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HOW TO AVOID BECOMING THE NEXT PUBLISHING CASUALTY: Ten Pieces of Critical Information To Read Before Publishing Your Book BY Donna J. Erickson

During the past few years, I’ve been speaking out about my mission to help new authors avoid getting scammed by a vanity press. I’ve been posting details of what I’ve learned about the BIG name self-publishing companies on guest blogs, social media sites, forums, and emails. I’ve been interviewed on web TV, cable TV, and national radio with my message to beware of what is lurking behind many of these organizations.

The problem is most authors find out what I am about to tell you after the fact—after they have published their book and spent thousands of dollars, only to be disappointed. By then, it’s too late to recoup lost time and money unless you decide to take legal action, which some authors have done.

If you are a debut author and are now faced with the task of publishing, please read on.

Countless authors have recounted their heartbreaking stories to me about what went wrong with their publishing dream. One is pulling all of her titles from a BIG name vanity press because she got tired of the constant editing mistakes and no longer wanted her name associated with theirs. She has chosen us as her next publisher. Another author waited and waited for a call back from another BIG name publisher after inquiring about specific royalties that were owed to him. He still doesn’t agree with their accounting, criticizes their lack of customer service, and has hired us for his second book. A third author reported that the BIG name publisher that published her children’s book continued to make repeated errors on the bookmarks she ordered. She’s now writing another book and looking to publish elsewhere.

For first-time authors, the scenario is always the same, and it goes like this:

Jane Doe finally finishes writing her manuscript. Not quite sure what to do next, she goes online and does a little searching. She learns that she’s better off self-publishing than trying to break into the traditional scene as an unknown author—nearly an impossible feat to accomplish.

Jane Doe is not sure how to go about self-publishing and googles “self-publishing companies” to find out who is offering the services she needs. All of the well-known BIG names show up, one after another. What Jane doesn’t know is:

1)      Many of them have been sued and brought to court for not delivering on what was promised, including non-payment of royalties owed.

2)      Some have been found liable and have had to pay thousands of dollars in punitive damages.

3)      Seasoned professionals in the industry know these companies as “scammers.”

4)      Most of these companies are in the business of making money and don’t care about the authors and their books.

5)      Many of them outsource customer service, editing, and other low-paying jobs to contractors in foreign countries who provide poor quality (even sloppy work that is not corrected upon request) and are not knowledgeable or accessible.

6)      Those in the industry will not take you seriously as a professional author, if you are associated with one of these companies.

7)      Many of these BIG names rank high on search engine lists making them appear to be a good choice when, in fact, they are not. They have simply become a monopoly in the world of self-publishing and prey on newbies.

8)      A lot of these companies use hard-sell techniques, pressuring authors into special offers and deals, while going as far as calling them on the phone to hound them into a contract (such as a book to movie scheme)—often with no guarantees.

9)      Once they get your money, their customer service disappears, and you may wait weeks, or even longer, for an answer to your problem.

10)    Pages and pages of complaints against these companies appear on the Internet.

I always advise authors to google the name of the company with the word “complaints,” “scam,” and/or “reviews.” That one step can save you from a lot of unnecessary grief.

Some authors choose to go it alone. They hire an editor, designer, and printer and take care of their own distribution online and elsewhere. This is self-publishing in the true sense of the word. Others prefer to hire someone who has already negotiated all of the contracts and knows what they are doing. The author is publishing through their services. Whoever has purchased the ISBN is listed as the publisher.

Authors who turn to createspace.com (an imprint of Amazon) will find that Barnes and Noble will no longer stock their books because they see amazon.com as a competitor. The tactics used at createspace.com to try and lure them into buying all kinds of extras has discouraged some authors.

I’ve taken on a dedicated fight to rise above these companies by putting my time and energy into running a credible, ethical, high-quality, and hassle-free service for self-publishing authors from all around the world. Here’s what others are saying about us:

Thanks for your honest opinion and truthfulness, which is hard to find at a lot of places nowadays. They did a wonderful job on the video and I think that perhaps you are right in that it might be a little costly of an adventure for me right now. I didn't realize all the hurdles I would have to take as a new author. You really opened my eyes. Before I undertake publishing my book I need to research every avenue of marketing and publishing in order for my book to be a success as well as save up some more money.

I am so sorry for taking up your valuable time. It means a lot to me that you have helped me this much and may God bless you for your kindness in going out of your way to help a small fry like me.

Kind regards, Ricky

You know what, Donna? With all of the people in this industry that don't give a hoot about people, you keep doing you and staying true to yourself...my dear you just might become a publishing maverick.  W. Granville Brown (best-selling author)

Donna's work as a publisher is absolutely amazing! 
She has the insight and understanding that an author needs to publish a book. A Flair for Writing gives the support an author needs to produce a top quality book. After searching for a publisher, I found A Flair for Writing and feel that I hit the jackpot. Donna has strong business ethics and with her honesty and integrity, which is rare in the business world today, she will guide the author to publish a book that is of outstanding quality. A Flair for Writing is the type of publisher any author needs to support them in their creative endeavors.

–        DiDi

Dear Donna,

When I wrote my book A Terrible Beauty I felt that I had a winner. Then after a few neutral friends read my manuscript, and raved about the book, I really felt encouraged.

However my experience in searching for an agent and publisher was very disappointing. Almost all of them rejected my work without reviewing it. It seemed as if there was some kind of “cult” belief that first-time writers didn’t get a chance. I also felt that many agents particularly enjoyed the rejection process.

Then you entered the picture. You took the time to see the message of my book. You also took the special effort to match me with the perfect editor, Lenny Cavallaro. Wow, did Lenny prove to be a hard taskmaster as he made me dig deeper into myself to express more forcefully the emotional messages of the book. As I once told my wife, “Lenny reached into me, grabbed my guts, and pulled.” The result is a finer and better book, and I shall evermore be indebted to Lenny for the interest and dedication that he gave my book.

Your graphic designer, Sue Petersen, did the same. She actually took the time to read the manuscript so that she could understand the message that the book cover needed to convey. Then she designed a magnificent cover. Several people have shed tears when they saw the cover for the first time. It is that powerful.

So I am deeply appreciative of A Flair for Writing and what you have done for my book. Thank you eternally. Michael D. Miller

Oh, and one last comment…Try googling A Flair For Writing – Publishing Services for negative feedback and notice what you come up with—NOTHING. What you will notice when working with us is our personalized attention to detail, value pricing, exceptional customer service, free promotion, and quality services for every phase of your project.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to post them here or email me at donna@aflairforwriting.com.

Donna J. Erickson is the author of No-Hassle Publishing: An Author’s Guide to Today’s Changing Industry and the owner of aflairforwriting.com, a writing/editing/and publishing service. She has 26 years of experience in the industry, and her company offers a full array of quality services for authors who are self-publishing.

For mystery lovers with a paranormal twist:

The Man With the Green Suitcase by Dee Doanes. Critics call it, "Rod Serling meets Mitch Albom" What does a prostitute, a corrupt businessman, and a disfigured young woman have in common with a mysterious, old homeless man who carries a green suitcase? The old man gives them visions- visions that even he doesn't understand. Book info here: http://www.amazon.com/author/deedoanes

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