Offering something for nothing is a really dumb business model. While working with a “free” company may seem tempting to some authors, these firms typically go belly-up pretty quickly. And, some end up ripping their former authors off for years after the firm’s demise…while holding those authors’ books hostage.
We received the following FAKE copyright infringement accusation this week via email…
I haven’t been paid a dime, but there are used copies of my book on Amazon. Well no, those aren’t really used copies.
Ah, “hybrid.” Such a cool sounding word, right? But…
Sadly, some authors will fall for this type of scam.
“Because I hear so many horror stories about companies like this agency scamming authors (and yes, they approached me first!), I’m…”
Elderly authors are easy marks for scammers and thieves. Today, I’ll share the stories of several (semi-)fictional victims. These represent a combination of horror stories we’ve heard over the years.
Author Andy was so excited! His new book was finished and he’d just approved his print galley. It was time to start selling books! His publishing company put his book up for sale on their website and sent him the URL where he could send people who wanted to purchase his book.
Andy didn’t have his own website or blog, but he didn’t think that would be a problem. Unfortunately, it was, on several fronts. And, while Andy and the other authors below are fictitious, the scenarios are based on real complaints we’ve received from authors over the years. In every case, had the author had their own website or blog, he or she would have lost few, if any, sales.
They are simply luring in authors, and then upselling them on worthless services.
Authors must pay more than $1,000 to be included. It costs even more if the author wants his or her name on the cover…
