Warnings for Writers
Recently, a fellow writer told me about a bit of disparaging information that he came across about a literary agency that had expressed an interest in his work based on a three sentence query that he sent them. As the old adage goes, if it sounds too good to be true . . . Needless to say, the agency has been exposed as a fraud, sending out impersonal acceptance letters, and duping hopeful writers into believing that their work is the next big thing in the literary world.
Writers are susceptible to falling prey to these scams and the shysters who perpetrate these frauds. Why? Because, in our vulnerable state, we, as writers, want to get published, and we tend to believe anything that feeds into our pipe dream.
Sometimes a message that is timely, informative, and arms you with the right tools to protect yourself is worth repeating. And not just repeating . . . but expounded upon. So, in the interest of helping you steer clear of scam artists whose main goal in life is to rip you off, I have compiled a listing of a few websites to assist you in staying informed. An informed writer is a protected writer.
One of the best resources that I have found thus far in exposing fraudulent agents, publishers, etc. Writer Beware is an online community that provides writers with warnings about all sorts of fraud that occurs in the writing community, from so-called literary agents to bogus contests.
Another excellent site is called Prededitors & Editors hosted by Anotherealm. This site provides you with an alphabetical listing of agents, and also tells if they are “Not Recommended” based on complaints from writers and other sources. They also offer general rules on spotting publishing scams and literary agency scams.
Elite Skills offers a listing of scammers that are mainly focused on poetry organizations. The one thing that this site does not provide you with, however, is the URL to check these places out. But hey, you’re armed with the name, and that’s a start (Google people, Google). One of the most infamous poetry scammers, in this humble writer’s opinion, is National Library of Poetry (also known as the International Library of Poetry). Yes, even I, many moons ago (even though I don’t dare claim to be a prolific poet on any level) fell prey to their promises of having my work included in an anthology (and, worse, they had the audacity to offer this once in a lifetime opportunity to purchase the anthology for an exorbitant amount of my hard earned cash). Whatever you do, DON’T waste your time with these individuals at the National Library of Poetry who are more concerned with separating you from your hard earned money than they are with what you write. But do, however, check out the Writing Scams section of this website.
Whispers and Warnings, a service offered by WritersWeekly, provides weekly updates on various unscrupulous individuals and organizations in the world of writing. I spent a couple of hours reading through the forum one afternoon and was completely amazed at the tenacity of the moderators of this site to fight for the rights of writers who have been wronged in one way or another.
While this next site doesn’t list any one contest, publisher, or book doctor in particular, it does offer thirteen warning signs of a bad poetry contest. Winning Writers offers great advice to take into account before entering another poetry contest.
Last (but surely not least) Absolute Write hosts a forum called Absolute Write Water Cooler. This forum has over 1,000 threads on subjects ranging from the “20 Worst Agents” to calling out specific bad literary agencies by name. It will take you a while to get through this forum, but it may be well worth your time and energy.
The bottom line here folks is this: DO YOUR RESEARCH! Just because you see an agent, book doctor, editor, publisher, contest, etc. listed in a ‘reputable’ magazine, website, etc. does not mean that they are unequivocally on the up-and-up. In this respect, a powerful search engine can be your best friend if you invest a little time and effort in trying to find out information before you invest your money, time, or hard earned work product.
