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Recently Answered Questions:
Q –
Hi Angela,
Should I put “a novel” on the cover of my book under the title?
I have another question. Should I have “by” in front of my name on the front cover of my book?
Thanks!
Olive G.
A –
1. Unless you truly believe that someone might mistake your novel for being non-fiction, I do not recommend putting “a novel” on the front cover.
The book I’m featuring here appears to be non-fiction but it’s not. It’s actually historical fiction. That’s why the author put “a novel” at the bottom of the cover. By the way, Pawnee Prisoner is BookLocker’s #1 best seller right now! 🙂

A tale of survival, set in the 1830s, and based on the true story of the daughter of Texas pioneer James Gotcher and widow of Alamo defender Lemuel Crawford.
The book below is clearly a novel so the author did not add “a novel” under the title:

A rags to riches relationship born in west Texas, incubated during the Vietnam War, and culminated in California.
2. I see many self-published authors putting “by” in front of their name on their cover. Do NOT do that. It makes a book look self-published (amateurish). 🙂
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- NEVER, EVER Buy THESE Book Promotion Products/Services. PERIOD
HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?
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Q –
I hope you can help me with this question. I’ve been providing (therapy to a) group using a booklet (manual) printed and distributed by (company name removed). The book they have is not copyright protected. After 10 years of providing this program I noticed the material in the booklet is outdated and is not therapeutic towards my clients. Therefore, I made some major changes to the booklet. The original book is 12 lessons. I changed it and (renamed it). This new manual is now 10 lessons. I made sometimes small changes in each lesson and sometimes major changes in each lesson. I felt all the changes were much more therapeutic and helpful to my client population.
Now, I asked (the company) if they wanted to continue to be on the book with current authors and I can simply add myself as an author or if I should remove (the company’s name) all together and just use my name as the author. By the way I’m also going to change the front cover scheme as well.
(The company) responded and said I am not allowed to make any changes to the book nor can I change the name. I believe this is incorrect because there is no copyright. Would I be advised to print my book and get it copyright protected to avoid (the company) from copyright protecting their book and blocking me from making the changes that I have made?
A –
I am not an attorney and this is not legal advice. You should speak to an attorney but he/she will tell you the same thing so let me save you some money and a lot of heartache.
The organization is correct. They own the rights to the book. Just because it doesn’t have the word copyright in it, and even if they never registered the copyright, they still own it.
What you did is copyright infringement. If they sue, you would owe them thousands in penalties and you could be fined up to $250K.
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HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?
a self-publishing services company that has been in business since 1998. Ask her anything.
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Q.
Hi Angela!
I just got a call from “CBS Radio” for an interview on one of their shows.
While on the phone with this representative, I googled the particular program he was pitching, and learned that it costs over $1000.00 to be on the show. When I brought this up to the rep, he said it was actually an investment and millions would be reached regarding my book.
I told him thanks, but no thanks, and that I couldn’t afford it. He kept pushing, so I suggested that he contact BookLocker’s Angela Hoy to discuss this opportunity for authors.
This information made him nervous, but he kept pushing. I told him that I was not interested, and hung up the phone.
Are you familiar with this scam?
Thanks for all you do to expose these people.
I.G.
A –
Of course, he never contacted me. Ha ha. 😉
Yes, it’s definitely a scam. It’s entirely likely that he wasn’t from CBS Radio at all. Some scammers pull this trick on authors, and collect the money and the author later finds out that person wasn’t with the organization at all. Even if it is a real show, it’s HIGHLY doubtful you’d earn your $1K back in book sales.
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- A Former Hollywood Reporter Shares How to REALLY Land a Movie Deal by Anne Taylor
HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?
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I guess this scammer missed attorney James M. Walsh’s article, Do NOT Complain to People Who Have Honestly Exposed Your Illegal Activities Online.
The scammer’s websites:
- wordstratum.co
- wordstratum.co.uk – This one still has fake book covers under the word “portfolio” as well as fake testimonials, etc. And, Google shows the address as being either a patch of woods with no home, or an apartment. We found fake “photos” of their “UK office” online as well! Don’t miss the big UPDATE under the post below!
