Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America

Posts Tagged ‘MWA’

MWA Weighs In On Harlequin Horizons

Thursday, November 19th, 2009

Today, Mystery Writers of America (a sponsor of Writer Beware, along with the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America)  issued this announcement to its members:

———————————–

Dear MWA Members:

Recently, Harlequin Enterprises launched two new business ventures aimed at aspiring writers, the Harlequin Horizons self-publishing program and the eHarlequin Manuscript Critique service (aka “Learn to Write”), both of which are widely promoted on its website and embedded in the manuscript submission guidelines for all of its imprints.

Mystery Writers of America (MWA) is deeply concerned about the troubling conflict-of-interest issues created by these ventures, particularly the potentially misleading way they are marketed to aspiring writers on the Harlequin website.

It is common for disreputable publishers to try to profit from aspiring writers by steering them to their own for-pay editorial, marketing, and publishing services. The implication is that by paying for those services, the writer is more likely to sell his manuscript to the publisher. Harlequin recommends the “eHarlequin Manuscript Critique Service” in the text of its manuscript submission guidelines for all of its imprints and include a link to “Harlequin Horizons,” its new self-publishing arm, without any indication that these are advertisements.

That, coupled with the fact that these businesses share the Harlequin name, may mislead writers into believing they can enhance their chances of being published by Harlequin by paying for these services. Offering these services violates long-standing MWA rules for inclusion on our Approved Publishers List.

On November 9, Mystery Writers of America sent a letter to Harlequin about the “eHarlequin Manuscript Critique Service,” notifying Harlequin that it is in violation of our rules and suggesting steps that Harlequin could take to remain on our Approved Publishers list. The steps outlined at that time included removing mention of this for-pay service entirely from its manuscript submission guidelines, clearly identifying any mention of this program as paid advertisement, and, adding prominent disclaimers that this venture was totally unaffiliated with the editorial side of Harlequin, and that paying for this service is not a factor in the consideration of manuscripts. Since that letter went out, Harlequin has launched “Harlequin Horizons,” a self-publishing program.

MWA’s November 9 letter asks that Harlequin respond to our concerns and recommendations by December 15. We look forward to receiving their response and working with them to protect the interests of aspiring writers. If MWA and Harlequin are unable to reach an agreement, MWA will take appropriate action which may include removing Harlequin from the list of MWA approved publishers, declining future membership applications from authors published by Harlequin and declaring that books published by Harlequin will not be eligible for the Edgar Awards.

We are taking this action because we believe it is vitally important to alert our members of unethical and predatory publishing practices that take advantage of their desire to be published. We respect Harlequin and its authors and hope the company will take the appropriate corrective measures.

—

SFWA will be posting its own statement against this action shortly.

Tags: Harlequin, MWA, Mystery Writers of America, Writer Beware
Posted in SFWA Blog, Writer Beware | 1 Comment »

Mystery Writers of America will co-sponsor SFWA’s Writer Beware

Wednesday, August 12th, 2009

NEW YORK — Mystery Writers of America (MWA) will co-sponsor the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) Writer Beware program, which exposes publishing scams, educates writers on how to protect themselves from fraud, and maintains a massive database on their website of questionable literary agents, publishers, editorial services, and literary contests.

“We are pleased to be able to support the important work that Writer Beware is doing on behalf of all writers, professional and aspiring, by exposing scams aimed at defrauding authors,” said Frankie Bailey, executive vice president of the Mystery Writers of America, which is giving SFWA a financial grant of $1000 and providing other resources, such as inviting Writer Beware representatives to share their booth at BookExpo and supplying volunteers to speak at writing conferences about fraudulent publishing practices.

Like the SFWA, which launched Writer Beware in 1998, the MWA is not only concerned with the issues that affect professional authors but also with the problems that face aspiring writers.

“It’s vital that organizations like SFWA and MWA team up on these kinds of challenges. We can accomplish far more working together than we can working on our own, and I hope other organizations will see this as an invitation to join in these types of group efforts,” said Russell Davis, President of SFWA.

Up until now, Writer Beware has been the public face of SFWA’s ground-breaking Committee on Writing Scams. But with this unprecedented partnership between the two organizations, that has changed.

“We are not only showing our support and making Writer Beware stronger, but sending a message to scammers that we won’t stand by and let them take advantage of authors,” said Lee Goldberg, the MWA board member who will act as the MWA’s liaison with Writer Beware. “All writers organizations, no matter what genre they represent, share a common interest in protecting writers from literary and publishing scams. We hope our sponsorship will inspire other organizations to join us in supporting the important work that Writer Beware does for all writers.”

Writer Beware’s efforts are not limited by country or genre. Their website can be used by any writer, regardless of subject, style, genre, or nationality. . .or professional standing. The Writer Beware blog offers up-to-the-minute information on specific scams and schemes, along with advice for writers. And Writer Beware offers free research service for writers with questions about agents, publishers, and others.

“We’re thrilled that MWA has joined our original sponsor, SFWA, in the fight against the many schemes and scams that prey on authors. Although awareness of writing scams is much higher than it was ten years ago, when Writer Beware was founded, new technologies and the expansion of the Internet have vastly increased the possibilities for fraud, making it more urgent than ever to expose scams and educate writers. We thank MWA for recognizing the importance of this genre-transcending issue, and look forward to working with them to fulfill our mission into the future,” said Ann Crispin and Victoria Strauss of Writer Beware.

Tags: MWA, Writer Beware
Posted in News, SFWA Blog | 1 Comment »