Fan-hitting shit
Oh, yikes. Read this press release from Bowker.
Then take a look at the website, especially the part that follows “for only” in the little blurb next to the twenty-something, Caucasian, goateed writer guy’s head.
Discuss.
Tags: bowker, bowkermanuscriptsubmissions.com, greed, manuscript submission, publishing, taking advantage of authors
The working man’s a sucker.
Ain’t that the truth. “Pay us a hundred bucks and you’re bound to be found by the Great Big Publishers!”
(“Oh, and your proposal’s only good for six months, after which you’ll have to fork over another C-note.”)
At least this one’s free:
http://www.authonomy.com/
and submissions are supposedly read by Harper Collins editors.
I’ve actually heard some good things about Authonomy. As in, it’s actually produced a handful of books. The service that BMS (Or, as I’ll refer to it from here on out, B.M.s) is based on apparently resulted in only a few (I’ve heard 9 in three years and) manuscripts being taken on by publishers. I’m not sure that Authonomy is really pushing too far beyond that, but it’s also more of a community for authors, rather than simply a repository for manuscripts.
But, I suppose the appeal of B.M.s for the uninitiated is that Every Publisher In The World will be (willing and) able to see your manuscript.
Yeah, right.
I guess $99 is cheaper than going to a conference for a pitch appointment, but I wouldn’t fork it over. I have heard about the Christian counterpart of this service generating sales, but I don’t know enough about that market to know if they were successful or not. Does anybody else know?
This kind of thing reminds me of those ads you see in the margins of like, Parade Magazine, that promise to publish your poetry in a “beautifully bound volume.” Or websites that sell programs to “format your manuscript” or agents that require reading fees, or places like Apollo and Everest Colleges. Basically, trying to sucker people who don’t know any better. I’d only trust places that don’t want money upfront.
I thought I’d see more general laughing in the comments…
Hahaha…this is ridiculous! Like that?
That’s it. It’s what I was hoping for, too. I am still moderately astounded by the whole deal. And I’m waiting for Bowker to verify that yes, I work for a publisher and don’t just staple thing in my toolshed. (Though some great presses have started out of toolsheds.)
[...] few weeks ago I mentioned that Bowker & Bowker (the ISBN monster) had unleashed its latest money-sucking trap for People [...]