The easiest way for us to do this is to simply share the email exchange. ENJOY! 🙂
——– Forwarded Message ——–
Subject: Re: WRITERSWEEKLY QUESTION – Sam K Wajih
Date: Tue, 6 May 2025 13:11:33 -0400
From: Angela @ WritersWeekly
To: notabot@wordstratum.co <notabot@wordstratum.co>
Hi Scam (I mean Sam),
I’m copying attorney James M. Walsh on this email.
This is what appears on our list of scammers:
Word Stratum / WordStratum / wordstratum.co
Trademark infringement. They have logos for two traditional publishers on their website. The book covers on their website don’t have author names. Classic error by scammers. They are FAKE books! Facebook says they’re in PAKISTAN. They have “testimonials” but the authors’ last names are missing and one is literally named John Doe. There are no book titles under the “testimonials.” It says they’ve published 13K books yet searching for their name as a publisher on Amazon shows NO RESULTS. The address on their website is missing the city, state, and zip code…because it’s FAKE. Googling their phone number brings up nothing. They’ve only been on Facebook since Oct. 2024. They have the CreateSpace logo on their website yet Amazon hasn’t used that name in years.
My responses are by the **’s below.
_____________________________________________
–——- Forwarded Message ——–
Subject: WRITERSWEEKLY QUESTION – Sam K Wajih
Date: Tue, 6 May 2025 12:00:10 -0400
From: WritersWeekly.com
Reply-To: notabot@wordstratum.co <notabot@wordstratum.co>
Dear Angela,
I hope this message finds you well.
My name is Sam, and I am the founder of Word Stratum. I recently came across your article concerning my business, and while I appreciate your interest in holding companies accountable, I believe there are several misunderstandings that I’d like to address directly and transparently.
Firstly, I want to assure you that I’m building this business with genuine intent and a long-term vision. I have never scammed anyone, nor do I support the kind of unethical behavior that unfortunately plagues this industry. In fact, I’ve been a victim of such scams myself, and I’m working hard to offer authors an honest and supportive alternative.
Allow me to respond to the points raised in your article:
1. Use of Traditional Publisher Logos:
I do not use logos of traditional publishers on my website because it would be misleading and inappropriate unless there is a direct affiliation. I believe in maintaining clear and honest representation.
**Nice try. I have proof you were doing that to defraud authors into thinking you were doing business with those companies. See the screenshots.
Before you got caught, you had logos for Simon & Schuster, Macmillan Publishers, CreateSpace (again, see the screenshot), and the New York Times. You haven’t done business with any of those. Again, FRAUD!
2. Book Covers Without Author Names:
The covers displayed are concept samples used to showcase our creative process. They don’t carry author names intentionally, as they are accompanied by detailed descriptions of the design rationale.
**The covers make it appear you designed those covers, and published those books. There is nothing on your website saying those are samples. In fact, your website specifically said to check out your books FOR SALE with those covers next to the statement. (See the right side of the screenshot above.)
3. Facebook Pages Location:
Our Facebook pages indicate a Pakistan location because our marketing team operates from there. This decision is driven by practicality and
cost-effectiveness. I personally live in Germany, and hiring marketing talent locally or in the U.S. is not financially viable at this stage.
**Your previous address on your site said St. Petersburg, Florida (see the screenshot). Now you say you’re in Elmont, NY. You’re in neither of those places. Pretending to be located in the U.S. when you are not is fraud. You’re trying to trick U.S. authors into thinking you are located here.
4. False Claims & Attacks by Competitors:
My business has been targeted by competitors in unethical ways—site hacks, false claims, and even attempts to poach clients. For clarity, I have never claimed to have published 13,000 books, and there is no CreateSpace logo on my website. We simply list platforms we assist our clients with, like Amazon, Apple Books, and others.
**You’re a LIAR! Look at the first screenshot above and the one below!
5. Business Addresses and Legitimacy:
The addresses listed on my website are valid. I operate remotely, with legal LLC and INC registrations in the U.S., a remote team in Pakistan, and a business partner in the U.S. This global setup is not uncommon in today’s digital business landscape, especially in industries affected by
low-cost, scam-driven competition.
