Thursday, September 20, 2007

A short rant about 'The Gay Publishing Company' [sic]

http://www.thegaypublishingcompany.com/

For any publisher, charging a submission fee is simply a terrible, horrible, utterly bad idea. Paying to submit, and not being paid, is vanity publishing. I say that as a person who actually supports vanity publishing as an honest, open business model. But charging and not paying writers--whilst charging readers--and not calling it vanity is neither honest, nor a business model.

This is no just YADS (yet another display site) --

"That is how we can help you—by providing an audience for your work and a platform where agents and publishers and screenwriters and others can come to find a rich assortment of gay-themed literary materials. No longer is your only option to pass a few copies around to some of your closest friends. No, now, you have real options."

-- it is a display site that is attempting to charge both writers ($15 per submission) *and* readers ($36 per year). Add to that it is calling itself a publisher and wrapping itself in the rainbow flag. My mind is so thoroughly boggled it may never unboggle.

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