Offers of editorial advice; the chance to be represented by an agent; manuscript submission services: all of these may seem like a way to get a foot in the door and start your writing career, but in fact they might be nothing more than an easy way for scammers and fraudsters to part you from your hard earned cash.
It’s All About The Money
If something seems too good to be true, it probably is. Most professional agents have few if any spaces on their books and yet online agencies abound, offering to take on new clients.
Publishers are cutting back on their lists and publishing fewer books, and yet editorial services are offered everywhere promising that they will provide a stepping stone towards publication for the novice writer.
The bottom line is that these agencies and editors are offering services for one reason only – in order to charge fees for…
- Reading scripts
- Evaluating scripts
- Editorial services
- Marketing services
- Submissions to publishers or agents
Will they help you to get published?
The answer is: probably not. The opinions of one freelance editor count for little. The only editor who counts is the one who works for the publishing company who gives you a contract (and money!) to publish your book.
Scams involving Agents and “Independent Editors”
Submit an unsolicited manuscript to an agent or a publisher and you may receive a recommendation that you send your manuscript to a particular editor to “improve” it, or to receive a full evaluation, or critique.
In reality, the “editor” may simply be a money-spinning extension of an unscrupulous agency or even a part of a vanity publishing scam.
How to Recognize a Professional Agency
If an agency offers to take you on, find out as much as you can about it. The firs thing to do is: Check Their Credentials
- How long has it been in business?
- Who are its clients?
- What type of writing do they specialise in?
- If it is a new agency, what are the qualifications, or history of the agents?
- Ask to see one of their contracts
Before you sign anything, you must find out what sort of practices the agent intends to employ. You may find that the agent intends to charge you for all photocopying and mailing in advance, and shows you a long list of all the publishers they will be sending the book to. But if all they are simply going to do a blanket mailing to every publisher in the USA, it won’t sell your book.
Professional agents make their money from their commission - a percentage of your copyright fees - after they have managed to place your book with a publisher and get it published. They should never charge you fees up front.
Paying for the Services of an Editor
If you are considering using the services of an editor, find out as much as you can about them, their abilities and their track record before you hand over any money.
- What experience or qualifications do they have?
- What writers have they worked with previously?
- What books have been published that they have edited?
- Can you see evidence of their work?
- Most importantly, can you get references from, and speak to writers who have been published that they have worked with?
It’s tempting to believe that if you pay for the services of the editor to “perfect” your manuscript, then it will significantly enhance your chances of being taken on by the agent, or having your book published. You may be told that your manuscript requires to be “professionally” edited to stand a chance of being published.
Remember, an editor may have worked for a publishing company, but this is no guarantee that they will be able to help you to get published.
In fact, one person’s opinion counts for very little in the subjective world of manuscript evaluation.
You may be well advised to save your money and join a writers group where evaluation and critiques come free and can be just as helpful.
Fraudsters or Simply Amateurs?
Not all new agencies looking for clients, or independent editors who are offering their services are corrupt or operating scams; they may be well-intentioned and simply starting up in business and trying to make a living.
However, people who are not seasoned professionals are unlikely to help you on the road to success. So whether they are fraudsters or not, the question you must ask before laying out any of your money, is:
What exactly will they be offering you in return?
Contracts
If you do get as far as thinking you might sign a contract with an agent, look out for agents who incorporate non-standard or unusual terms in their contracts e.g. claiming a financial interest in future work which you may produce, or claiming the rights to your work to infinity. Always have a contract checked by a professional, a lawyer, or someone from a professional writers' union or association before signing anything.
Find Out More About Scams Aimed at Writers:
Writer Beware
The excellent site Writer Beware, run by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America has excellent lists of “publishers” and agents to avoid.
Find out more about the Basics of Freelance Writing
Janice Hally - Janice Hally has written more than 300 broadcast hours of prime-time TV drama in the UK, as well as fiction and non-fiction books.
