Customer Reviews

The Street Smart Writer: Self Defense Against Sharks and Scams in the Writing World

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Author advocate Jenna Glatzer has written one of the most informative guides for beginning writers that I've ever seen! It's a sad truth that those just learning the ins and outs of the publishing industry are often first subjected to scammers who try to empty their pocketbook. From crooked contests to agents who try to fleece them with "reading" or unreasonable expense fees, leading up to publishers who try to convince writers that "pay-to-play" (an author paying to get published) is the way of the world, the scammers are masters of twisting words. But Ms. Glatzer and Mr. Steven (a publishing law attorney) have shown a bright light into the shadowy underbelly of publishing and, hopefully, it will convince would-be scammers to find a different source of income.

The Street Smart Writer includes such informative topics as how to spot a crooked literary agent/film manager (chapter 1), what to do if an author has ALREADY been scammed (chapter 4), avoiding deceptive contests (chapter 8), along with a crash course in copyright law (chapter 9). Included are samples of literary agent agreements, publishing agreements, film option agreements and the like, so that an author can see what a good one SHOULD look like.

In addition, the upbeat tone and positive attitude of the writing tells readers that "you're not an idiot if you fell for a scam!" While it seems so basic not to blame the victim for being cheated, in the world of publishing, this is quite often what happens. Becoming a published author seems such a far-away dream for many that they quickly fall under the spell of the first scammer that pays a compliment or offers validity to their writing.

I can't say enough about this book and what it tries to do. I also know that there's a good chance that people will try to slam it, simply BECAUSE it's such a valuable book. It will cut into the profits of scammers, and the truth hurts enough that some will try to lash back, at both the book and the authors. Don't believe them. This book is worth buying if you're learning the publishing world. Cathy Clamp

While the entire book is fantastic, and offers an insider's look into the world of freelance writing and authoring books, I have to say I found Chapter 5: Trouble Spots In Book Contracts to be the best part of the book. It delves into trouble areas that can hurt the author, and how to maneuver around them. Finally, the appendix of forms is priceless: sample literary agent agreement, interview release form, permissions agreement, contributor's agreement, trade publishing agreement, and film option agreement.

Multi-published author Jenna Glatzer and publishing law attorney Daniel Steven take you into the murky waters of the publishing industry and fill a lifeboat full of safe firsthand instructions and advice about how to avoid being scammed by publishers, agents, and phony contests.

Whether you're new to writing or have already painstakingly tested the oceans of the publishing world, The Street Smart Writer needs to be on your bookshelf for quick and easy reference.

The Street Smart Writer is loaded to the gills with advice for spotting the difference between good agents and those who try to fleece writers (chapter 1), spotting false credentials (chapter 15), and protecting yourself from threats and lawsuits (chapter 16).

This book is an excellent guide for learning the ins and outs of publishing from deciding if you need an agent, finding an agent, and signing the contract, to fulfilling your dream of publication. It includes tips on how to research agents and provides you with directories and databases to perform that research, lists what a writer should and should not pay for, tells you how to spot legitimate contests, and explains the differences between vanity and subsidy presses and self publishing.

For those who have already run into sharks and scammers, Glatzer and Steven give pointers as to "how to sniff out a fishy agent or manager" and "what to do if you've been screwed" (chapter 4). If that doesn't give you reason enough to buy this book, the crash course in copyright (chapter 9) should.

Glatzer and Steven also include an Appendix of Forms with excellent samples of real literary agent agreements, publishing agreements, film option agreements, permissions, contributor, and trade publishing agreements.

The Street Smart Writer is an absolute MUST for every writer's bookshelf.

The Street Smart Writer is an excellent guide that will help any writer from beginner to professional navigate the choppy waters of publishing. With all the technical terminology and legalese inherent in the industry, it almost takes one with a degree in law to understand the ins-and-outs of legitimate contracts and how to spot scams.

Not only does it provide excellent examples and advice, The Street Smart Writer probes many of those complex questions that concern copyrights, contests, and scams. It provides an arsenal for protecting oneself and one's work from those out there that seek to profit on those who don't know the facts about publishing.

Glatzer and Steven arm writers with the tools to recognize the logical fallacies of scam artists. This book is a necessary resource for anyone who plans on publishing. It will give a writer the knowledge to succeed and to avoid the sharks out there waiting for their next dinner.

This book is a valuable resource for writers of all levels. It lays to rest many common misconceptions about the business of writing, provides answers to the questions many new writers find so confusing, and offers insights into subjects often misunderstood by even some experienced authors. There is even a chapter containing sample contracts, agreements, and interview release forms.