See my response under #3 above. Again, what you’re doing is FRAUD. You’re trying to trick authors into thinking YOU are located in the U.S. Otherwise, why simply tell them you are NOT?
6. Company Age and Page Creation Dates:
Our social media pages were created in October because that is when the company was launched. I’ve never claimed otherwise.
**Again, see the screenshots. You claimed to have published 183 books (a total lie) and that you had 165 clients (also a lie).
See the other screenshot above as well. On another page, you boasted 13K+ books published, 5K+ happy clients, etc. What a crock of BULL!
If I were running a scam, I wouldn’t be reaching out to you like this. I take pride in my work and want to build a sustainable, trustworthy
business. I also understand that skepticism is warranted in this space, but I hope you can see the difference between someone trying to con others and someone trying to grow an honest venture despite the odds.
**You have committed fraud and deception. You likely thought reaching out to me this way might give you the opportunity to hoodwink me. You’re hilarious! You got caught RED HANDED! Not only were you caught and exposed but, since you wasted my time (and yours!) today, I’m going to give you even more coverage on WritersWeekly.com and on our social media pages!
I respect your voice as a writer and your role in advocating for integrity in publishing. If you have suggestions for how we can further improve our transparency or practices, I am open to hearing them. That said, I kindly ask that you reconsider the article currently published on your site. It contains inaccuracies that are harmful to the reputation I’ve worked hard to build, and I believe addressing those concerns, as I’ve done here, warrants a fair review.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I’d be happy to speak further if you have any questions or need clarification on anything mentioned.
Warm regards,
Sam K Wajih
Founder, Word Stratum
– Sam K Wajih ( notabot@wordstratum.co )
**Oh, we gave you a fair review alright!!
You ARE a scammer!
Angela Hoy, Publisher
WritersWeekly.com
UPDATE! The scammer immediately responded with cockamamie excuses we’ve heard before, like that those were all “mistakes” on an earlier version of their website. Here’s the hilarious part. He said he created the business in October and that the things we caught him doing above were “placeholder content.” He said they then fixed the problems. We didn’t get our screenshots until the last week of December! So, from October to at least December (when we added his crappy website to our scam list!), he was scamming people with the items described above. KNOW WHAT’S EVEN BETTER! He has a site in the UK that has many of the same fraudulent things on it and he apparently forgot to “fix” that before contacting us! What a MORON!! (Yes, we have screenshots of that one, too!!!)
Here is my response:
Hi Sam,
In your first email, you wrote:
1. Use of Traditional Publisher Logos:
I do not use logos of traditional publishers on my website because it would be misleading and inappropriate unless there is a direct affiliation. I believe in maintaining clear and honest representation.
Now, you’re saying you DID do that and that is was a “mistake.” And, now you’re trying to mislead ME. I didn’t just fall off the turnip truck. That is a classic response we hear from scammers after they GOT CAUGHT.
Everything about your website was an attempt to trick people into thinking you had affiliations with traditional publishers, that you’d published those books, that those were real author testimonials, that you were located in the U.S., etc., etc. You’re backtracking now because you were exposed. There were no “mistakes.” It was intent to deceive, which is illegal.
I have already reported you to the Florida Department of State Division of Corporations.
Angela Hoy, Publisher
WritersWeekly.com
RELATED
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- FACEBOOK’S FRAUD FIASCO: How Facebook is Profiting From Scam Publishers Targeting YOU on Its Platform – by James M. Walsh, Esq.
HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?
a self-publishing services company that has been in business since 1998. Ask her anything.
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This isn’t really a Q&A format but I think you’ll forgive me for that this week.
I sure get a chuckle out of people who think, after more than 25 years in the business, that I just fell off the turnip truck. Here’s an example of a scammer who wanted to submit an article to us that pitched his own scam book-to-movie services:
Hello,
So many writers dream of becoming authors but some also dream about their story becoming a movie. They want their story to be in the bright lights of Hollywood! Remember (famous author name removed)? His novel was turned into a film.
