Moving Along

As most people know, the publishing process is a long one. I'm moving along pretty well right now, with two completed and polished manuscripts being considered by some pretty decent publishers.

But not just any publishers. I've found that in the writing business there are some absolutely great people, and then of course you have the other side of the fence. Scammers, they're called. People who take advantage of authors desperate for publication, and then take their money, as a result.

That's why I promised myself, as I've said before, that I won't spend a dime to get published. So if any contract, be it a Literary Agent's or Publisher's, calls for me to pay them, I walk away.

Some great online resources are Writer Beware, Preditors & Editors, and Absolute Write. These websites help authors discern which agents and publishers are good ones, and which ones are bad. One of the most wonderful people with whom I've had the pleasure to converse is Victoria Strauss. She's an author and she runs the Writer Beware website. She also chimes in a lot on the Absolute Write Forum.

If you have any doubts about an agent or a publisher, she will go out of her way to help you. People like Victoria Strauss make me believe in the greatness of the human condition. Thank God for people like her.