May 09, 2022 WRITERS REPUBLIC (WR) has called me twice so far. They promised me my refund but gave me no time limit on doing so. I asked them to give me all the audited sales reports, but they didn't say anything about doing so. They never denied they were in the Philippines. I asked them for a detailed breakout of where all my money went, and they didn't say anything. April 07, 2022 In April 2021, I signed up with Writers Republic to print and market my book. I paid USD$3600 to start, an additional USD$4000 for a Hollywood Treatment, and USD$2400 for a National Radio Interview with Kate Delany. They said they would put my book in the big book chains in the US and internationally, talk to Hollywood about a movie/TV deal and try to get a big book publisher to take over my book under their label and I would get 80% of the profits. They produced a few books, which went up on Amazon for sale. That was it. Come to find out, they are not even in the USA nor the Philippines. It was all lies, a 100% scam, a bogus rip-off. I asked them for an accounting - nothing. I said when is the book going into the book stores I paid you to do - never went. Hollywood? These people couldn't find it on a map. My national radio interview was at 11:00 PM in Tucson on Christmas Eve, which no one had heard. Profits? Maybe I got 10% from Amazon, and the checks stopped after 90 days. 100% fake company.
Just another reminder to never pay anyone to publish your book. I am sorry that you've had this experience. It's outrageous. The only real publishing options that are available to a writer are: Query agents who will submit to publishers for you (they do not get paid until they get you to sign a deal, typically a 15% cut) Submit your work to publishers who accept unsolicited manuscripts Self-publish There are many, many writers out there who have a book or two ready to go, and want to be on the bookshelves. I am one of them. But there are more of such books than what can fill those shelves. And so, we have a scam industry that preys on such persons for profit.
yep - if you are self publishing its okay to pay for services like editing, covers, blurbs etc (in fact its pretty essential) and its okay to pay for adverts on facebook, amazon etc but in a trad deal money goes to the author not away from them... as the OP has discovered paying a vanity is a waste of time, they don't care about selling books because they make their money selling services to authors also even major books from major names rarely go to hollywood... all a 'hollywood treatment' means in this sense is that they send your book to a couple of agents who toss it straight in the slushpile... legit film deals work the same as trad publishing, the agent gets a percentage of the sale, they don't charge the author and you don't sell significant numbers books from a single radio interview - no one does, not even big name authors the OP could threaten legal action but since they are in the philipines realistically you'd have to sue in a filipino court and the chances of them finding for a non national are slim