Authors don’t really know how to make that happen. My article will teach authors how to make that happen. I’ve done it for authors before and I can teach them what I know.
He goes on to say he’ll teach authors how to “pay” for pitching services. Ha ha ha. Also, he’ll teach authors how to hire a good screenwriter. He also claims he can set “any book” up for movie-making success. Total B.S.
My response:
Pitching services are a scam and studios hire screenwriters. Authors should NEVER pay for screenwriting services. Don’t contact me again.
This incident reminded me when we exposed Publishing Mojo’s illegal activities and they then emailed me twice. They wanted me to buy an article from them that was purportedly going to teach authors how to get published. Seriously. How STUPID do these people think I am?
RELATED
- DON’T MISS THIS ONE! Publishing Mojo Claims THEIR REPUTATION WAS HARMED, But Then Stops Responding After MORE Allegations Surface!!
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- No, CBS Studios Did NOT Just Offer You a Movie Deal for Your Book
- A Fake Literary Agent + a Fake Movie Studio = Another Scam Targeting Authors
- Your Book As a Movie? Watch Out for Snake Oil Salesmen!
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- How My Novel Became A Movie! By Dvora Waysman
HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?
a self-publishing services company that has been in business since 1998. Ask her anything.
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DON’T FORGET! This Saturday, 4/5/25, is the Spring, 2025 24-Hour Short Story Contest!!!
Q –
Hi Angela,
Have you any negative information on a company called Austin Macauley Publishers?
Trevor S.
A –
Yes, definitely avoid Austin Macauley Publishers LLC!
Read the complaints and reviews on bbb.org.
And, look at the one-star reviews on PissedConsumer and Trustpilot.
If any other readers want me to research a specific company, please CONTACT ME.
And, don’t forget these articles! They are must reads!!
A List of Publishers and Services That ALL Authors Should AVOID AT ALL COSTS!
RELATED
- FRAUD ALERT: Why 5-Star Reviews on Trustpilot Can NOT Be Trusted – by James M. Walsh, Esq.
- EXTREME AUTHOR ALERT – PART I: This International Scam is Fooling THOUSANDS of Authors Across the Globe!
- EXTREME AUTHOR ALERT – PART II: 19 Signs You’re About to Get Scammed By a Foreign “Book Publisher”
- EXTREME AUTHOR ALERT – PART III: How WritersWeekly Communicates Directly with Deceitful “Publishers” to Expose Their Appalling Practices
- EXTREME AUTHOR ALERT – PART IV: WARNINGS about TheGhostWriting.org, Book Publishing HQ, Author Book Creators, Author Books Publisher, AMZ Publishing Firm, and McMillan Book Publishers (the fake one), AND MORE!
- EXTREME AUTHOR ALERT – PART V: Do NOT Hire ANY Publisher That is Running Paid Ads on Facebook Right Now!
- Scammers Are Offering to “Help” Scam Victims Get Refunds…For a Fee, of Course
HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?
a self-publishing services company that has been in business since 1998. Ask her anything.
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Q –
My “agent” from this company was a woman named Rita, alleged to be working at USABookPublication.com. I fired them for incompetence. I would not recommend a dog use them. They promised me a refund three weeks ago but I still haven’t received it. They are a ripoff and a scam company.
A –
I wrote back to the author, and let her know that company was already on our list of scammers. When I put on my detective hat, I found a company with almost the exact same name (it has one extra letter). Once I Googled that company’s phone number, I sent her this –
All of the companies below have identical phone numbers:
Boston Book Publishers / bostonbookpublishers.com
USA Books Publication / usabookspublication.com (notice the subtle name difference from the one in the author’s email above)
Digital Book Publishers / digitalbookpublishers.com
Kindle Direct Book Publishing / kindledirectbookpublishing.com
KDP Publishing House / kdppublishinghouse.com
KDP Books Publication / kdpbookspublication.com
Book Publishing Services / llc bookpublishingservicesllc.com
If you are wondering about a specific publisher or service, CONTACT ME right away with the company’s name and website. I will research them quickly for you. No charge! If they are a scammer, you’ll have done me a favor because I can add them to our spreadsheet and website.
