Author: Lynne Cantwell

Lynne Cantwell grew up on the shores of Lake Michigan. She worked as a broadcast journalist for many years; she has written for CNN, the late lamented Mutual/NBC Radio News, and a bunch of radio and TV news outlets you have probably never heard of, including a defunct wire service called Zapnews. But she began as a fantasy writer (in the second grade), and is back at it today. She currently lives near Washington, DC. Learn more about Lynne at her blog and at her Amazon author page.

Amazon Cracks Down on All Fake Reviews

flash fiction contest gavelI get it. It does feel like Amazon’s review policy makes our indie-author lives harder. This review is okay, but this one is not, so poof! Out it goes, with very little recourse. We work really hard for each and every one of our reviews. We need them all. Why is the Zon picking on us?

They’re not, of course. Fake reviews are a problem for any retailer that allows reviews of the products it sells – which is pretty much every e-retailer out there – and for every product imaginable, not just for books. Everybody who has a product for sale at Amazon is trying to get eyeballs on their product, and favorable reviews will push the product higher in the rankings. Continue reading “Amazon Cracks Down on All Fake Reviews”

Whose Blog Is It? – or – Why I’m Not on WordPress

a free blog is good enoughI’m half Czech. And Czechs are notoriously frugal (okay, fine – we’re cheap!) as well as practical. So if there’s an easy and inexpensive way to do something, I’m there.

That goes a long way toward explaining why I began my blogging career on Blogger. That is, this go-round of my blogging career began on Blogger. Many years ago, I started a blog on Earthlink’s free platform. I think I made four posts over the course of several months before giving up. Continue reading “Whose Blog Is It? – or – Why I’m Not on WordPress”

The #PublishingFoul Survey: The Results

#PublishingFoul Logo Indies UnlimitedIt’s been a wild #PublishingFoul ride here at Indies Unlimited. For the past month, we’ve brought you harrowing tales from indie authors who have fallen into the clutches of scammy publishers – both well-known vanity presses and small presses – as well as at least one service provider of questionable worth. We’ve also brought you some tips for coping with a scammer if you do have the misfortune of falling victim to one. And I hope it’s clear by now that anybody can fall victim to a professional scammer, no matter how smart or careful they are. Buyer beware is critical, of course, but luck plays a huge part, too. Continue reading “The #PublishingFoul Survey: The Results”

FOULED! Part 4: Suing the Scammy Publisher – the Nuclear Option

Predatory Publisher Month at Indies UnlimitedYou’ve asked your publisher to edit and format your book correctly, and it hasn’t been done. You’ve asked for the rights to your book, and your publisher has either refused or told you you’d have to pay a fee to get them back. Now you’re just sick of the whole thing. You’ve paid these people a lot of money and you’ve gotten nothing in return but a lot of aggravation and ruined dreams. What can you do?

You can sue them. Unfortunately, even that may not get you very far. Continue reading “FOULED! Part 4: Suing the Scammy Publisher – the Nuclear Option”