What The Author Pays For–And What (S)he Doesn’t

New authors–and sometimes experienced ones–may be uncertain about which parts of the publishing process the author “normally” pays for. What the author pays for differs, depending on the publishing path. Smart authors should know the standards for the choice they make, and be aware of how the other options function also. Now that the publishing industry offers multiple paths to publication, savvy authors should learn about all of the available options–regardless of the path they plan to take. Understanding all of the publishing options makes authors better able to choose among them, and less likely to misunderstand the offers they receive. Let’s review the various industry

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Avoiding Subsidy Publishing “Scams”

The autumn scam avoidance series continues today with a look at subsidy publishing. Not all subsidy publishing is a scam–but in today’s publishing world, “vanity press”-style subsidy publishing is a terrible deal for the author. Legitimate self-publishing options have eliminated authors’ need to pay exorbitant fees to see their work in published formats. There’s no longer any need to pay a vanity press unreasonable fees to publish (or market) your work–so don’t do it. Let’s look at some tips for identifying (and avoiding) “vanity presses” and unreasonable subsidy publishing deals. 1. Legitimate presses almost never approach an author directly. Yes, exceptions do exist, but a publisher approaching

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Avoiding Writing Contest Scams

Writing contests can offer great opportunities for published and unpublished authors alike. Good contests can provide valuable feedback and even a chance at publication. However, not all contests are created equal, and authors need to be on the lookout for some important traps and pitfalls when evaluating writing contests. Fortunately, savvy writers can learn to identify–and avoid–the common contest traps. Let’s take a look at some of them today: Legitimate writing contests don’t require entrants to transfer copyright ownership to the contest or its organizers.  Here, as everywhere else in publishing (except for clearly identified work for hire situations), authors should retain full copyright

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