“I want to publish the lyrics from an old song but the rights holder hasn’t responded to me. What can I do?”
I've emailed ASCAP, and Sony, who owns the publishing rights, for permission and no one has gotten back to me...…
Ask The Expert
“When writing under a pseudonym, should I put my REAL name on the copyright page of my book?”
If something goes awry in the government database (which is a question of when, not if), someone searching for your pseudonym could find your home or mailing address, put two and two together...…
“A radio talk show host saw my book and wants to interview me. Should I be leery?”
"I googled him and he seems legit. They want me to call in, and discuss my books with them. Have you heard of anything like this being of benefit to any of your authors?"…
“An anthology publisher owes me royalties! What can I do?”
Anthology publisher ripping you off? Rescind the rights to your story AND then invoice them for copyright infringement!…
“If I signed a non-disclosure agreement, can I still write about my ex-boss using a pseudonym?”
"I'm involved in a lawsuit against my previous employer and I'm about to sign a non-disclosure agreement. I want to write a book about the case using a pseudonym. I can do that, right?"…
“A publicist called me about ‘republishing’ my book. What’s up with that?!”
I was called by a "publicist" about republishing my book that they saw on Amazon. (It's not supposed to be there because my lawyer was supposed to give them a cease and desist order since it was from Tate Publishing...)"…
“A marketing company says my book was ‘endorsed’ by movie producers but they want $5K! Is this too good to be true?”
Movie deals are exceedingly rare yet so many authors pay thousands to these types of firms each year. I'm willing to bet this firm makes the vast majority (if not ALL!) of their income from hopeful authors, NOT from movie deals...…
“Someone stole and republished my blog posts AND photos as her own! What can I do???”
An elder lady writer has been stalking me for 7+ years every single day. She has copied my blog posts and used some of my blog post ideas as her own. She didn't even bother to change the name of...…
“Can I recreate someone else’s photograph I found online, and use on my book cover?”
Is recreating a photo you find online copyright infringement?…
“Websites are offering my book at RIDICULOUS prices! How can I stop them?”
These scammers use my Amazon ads and illustrations claiming all sorts of things, like having 15 books of varying quality on hand, and raising the cover price from $13 to $45. However, my publisher and I have never sold books to these people...…
“How can I find out which publishers are imprints of Author Solutions? They took me for $15,000.00!”
Sometimes it's difficult to discern which publishing companies are owned by the behemoth Author Solutions. Check this list!…
Q – “Should I write about abuse I endured as a child if the abuser is still living?”
"One of the abusers is still living. I have no contact with that person. He is a sociopath. I would not name him in any book I would write, but I would have to..."…
“I rewrote my book but I want to re-use the title from the first edition. Will this create problems on Amazon?”
Would two Amazon pages then exist for the same book title? The old one AND the new one?…
“Should I pay a well-known company more than $400 to review my book?” NO!
Do you know about this company and is this something you recommend?…
“Should I call the updated version of my book Second Edition…or not?”
The publisher has relinquished all rights and removed the book from Amazon. The content will be almost the same...…
“What is a fair rate to pay an illustrator for my book?”
"I have an illustrator for my next children's book. How do you determine how much to pay them?"…
“How can I release a book into the public domain?”
What I want to do is put my aunt's three books into the public domain now, and make them available through digital preservation efforts. But, I first need to prove that I actually have the right to donate them...…
“Tate Publishing agreed to reimburse their victims but I never submitted a claim! What can I do?”
It's NOT too late to file your claim! But, you need to hurry!!…
Q – “I tried to publish my book through Amazon’s KDP Print (previously CreateSpace) but that has been a disaster. Can you publish it instead?”
I was going to publish my book through Amazon's KDP Print (previously named CreateSpace) but that has been a disaster...…
“My ebook looks like (bleep) and my publisher refuses to fix it! What can I do?!”
My publisher finally got my ebook up for sale and it looks horrible! I asked them to fix it and they said that's the best they can do with current technology. I find that impossible to believe! What can I do?!…
“I found a really cheap overseas book editor but I’m suspicious of the price…and their unprofessional website.”
"I am a single mom and I just finished my first book. I was looking for an affordable editor and I found one. It's really, really cheap but..."…
“My friend left me the rights to his book. His estate disagrees. I have email proof! What do I do?!”
"My friend left his book rights to me via an email message, and verbally. The estate claims it belongs to them. What do you think?"…
Airing Someone Else’s Dirty Laundry in Print or Online… Is it REALLY Worth It?
Let me tell you the true story about the time I was propositioned by a U.S. lawmaker in an airplane...…
“I want you to refer your authors to me for editing and illustrations. What are your criteria?”
We launched this service to counter the greedy rights'-grab currently occurring in the industry...…
Q – “My publisher disappeared! How can I find out how many books they sold?”
My publisher stopped paying royalties months ago and they're not responding to emails or phone calls. I'm starting to panic a little bit...…
“I sued Tate Publishing, and won, but Amazon is still selling their edition of my book!”
I sued my publisher (Tate Publishing) for 5 counts of breach of contract, including stealing all the royalties, and won. I just learned from a friend that she ordered my book on Amazon and got it...…
“If I use BookLocker to publish my book, how many cover designs do I get to choose from?”
Q – Angela, If I sign up with BookLocker, how many cover designs may I choose…
“Should I wait for the Library of Congress to process my copyright registration before I publish my book?”
When registering a copyright for a book, nobody waits for the government anymore...…
“My Publisher Has Been Grossly Inflating My Royalties on My 1099s!”
"For the past 10 years, my publisher has been reporting to the I.R.S. up to 100 times more than what they are paying me!"…
Can a Ghostwriter Be Sued for Libel or Invasion of Privacy?
"A woman wants me to ghostwrite a book about her abusive childhood? This makes me nervous. Could I be sued?"…
