Published on June 17, 2009
After being told by countless literary agents and publishers that they liked my cookbook, What? No Meat, Traditional Italian Cooking the Vegetarian Way, but that I did not have a “platform,” I decided to self-publish. I knew I had a good product – I’d spent years researching, writing, testing, and revising every recipe, every word.
I had faith in my book. I had the knowledge and experience in publishing to put it all together. And, frankly, I’d put too much into it to let it just die. This book was going to see the light of day if it was the last thing I did. I chose BookLocker and embarked on the odyssey that is self-publishing.
Published on June 17, 2009
Whispers and Warnings will return next week.
Published on June 10, 2009
A non-stop weekend at the Hoy household!
Published on June 10, 2009
Dear Ms Hoy;
I’m writing in regards to your excellent column on Mr. Anthony, who really shouldn’t be considered a reliable source for anything than about his own writings.
I’ve been astonished over the years to see how many people refer to his site in the same breath as Preditors and Editors or Writer Beware, taking his comments as gospel when it comes to which companies to submit to or beware of. Even a quick glance at his comments shows that he appears to have a personal grudge against any large company due to his own bad experiences – which is fine, but when he purports to put up neutral information, then it’s a whole lot of silliness. Of course he cites his award from EPIC proudly as the reason why he continues to do this…
Mr. Anthony’s site is a mishmash of convoluted rants and raves from an author who, sadly, does not understand the damage he has done and continues to do to legitimate publishers under the guise of a public service. I wince every time I see his site referred to as a warning site for those seeking information because I know that it’s more likely than not that they’ll get distorted facts and the ramblings of what appears to be an anti-establishment man who refuses to put up a disclaimer, and states everything as factual… even when it’s not.
Please continue to try and get Mr. Anthony to at least be honest about his site – it’s fine to put your PERSONAL views of publishers up and let the reader choose how to perceive it – another to put your words down as gospel and possibly lead many readers down the wrong path.
Thank you again and have a good day!
Yours truly,
S.
Published on June 10, 2009
Standard strategies for breaking into a magazine of your dreams may not be adequate.
Published on June 10, 2009
My book has been out of print for a long time but it is still listed for sale on lots of websites. Why?
Published on June 10, 2009
A year ago, my wife saw a request for stories in a post online. The publishers of a new collection of books were looking for people who had life-changing moments. They offered $100.00 for each accepted story.
Published on June 10, 2009
Ed Hubbard / Witchschool, Inc. / witchschool.com – SECOND complaint. Writer says she’s owed $750.
Published on June 3, 2009
Our daughter, Ali, attended her senior prom last week. She woke up early, before her friend, Ashley, arrived. Their first appointment of the day was to have their nails done. They then had their hair and make-up done at 3:00 PM. She was supposed to be dressed and ready to go at 5:10 PM because we were meeting an entire group of kids and parents at a local park to take pictures. There’s a fountain there and the kids thought it would provide a nice background. Ali’s boyfriends mother would be there, too, of course.
At 4:45 PM, Ali still had not returned from getting her hair done.
Published on June 3, 2009
Over the past few months, after each quarterly short story contest, I’ve been posting missives about the common themes in entries submitted for the previous 24-Hour Short Story Contest. We’ve received lots of positive feedback so I’ll continue to do this for future contests.
