There's an old adage that says, if a publisher wants money up front, it's a warning sign.
Predatory businesses are out there.
The seventh statement of "our philosophy" is, We believe the author and publisher's success should go hand-in-hand, and we vehemently oppose vanity presses, the vanity publisher, and predatory businesses.
These ads have been popping up on our various feeds lately. (And yes, I blurred out their contact information and names).
What is the definition of a Vanity Publisher? The term was coined in 1959 and describes any publisher or press that doesn't profit from book sales, but rather profits from charging authors for provided publishing services.
Our question to you is this: Once these vanity publishers get their money up front, what is their incentive to help the author succeed?
The answer is, they have no incentive.
They have already made their money.
They have already succeeded.
Period. Full stop.
$ 349.00, $ 399.00, $ 799.00, $ 999.00, I've seen a local author come to us for help having paid out over $ 5,000.00 for these predatory services. There are predatory businesses out there. Local printers posing as publishers. None of these are deals. Vanity Presses, Hybrid Publishers, Self-Publishers - if you were truly self-publishing you would not be dealing with any publisher. The list goes on and is extensive.
At Broken Keys Publishing & Press - although we do offer formatting and layout services for those adamant about self-publishing - our primary focus is publishing and seeing our authors, poets, and writers succeed - and sharing that journey with them. Our success and our profits hinge upon our authors' success.
Interested in learning more? Browse our website and contact us for further information.
Let's see what dreams we can make come true!
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