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Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware One of many reasons I enjoy Twitter is that it's relatively free of the spam that clogs other modes of online discourse. Oh, there's the occasional author Twitspam (writers: Twitspamming is not, I repeat, NOT, the way to promote your new book), and the random pr0n Twitspam, but by and large--at least for me--Twitter is a fairly spam-free environment. Which is why the Twitspams I've been receiving for the past couple of weeks really stand out like a sore whatever ( here's an example ). They're all the same: an obviously fake sender name, the words "Writers Needed," a link, and a list of recipients. I've been reporting and blocking them, but when I checked my Twitterfeed today and found six of them, all sent within a few minutes of one another, I got curious, and clicked the link. I found myself at RealWritingJobs.com --which, I was unsurprised to discover, promises that writers can earn lots of cash by writin...

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware I semi-frequently get questions from people who want to know how to break into the publishing industry--not as writers, but as agents, editors, copy editors, publicists, designers, and so on. There are a number of possible methods--get a job with a (reputable) literary agency, intern at a (commercial) publisher, take a (credible) college course. You might, however, want to avoid the approach used by the author of the letter I've reproduced below. (A websearch indicates that the author is a real person. Neither I nor the independent publisher who shared this with me are sure if it's a scam, or just a monumental demonstration of cluelessness or chutzpah. Presumably it went to more than one publisher; I'd be curious to know of any others who received it.) ----------------- [Publisher's name and address redacted] Dear Sir or Madam: Hello, my name is [name redacted] , and I have just been accepted as a graduate student at [univers...

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware A selection of articles and news items that caught my eye this week. It's not about the tweeting. Years ago, when I first broke in to publishing, self-promotion by authors was not only optional, it was considered rather tacky. Fewer books were being published back then, and there was less competition for reader eyeballs. Plus, the merger mania that has transformed the face of publishing hadn't yet begun; there were no big corporate owners to demand corporate-style profits from a traditionally low-profit business. All that has changed, of course. Self-promotion can still be tacky, but it's no longer optional (although no publisher should ever contractually enforce it; if you see self-promo requirements in a contract, it's a signal that the publisher is trying to shift a big part of its job onto you). As a result, it seems that everywhere you turn you find discussions of self-promotion, tips for self-promotion, and articles on ...

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware Exposed last week in New York magazine : Full Fathom Five, a book packager* founded by author/entrepreneur James Frey (yes, that James Frey)--a kind of sweat shop for writers with an outlandishly awful contract . The article has spurred quite a bit of outraged discussion , particularly of the contract. Book packaging is not generally known as an industry that is kind to writers, but according to people with experience , Full Fathom Five is in a class by itself. Who would sign such an awful contract? Who'd give away all their rights (including copyright and the right to put their name on their book) in exchange for a measly $250 plus a royalty that sounds generous--40%--but isn't--since it's paid on net and the company can deduct unspecified expenses at its discretion? Who would be so ignorant? So desperate? So stupid? Unfortunately, if there's one thing that twelve years with Writer Beware has taught me, it's that...

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware As I've discussed before on this blog, one of the many changes currently rocking the publishing industry is a general blurring of lines, a mixing and melding of formerly sharply separate categories and functions. Literary agents, squeezed by a tough publishing market and a growing number of competitors (thanks to the epidemic of mergers and layoffs that has caused large numbers of former publishing house staffers to transition into agenting), are branching out into other fields--consulting, editing, even publishing. Trade publishers, looking for ways to raise more income to support their core publishing functions, are establishing pay-to-publish divisions: Thomas Nelson with West Bow Press , Harlequin with DellArte Press (nee Harlequin Horizons), Hay House with Balboa Press . (Specialist publisher Osprey Publishing also announced plans to offer pay-to-publish options through AuthorHouse UK--but a search of both Osprey's and AuthorH...

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware Publishers Weekly reports that a New York Supreme Court judge has dismissed most claims in The Peter Lampack Agency's suit against a former client, best selling mystery author Martha Grimes . At the heart of the suit is the question of what commission rights an agency retains after a client leaves. Most author-agent agreements include language ensuring that the agency will continue to receive commissions on any contracts it brokers, for as long as those contracts are in force--even if the client leaves the agency before the contracts terminate--and on any sales resulting from its efforts prior to the client's departure, even if those sales post-date that departure. (So, for instance, if the agency pitches the client's manuscript to a publisher, and the publisher makes an offer after the client has left the agency, the agency is entitled to commissions if the client accepts the offer.) So far, so standard. But some agencies go fa...