubs. It’s an old club, and most of the members are older. It’s very dignified, very much hats-and-gloves proper. I love it, though I do sometimes feel that – since I am a ‘creative’ type – I’m their token artist.

I digress. It’s no secret there that I’m a novelist, and some of the ladies just love to talk books with me. This time a very nice older member whom I know slightly brought a guest of approximate the same fairly advanced age, and asked if they could talk with me. Sure. I’m friendly…

Turns out that her guest (and dear friend) wanted to know how long it should take for a publisher to bring out a children’s book. Legitimate question. I told her honestly I didn’t know too much about the children’s market, having only done one myself, but that a general rule of thumb for traditional publishing from contract to release could be a long as two, two and a half years.

The writer began to cry, and said “But it’s been over four, and I don’t have any more money!”

Uh-oh.

Not wanting to have her embarrassed, I pulled her and her friend into a small parlor and closed the door so I could get the entire story, which is one that is all too familiar. She had written a children’s book which she wanted to get published, so she answered an ad in a popular magazine. You’re all seen them – “Publisher Seeking Manuscripts – 100 years in business.”

It should read Publisher Seeking Money – 100 years of stealing.

This poor woman had signed a contract (which she didn’t remember what said or even if she had a copy of it) and every time they asked for money to cover editing, or an artist, or an artist to replace the first, or an artist to replace the artist that replaced the first, or copyright (which she never saw), or some other d*mn*d thing that made no sense to this poor woman. Of course, time and again they couldn’t go any further until they had more money. Four years and close to $70,000 (yes, SEVENTY THOUSAND, seven and four zeroes) later, they still hadn’t released the book.

By this time I was so red-eyed furious I was ready to do a violence. As gently as I could I told this woman a few truths about the publishing industry… you know – that money always flows TO the author and NOT away from, that authors should be appraised of every step in the process, that legitimate publishers get so many submissions they not only don’t have to advertise for manuscripts but instead are very picky about the submissions they receive even from agents and other industry professionals, that this company is making their money from charging authors instead of selling the author’s books, that before signing a contract with anyone you have to do your due diligence… If you don’t know about the publishing industry, find someone who does! I tried to be as gentle as possible, but by the time I was finished this poor lady was just howling.

So, you ask, why didn’t this woman do some of these things, like check the company? Well, the company really has been in business for over 100 years (which to my mind says something dreadful about their morals and the efficacy of law enforcement) and some people say it does provide a decent vanity press service. Vanity press, not a publisher presence. That difference is as big as the difference between a jobbing printer and a legitimate publisher. Or a Hot Wheels and a BMW.

Now this lady is in her late seventies or early eighties. Her husband is long dead. Her two children live at opposite ends of the country. She is pretty much on her own. She is also, her friend confided to me later, dancing on the edge of something Alzheimer’s-like.

In other words, prime picking for crooked, conscienceless vultures like this ‘publishing’ company.

I gave both ladies my phone number and said they could call me any time they had questions. I also stated firmly that she needed to let her children know what was going on, that she needed to request a copy of the contract she signed and she needed to contact her attorney. Now. In reality, there is not much else I can do, except beg everyone to spread the word –

1) legitimate publishers DO NOT advertise in magazines for submissions

2) money flows TO the author, not away from

3) do your due diligence and investigate before you sign anything – if you don’t know anything about publishing, talk to someone who does

4) contact an attorney before you sign anything

Somehow we have to stop these predators. They skirt the law and have a lot of experience in doing close-to-criminal things that if not exactly illegal are definitely immoral. The cost in human emotion and plain old money is enormous. Spread the word.

Unknown's avatar

Published by janispattersonmysteries

15 thoughts on “Scams and Cheats and Crooks, Oh My!”

  1. I’m currently working with an author whose series was ended by his publisher a few years ago. He had two more books written, but it’s very difficult to find a new publisher who wants to pick up an old series when the previous publisher still owns the rights to the first few titles. I’m helping him self-publish the books—I am formatting them for ebook and print, and put him in touch with a very talented designer who came up with a gorgeous cover inspired by the look and feel of the earlier titles. The price for all this? Somewhere in the neighborhood of $400 per book (including the ISBNs), and every cent he earns will be deposited right into his bank account. It’s unconscionable that someone could be ripped off to the tune of $70,000 and still have nothing to show for it!

    Liked by 1 person

  3. I have run across several people who used vanity presses and had poor quality books after paying to have them published. I steer them away. In my early days of writing when I didn’t know any better or have anyone to ask, I went to the library and thoughtfully went through agents and sent my first mystery book off with a check to an agent. I had read several of Sue Grafton’s first books and had used first person POV. I received the manuscript back with a note saying first-person POV didn’t sell. I was stunned, rewrote it in third person and offered to send it back. He said no thank you. I continued to write but eventually, I found RWA which taught me you never pay for an agent or publisher to read your work or publish your work. At least I was confused enough to not throw more money away. But I understand people who don’t know where to look for the answers can get taken. Unfortunately, there are too many sharks out there only to happy to scam someone. Janis, it was good of you to listen and offer to help.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. It’s sad that so many authors get scammed by these criminals. Another word of caution: don’t ever do business with an agent who charges a reading fee. There are plenty of those scammers, too.

    Like

    1. Right. People have to know that the money flows TO the author, not FROM. Unfortunately, crooks like these target the ignorant (of publishing) and the stupid, giving them promises that they’ll get whatever they want… pie in the sky! Depending on the contract they get the sucker to sign, it may be legal, but it certainly is not honest or moral!

      Like

  5. I am inspired to swear bad, bad words but won’t do it here. Is it possible to guide her into self-publishing the book? At least that way it would be out there.

    Like

    1. Mollie, that is a terrific idea. Self-publishing while not easy, can be done with planning and a little knowledge.

      Liked by 1 person

    2. I volunteered to help her, but she is so traumatized it will take a while for her to decide. And first of all, to add insult to injury, we have to get a copy of the contract to see if she still has the rights to publish her own book!

      Liked by 1 person

  6. That makes me so sad, but it is so important to spread the word, so thank you for doing so! I hope, somehow, she can see at least a little return on her investment in herself, because, after all, that is what she thought she was making – an investment in herself. It is a tragedy that she was taken advantage of.

    Like

  7. I’ve encountered crooks like that. Sometime they start out legitimate then find ways to get money out of the author. Years ago one of my first books was published by an outfit that started out honest–I didn’t have to pay anything to get published and the book looked great. Then the publsher and his son took all the royalty money and went to Vegas.They did go to jail, but the company closed and no one received royalties.

    Liked by 1 person

  8. I’m right there with you, LIVID! How dare someone do such a thing. Though I know it goes on every day. There must be something done about this practice.

    Like

  9. It’s infuriating on top of everything else. How these people sleep at night amazes me. I hope this lady does, at the very least, make a complaint to the Better Business Bureau. She may no longer have the money or the strength to hire a lawyer. I’m so glad you brought this to our attention. It’s something most of us know, but it should be out in the light at all times. Thanks.

    Like

Comments are closed.