Publish America: Writer Beware

PublishAmerica has been in the news lately and I wanted to write a post detailing why a writer should, in my opinion, never ever get involved with this company but David Gaughran beat me to it. He writes:

For those unaware of the checkered history of PublishAmerica, a quick summary:

1. They are one of only two organizations to earn the dubious honor of having their own sub-forum on Absolute Write’s Bewares & Background Checks (the other being Robert Fletcher’s infamous web of companies).

2. Preditors and Editors have a lengthy entry warning writers away.

3. The Better Business Bureau rates PublishAmerica as an “F”.

4. The leading industry watchdog – Writer Beware – regularly cover PublishAmerica’s various attempts to squeeze money out of their writers (e.g. here, here, here, here, here, and here - and that’s just the tip of the iceberg).

5. PublishAmerica are now the subject of a class-action suit, the allegations being very familiar to anyone who has followed the company (full complaint can be read here).

In short, PublishAmerica is probably the last place I would recommend to a writer.

This list is part of a longer article David wrote. It's about the Authors Guild and you can find it here: The Authors Guild Doesn’t Serve Writers.

Wherever you send your manuscript, I wish you the best of luck. Check your prospective publisher out with organizations such as Writer Beware and Preditors and Editors, do a search on their name and ask other writers what they have heard about the company before you sign anything.

Authors File Class Action Lawsuit Against PublishAmerica

Finally! PublishAmerica has been scamming authors out of their hard earned dollars for too many years. If you haven't heard about the shenanigans of PublishAmerica, take a gander at what Writer Beware has to say.

The Great PublishAmerica Hoax:

Writer Beware has received scores of complaints over the years about PublishAmerica, and hundreds more can be found online. The company has been the subject of at least one successful arbitration proceeding, resulting in a substantial award for a PA author.

On June 11, 2012, a class action complaint against PublishAmerica was filed in US District Court in Maryland, in the name of three plaintiffs. See Writer Beware’s blog for more.

This information is current as of the update date at the top of the page. Writer Beware receives complaints, advisories, reports, and/or questions about PublishAmerica at least monthly.

My advice: Don't even think about sending your work to PublishingAmerica. Few things in life are guaranteed, but if you send your work to PublishAmerica you're sending it into painful obscurity.

Here's part of the introduction to the complaint in the class action lawsuit:

Like plaintiffs, thousands of other aspiring authors who signed up with PublishAmerica have become demoralized because the publishing contract appears to be little more than a pretext for selling dubious services...These authors also feel trapped because PublishAmerica owns the rights to their books for seven to ten years. This presents a Hobson's choice for the authors: either throw good money after bad for suspect promotional services or abandon the book that was a labor of love.

Read the rest here: Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against PublishAmerica.

Writer Beware will keep on top of this issue, and I'll provide updates as I receive them.