The author asked me who I would recommend. I gave her the link below, which shows U.S.-based publishers: 2025 Self-Publishing Price Comparison
RELATED
- Scammers Are Offering to Help Scam Victims Get Refunds…For a Fee, of Course
- These are U.S.-based companies: NEW! 2025 Self-Publishing Price Comparison!!
- FRAUD ALERT: Why 5-Star Reviews on Trustpilot Can NOT Be Trusted – by James M. Walsh, Esq.
- A List of Publishers and Services That ALL Authors Should AVOID AT ALL COSTS!
- FACEBOOK’S FRAUD FIASCO: How Facebook is Profiting From Scam Publishers Targeting YOU on Its Platform – by James M. Walsh, Esq.
- Update on Our Foreign Publishing Scammers Exposé
- EXTREME AUTHOR ALERT – PART V: Do NOT Hire ANY Publisher That is Running Paid Ads on Facebook Right Now!
- Do NOT Complain to People Who Have Honestly Exposed Your Illegal Activities Online – by James M. Walsh, Esq.
HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?
a self-publishing services company that has been in business since 1998. Ask her anything.
ASK ANGELA!
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I have several books on the market. I keep getting emailed by companies calling themselves “hybrid publishers.” What does that mean?
J.C.
A –
A true Hybrid Publisher does NOT charge authors any up front fees, and their contracts are for a shorter period of time compared to traditional publishers. However, their royalties may be a bit lower. For authors on a budget, a real hybrid publisher can be a true blessing! But, they are very choosy about what they publish.
But, the term is now being used by scammers to try to defraud authors. The scam goes like this:
1. They find a new book on Amazon, Google the author’s name and book title, and find the author online. They will then either email or call the author (or both). Contrary to true hybrid publishers, these scam companies will publish anything and everything.
2. They also will run ads on social media using the term “hybrid publisher” to try to fool unwary authors.
3. The scammer will then claim that they’ll pay half of the author’s fees to get their new book published.
4. In reality, the scammer isn’t going to contribute one penny toward the publication costs for the book. Instead, they charge the author an outrageous price and they never contribute a dime to the publication costs of that book.
5. In some cases, the author pays (often thousands of dollars) and the book never gets published at all. Those are overseas scammers that know the author, if located in the U.S., has a zero percent chance of getting their money back.
One true hybrid publisher is Abuzz Press, which charges authors nothing up front. The contract is exclusive for three years and the royalties are higher than those paid by traditional publishers.
RULE OF THUMB: If any so-called publisher spams or calls you, CLICK DELETE or HANG UP! No real publisher uses spam or telemarketing to try to get new authors to sign up.
RELATED
- Abuzz Press – This Hybrid Publisher Charges No Setup Fees!
- “What are the benefits of going with a hybrid publisher?”
- FRAUD ALERT: Why 5-Star Reviews on Trustpilot Can NOT Be Trusted – by James M. Walsh, Esq.
- A List of Publishers and Services That ALL Authors Should AVOID AT ALL COSTS!
- NEW! 2025 Self-Publishing Price Comparison!!
- VAMPIRE PUBLISHERS: How to Tell If You’ve Been Bitten by One By Julie Matherly
HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?
a self-publishing services company that has been in business since 1998. Ask her anything.
ASK ANGELA!
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Q –
I’m looking for a successful, trustworthy book marketing company. Can you advise please? I keep finding sharks.
– Susanne R.
A –
You have to be so very careful now because so many overseas scammers are not only offering (fake) publishing services to steal authors’ money, but also fake marketing services. And, don’t forget that the U.S. addresses they put on their websites and Facebook are almost always FAKE. Most are in Pakistan and the Philippines.
Our BookLocker authors are very happy with these folks: Book Publicists We Recommend
You should also NOT hire any of the overseas scammers to edit your book! It will end up with far MORE errors because the people editing your book will NOT be native English speaker. Of course, that’s if your book ever gets edited at all… Many of these scammers try to get more and more money out of authors while constantly dangling that non-existent book in front of their noses.