I highly recommend The Street Smart Writer: Self Defense Against Sharks and Scams in the Writing World. It can be a scary world out there--you owe it to yourself to learn all you can in order to successfully navigate your way through shark-and-scam infested waters. The Street Smart Writer gives you the information and ammunition you need to make wise decisions.

. . . honestly, I wish I had a book like this when I first started out. It would have saved me a lot of headaches, heartaches and frustrations.

I'd often ask seasoned writers what it was "really" like in the trenches and I never received what I thought was an honest answer. After awhile, I stopped asking. Now, this book is here -- answering all those questions with all the truth and straight-forwardness new writers need (and crave). Writers don't have to worry about who ask or where to go for advice -- it's in this book. This is a very useful guide for both fresh and seasoned writers to benefit from.

"We want to believe that people have good intentions."

If you're not familiar with Jenna Glatzer then you really need this book because you're obviously not as internet/writer savvy as you need to be. Jenna is the owner of AbsoluteWrite.com, a writer friendly site. She's also the author of Make a Real Living as a Freelance Writer and one of my favourites, Outwitting Writer's Block. Not only does she write for writers but the last year she wrote an authorized biography for Celine Dion: For Keeps. This working writer has a knack for sharing her experience with others. In this publication she has joined forces with Daniel Steven, a writer and publishing lawyer.

This is definitely a must-have guide for writers, especially the writer who dabbles in many areas. It's not only about what to avoid but doing it better. The Street-Smart Writer is divided into 17 chapters with an appendix of additional forms tacked on the end. Chapter breakdown:

1 - Agents & Managers (spotting sharks)
2 - Agents & Managers (finding a good one)
3 - Paying to Publish (vanity and subsidy presses)
4 - What to do if you've been screwed
5 - Trouble Spots in Book Contracts
6 - After Publication Rip-offs for Book Authors
7 - Vanity Poetry Contests
8 - Deceptive Contests for Novelists, Short Story Writers, Screen writers & others
9 - Crash Course in Copyright
10 - Special Screw-over for Screenwriters
11 - Monstrous Magazines & E-zines
12 - Dealing with Deadbeats
13 - Costly Courses & Shady Seminars
14 - How to Know When They're really using You
15 - Spotting False Credentials
16 - Protecting Yourself from Threats & Lawsuits
17 - "They Stole My Idea!" and other things not to worry about.

One of the things I appreciated about the Street-Smart Writer was its ability to explain instead of tell. Like the "big bucks" you make at vanity presses: -Let's say you managed to sell a hundred copies through bookstores. How much would you earn on a 250-page paperback book printed as cheaply as possible with a retail price of $20? About $240. Which means if you paid a print-on-demand company to publish your book and didn't even spend a dime to have it edited or promoted, you still wouldn't even have recouped your initial investment, let alone made any profit from your hard work.- To finish off Street-Smart provides a commercial publisher arrangement for you to compare. An eye opener for anyone thinking they can make big(ger) bucks by doing it themselves.

Many sample letters appear throughout and to help you decipher any forms the appendix provides examples of: Literary Agent Agreement, Interview Release, Permissions Agreement, Contributors Agreement, Trade Publishing Agreement, Film Option & Literary Purchase Agreement. These are not meant to be substitute agreements but to give you some background information when you're cool and collected because you know your stomach is going to be in knots when the real thing comes.

There's so much in this book for the eclectic writer. But any writer can learn from all these areas and apply it to their own work. Jenna Glatzer's usual comedic style, logic and blunt truth delivers the cold hard facts about the writing world. In layman's terms she explains away the idiots of the industry's scam tactics by teaching readers how to read between the lines. It's not meant to be a scare tactic but to make you an informed writer and it accomplishes its task. Reviewed by M. E. Wood.

This book is very informative, with great information covering topics from agents to publishers. It's an eye-opener to see the kind of scams out there that prey on writers who simply want a break. The book contains a lot of useful information, explanations, references and websites for everyone to do their own research. Before you head out into the water and try your hands on getting published, make sure you read this book first.

Recommended.

Jenna Glatzer and lawyer Daniel Steven have combined forces in THE STREET SMART WRITER and given any writer a valuable resource.

Too many writers have gone innocently down the wrong path with a scam literary agent or publishing house and lived to regret their choice. Follow the wise counsel in these pages and you will protect yourself from disappointment and you will save yourself a lot of money and grief.

Ms. Glatzer walks new (or struggling) writers through the complicated world of publishing with expertise and compassion. Her chapters are well organized, clearly written and comprehensive. Replete with common sense examples, concise definitions of what constitutes defamation, plagiarism, copyright infringement and other often confusing aspects of writing, and referrals to more comprehensive source material on specific subjects, this is a beginner's guide no writer should do without!