Every author reaches a moment when the inbox changes.
The emails arrive with warmth, admiration, and urgency.
Someone has “discovered” the book.
Someone wants to “help it reach the readers it deserves.”
Someone claims access to systems the author has never heard of but somehow desperately needs.
At first, it feels affirming.
Then confusing.
Then exhausting.
This isn’t accidental.
It’s structural.
Authors are not targeted because they are naïve.
They are targeted because they care.
Writers invest years in work few people ever see until it’s finished. They carry personal responsibility for meaning, accuracy, voice, and truth. When the book finally exists, the instinct is simple: don’t let it disappear.
Scammers understand this impulse better than most publishers do.
They do not sell services.
They sell relief.
Relief from invisibility.
Relief from uncertainty.
Relief from the uncomfortable truth that publishing is not a single door, but a long hallway of decisions.
Most author scams follow a predictable pattern.
First comes recognition. The email references themes, values, or excerpts, often lifted directly from the book’s description. It sounds specific, but never cites page numbers, structure, or editorial decisions. Praise is generous, but vague.
Then comes exclusivity. The opportunity feels limited, curated, or time-sensitive. “We only select a few authors.” “This audience is already waiting.” “This isn’t for everyone.”
Then comes complexity. The system is just complicated enough that the author feels unqualified to evaluate it, yet simple enough to sound plausible. Proprietary email lists. Special Amazon relationships. Hidden reader communities. Algorithmic placement.
Finally comes reassurance. No guarantees are promised. That restraint is intentional. It lowers defenses while still implying inevitability.
What’s missing is always the same thing.
Accountability.
Legitimate publishing support can be explained plainly.
It has boundaries.
It has tradeoffs.
It acknowledges uncertainty without mystique.
Scams depend on the opposite. They rely on abstraction, emotional leverage, and the author’s understandable desire to protect their work from silence.
Fear is not the solution to this problem.
Education is.
When authors understand how publishing actually works, scams lose their power almost immediately.
Amazon does not have secret back channels.
Email lists do not confer trust by volume alone.
Visibility does not equal readership.
Reviews do not create meaning; readers do.
Most importantly, no ethical partner will position themselves as the missing piece without first understanding the author’s goals, audience, and constraints.
This is why authors must stop asking, “Is this opportunity real?”
And start asking, “Does this explanation make sense?”
Can the person describe their process without metaphor?
Can they explain who does the work, how long it takes, and what success actually looks like?
Can they name what they do not do?
Silence in those answers is the giveaway.
At Publication Consultants, years of working with authors have shown one consistent truth: the safest authors are not the most cautious ones. They are the most informed.
They know the difference between marketing and discovery.
Between editing and validation.
Between visibility and responsibility.
They understand that a book does not need rescuing.
It needs placement, patience, and readers who recognize themselves in it.
The purpose of author support is not to amplify noise.
It is to help writers see the landscape clearly enough to choose wisely.
Every scam depends on confusion.
Every ethical partnership begins with clarity.
The power authors hold is not in how loudly their work is promoted, but in how well they understand the system they are entering.
When that understanding is present, the inbox changes again.
The noise fades.
The decisions slow down.
And the book stands on its own, not because it was pushed, but because it was placed with care.
That is the quiet work behind meaningful publishing.
And it is work no scam can imitate.
The Power of Authors by Evan and Lois Swensen explores what it means to write with purpose.
The book is available on Amazon: http://bit.ly/3K6o8AM. If you’d like an autographed copy, you can order it here: http://bit.ly/4pgmzjM.
Author Campaign Method (ACM) for Authorpreneurs
This is Publication Consultants’ motivation for constantly striving to assist authors sell and market their books. Author Campaign Method (ACM) of sales and marketing is Publication Consultants’ plan to accomplish this so that our authors’ books have a reasonable opportunity for success. We know the difference between motion and direction. ACM is direction! ACM is the process for authorpreneurs who are serious about bringing their books to market. ACM is a boon for them.
Release Party
Web Presence
Book Signings
Amazon Author Page
Facebook Profile and Facebook Page
Active Social Media Participation
Ebook Cards
The Great Alaska Book Fair: October 8, 2016
Costco Book Signings
eBook Cards
Benjamin Franklin Award
Jim Misko Book Signing at Barnes and Noble
Cortex is for serious authors and will probably not be of interest to hobbyists. We recorded our Cortex training and information meeting. If you’re a serious author, and did not attend the meeting, and would like to review the training information, kindly let us know. Authors are required to have a Facebook author page to use Cortex.
Correction:
We take the quote by Marcella Smith, Small Press Business Manager, Barnes & Noble seriously: “The author is essential to the success of the book, giving energy behind the book to make it something that a customer will come in and ask for. That is what makes the difference in a book that sells, that develops legs, and has a life of its own. Otherwise the book goes on the shelf and stays there for three months. Then it gets returned.”
This is Publication Consultants’ motivation for constantly striving to assist authors sell and market their books. ACM is Publication Consultants’ plan to accomplish this so that our authors’ books have a reasonable opportunity for success. We know the difference between motion and direction. ACM is direction! ACM is the process for authors who are serious about bringing their books to market. ACM is a boon for serious authors, but a burden for hobbyist. We don’t recommend ACM for hobbyists.
We’re the only publisher we know of that provides authors with book signing opportunities. Book signing are appropriate for hobbyist and essential for serious authors. To schedule a book signing kindly go to our website, <
An Author Page on Amazon Author Central is a serious author ACM requirement and desirable for the hobbyist. Author Central is a free resource designed to help authors become more active participants in the promotion of their books. In Author Central you can manage an Author Page, update information about your books, and view Customer Reviews and sales information for your bibliography. If you don’t already have an Author Page on 
We hear authors complain about all the personal stuff on Facebook. Most of these complaints are because the author doesn’t understand the difference difference between a Facebook profile and a Facebook page. Simply put, a profile is for personal things for friends and family; a page is for business. If your book is just a hobby, then it’s fine to have only a Facebook profile and make your posts for friends and family; however, if you’re serious about your writing, and it’s a business with you, or you want it to be business, then you need a Facebook page as an author. It’s simple to tell if it’s a page or a profile. A profile shows how many friends and a page shows how many likes. Here’s a link <> to a straight forward description on how to set up your author Facebook page.
Active Social Media Participation
Mosquito Books has a new location in the Anchorage international airport and is available for signings with 21 days notice. Jim Misko had a signing there yesterday. His signing report included these words, “Had the best day ever at the airport . . ..”
The Lyin Kings: The Wannabe World Leaders
Time and Tide
ReadAlaska 2014
Readerlink and Book Signings
2014 Independent Publisher Book Awards Results
Bonnye Matthews Radio Interview
Rick Mystrom Radio Interview
When he published those overseas blogs as the book The Innocents Abroad, it would become a hit. But you couldn’t find it in bookstores.
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Mary Ann Poll
Bumppo
Computer Spell Checkers
Seven Things I Learned From a Foreign Email
2014 Spirit of Youth Awards
Book Signings
Blog Talk Radio
Publication Consultants Blog
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Don and Lanna Langdok
Ron Walden
Book Signings Are Fun
Release Party Video
Erin’s book, 
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