If you have been the victim of a book publishing scam you can report it here. If you are unsure of whether you are the victim of a publishing scam, please see the list of red flags below before proceeding. Unfortunately, some publishers don’t have review pages and may have an opportunity to scam many victims before the scam is finally exposed. This page is to provide a space for authors to alert the public and end the cycle of fraud. Report Publishing Scam (click here) *Note: Spam reports will not be read or seen.

Important note:

We do not accept reports from publishing companies attempting to smear competitors and if we find that you are from a company who is attempting to use this platform to defame legitimate companies, we will consider it an act of deceit and will add your website to the list of companies to avoid. Any company listed on this website via a complaint may also leave a statement.

 

When to report a publishing scam:

 

Non-Delivery after Payment: You paid the publisher, but they never published your book and have refused to refund the amount. Or you paid to have your book published but can’t reach the publisher after making the payment.

Unfulfilled Promises: The publisher makes unrealistic guarantees of bestseller status or specific sales figures. For example, the company claims it can get your book on the NYT Bestsellers list or claims your book is a guaranteed bestseller.

Deceptive Practices: The publisher misrepresents their services, claiming in-house printing when in reality it is publishing your book using their own self-publishing account on platforms like KDP or Lulu.

Pricing: The publisher advertises a different price than the actual cost. In other words, they claim the cost to publish is $399 but you must pay an additional $250 for a book cover. Note: the company may offer other services but if they claim it will cost only $399 to publish a book then that is the amount it should cost to publish the book. Any other services should be optional and should not be required in order to publish and place your book on sale. The company should be honest about all of its costs without any “surprise” payments that must be paid to the company later.

Unprofessional Results: The published book has poor formatting, design, and doesn’t meet industry standards.

Missing Royalties: You haven’t received royalties despite meeting sales thresholds and timeframe to receive payment outlined in your contract.

Unsolicited Contact: A publisher reaches out with a guaranteed publication offer.

Unreasonable Fees: The publisher charges excessive fees for editing, marketing, or other services.

Misleading Statements: You have discovered the company has made numerous misleading or fraudulent statements and you opted not to move forward and now you would like to warn the public that the company is perhaps engaging in fraud.

Bad Actors: Other scammers can include companies who offer to market your book to their thousands of social media followers, who all happen to be other authors also trying to promote their work.

Reviewers Who Don’t Deliver: If you have had an experience with a book review company that failed to read or properly review your book, let others know.

 

To pay or not to pay a publisher

 

Whether you pay a publisher to publish your book is a personal choice.  Some writers choose to self-publish on their own without assistance from a publisher. This not only takes a considerable amount of time and effort but requires design, formatting, and marketing knowledge (or skills). Other authors may not have the time or luxury to self-publish without assistance so they choose to find a publisher to help them achieve their goals. And this is perfectly fine.

Some writers submit their manuscript to publishers who do not require a fee to publish the book. Instead, the publisher is paid from the author’s book sales. Unfortunately, it can be incredibly difficult to find this type of publisher since they often receive thousands of submissions each month (that they will likely never read) or they require an established literary agent to submit the book on the author’s behalf. Literary agents are also often difficult to obtain. Some writers seek one or the other for several years before choosing to pay a reputable publisher to publish their books.

Paying a publisher is fine as long as the publisher can deliver the services they are advertising.

Here’s how to avoid publishing scams:

1. Avoid companies that make grand or exaggerated promises about book sales or results to get you to pay them.
2. Avoid companies that exclusively publish through KDP. KDP books are non-returnable and as a standard, are not usually accepted into local brick-n-mortar bookstores, if that’s your goal. Your book will, however, be available via many online bookstores so it’s not totally a bad thing.
3. Avoid companies who force you to sign an NDA. This may indicate that they are hiding something.
4. Avoid companies who require you to share your copyright.
5. Avoid companies who require a different fee than the price they advertised.
6. Avoid companies that require you to make monthly payments for 12 or more months before you can receive a published book. These companies charge very high fees to publish and market books. One company charges $14,000 for marketing.
7. Avoid companies who claim to publish your book for $199 – $399. Many of them are fake KDP companies or they are using a personal KDP account to publish books. KDP is a free platform. Check their current list of titles and look for 90000 on the barcode instead of a price. This indicates that the book does not meet the standard for inclusion in brick-n-mortar bookstores, which often requires a wholesale discount, returnability, and a price on the barcode.

 

Ask Questions

 

1. Ask questions. Confirm the costs.
2. Check the publisher’s website for signs of marketing if the company is offering marketing services.
3. Check the publisher’s website for previously published titles.

Submit:

Please leave your name, date when the fraud or scam occurred and the name of the company. All submissions are moderated and must be approved. Unsolicited advertisers will be deleted unread.