Pet Peeve #51 - Writer Cons and Scams
You’ve seen them. Any aspiring writer who has looked at contests or getting his/her work published has come across at least one.
Scams. Con artists. So-called companies designed most often to get your money and sometimes (rarely) to get your writing.
I don’t think anyone needs any big hints about why these sorts of things have made my pet peeve list. Taking advantage of other people’s dreams isn’t generally considered to be a good, nice thing. And the sad truth is that where you finally get one taken down, ten more will pop up to replace that one.
Not always, but often, people will try to take advantage of you. It happens to pretty much everyone at some point or another. Some people don’t even mean to do it, but they do. The boss at the business sees you’re a fantastic worker and have been improving the company overall. Said boss also knows you’re too nice to ask for a raise…so you’ll never get one.
If you set out in the writing world wanting to spend money to get published and/or try to shove your work in front of anyone who will take a glance at it, you will be taken advantage of. If you don’t do your research and learn to distinguish cons from legitimate people, it’s likely you will be sucked into a con.
I highly recommend you check through Preditors and Editors on a regular basis. Talk to people about where they have been and what they’ve been through. Get advice. Research both offline and online. Get opinions.
The more time you take to getting to know how things work and talking to people, the less likely one of these silly cons or scams will look appealing to you.
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