The editors we recommend are vetted, offer outstanding services, and are all native English speakers, of course: Freelance Editors We Recommend
For the time being, do NOT hire any so-called publisher, or someone offering “publishing/marketing services” that is running ads on Facebook. Facebook is NOT removing those ads! Why? Because Facebook profits from scammers’ ads!
RELATED
- FACEBOOK’S FRAUD FIASCO: How Facebook is Profiting From Scam Publishers Targeting YOU on Its Platform – by James. M. Walsh, Esq.
- FRAUD ALERT: Why 5-Star Reviews on Trustpilot Can NOT Be Trusted – by James M. Walsh, Esq.
- A List of Publishers and Services That ALL Authors Should AVOID AT ALL COSTS!
- How to Tell if That So-Called “Publisher” is REALLY Located in the U.S.! By James M. Walsh, Esq.
- BEWARE! Is A So-Called “Publisher” Asking YOU to Sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement? – by James M. Walsh, Esq.
- Publishing Mojo Is Furious That I Exposed Their Scam! – by James M. Walsh, Esq.
HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?
a self-publishing services company that has been in business since 1998. Ask her anything.
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Q –
I had my book ‘hybrid’ published by Olympia Publishers for £3,500. They did a very amateur job of turning my manuscript into a book, but they did eventually print it and make it available on-line. But they have done nothing to promote it, get it reviewed or in any meaningful way tell the world that it exists. All sales so far have been from my own efforts. They had to be threatened with legal action to get the first lot of royalties, and they forgot to send me the second royalty statement, which when I chased it was full of omissions, which they have admitted, but yet to correct and pay. This company seem so amateur that I am beginning to think they might be a scam. Have other authors had similar experiences with Olympia?
A –
It looks like you’re not alone.
Here are a few choice tidbits from the 21(!!!) one-star reviews about them on Trustpilot:
“I paid over $4200 to them, the sample covers they provided me were absolute rubbish.” – Hamed
“I have had a very devastating experience with this publisher and advise to anyone considering signing with them to reconsider. I have not yet received any royalties and sent countless emails.” – Booklady
“They dragged their heels at every corner, when we expressed concern about how long this book was taking they said they were still in the time frame as written in the contract, then they went over the time frame and only really started moving when we threatened involving a solicitor.” – Sandy Johnstone
“They broke the contract by exceeding the given time to complete the manuscript to publication, communication was near non-existent and they actually edited in mistakes!” – Sara
“If I could give them no stars I would…” – Miss T White
“..there were tons of spelling, grammar, & punctuation mistakes…” – Debra
“If you have a dream of becoming an author, DO NOT submit your work to these guys. You’ll get lured in by empty promises, flashy-looking websites, and doctored reviews, only to have your dreams shattered.” – Adam Robertson
You can read more of the 21 one-star reviews about them on Trustpilot.
Incidentally, do NOT trust 5-star reviews on Trustpilot. Read this:
FRAUD ALERT: Why 5-Star Reviews on Trustpilot Can NOT Be Trusted – by James M. Walsh, Esq.
Also see:
Olympia Publishers and the Art of the Soft Scam
Has anyone had any experience with the ‘hybrid publishing’ contract or Olympia Publishers? – I looked up Olympia Publishers and they have a Watchdog Advisory rating, which means: “Services that fail to align with ALLi’s Code of Standards, are the subject of consistent complaints and, in some cases, have been subject to legal action.”
RELATED
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- DON’T MISS THIS ONE! Publishing Mojo Claims THEIR REPUTATION WAS HARMED, But Then Stops Responding After MORE Allegations Surface!!
- COMPLAINTS about Covenant Books AND Christian Faith Publishing
- If You Are Called By Spotlight Network TV / Spotlight TV / Logan Crawford, HANG UP!
- MORE SCATHING COMPLAINTS about Author Solutions, the owner of AuthorHouse, Xlibris, iUniverse, Trafford, Westbow Press, Archway Publishing, Balboa Press, Abbott Press, and others!
HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?
a self-publishing services company that has been in business since 1998. Ask her anything.
ASK ANGELA!
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