Agents who ask for fees

[BUSHLEADER]

Having narrowly escaped being drawn into the deceitful web cast by the New York Literary Agency (also know by several other similar names run by Sherry Vine), who, apparently, according to many blogs and writer's warnings, cajole one into paying $80+ for a "professional" critique, and then (again apparently) send your manuscript off in bundles to a laundry list of publishers (with no apparent results to date), I have recently email-queried the Barbara J. Harris Literary Agency.

My email query sparked their interest, and I was asked to snail-mail the first fifty pages (plus 5 page synopsis and 1 page description). That done, only a week or so later, I received an email request to send by snail-mail the whole manuscript.

As my 50 pages were posted by normal mail from Africa to the USA, I thought this was a rather quick response... and slightly worrying.

I therefore googled the Barabara J Harris Literary Agency, and discovered that many writers had beem scammed. Essentially, once they have accepted to represent you (and they accept everyone), they ask that you supply by snail mail fifty (50) copies of the 1-page description and the 5-page synopsis, and five copies of the first 50 pages, and five copies of the entire MSS. You also are required to provide mailing boxes and postage.

If you feel this is too much work and hassle, you are invited to send them a payment of $250 as a deposit payment to cover their costs of doing the same on your behalf. You are warned that other costs may also be attributed to the writer. Those writers on the blog sites who sent the $250 have heard nothing since of the whereabouts or status of their MSS. So, it looks like another lucky escape!

Be warned!

Steve