About SCYWEB BEM’s “No referrals to editing services” policy

The great majority of editing services are professionals who realize their integrity is paramount in maintaining a successful business. Sometimes, though, a service pops up that is only an unscrupulous scam. 

Here’s how it works: A single person or a small group of people open a dummy publishing company. The company will never publish a thing. Its sole purpose is to attract would-be authors.  When a manuscript is received, the author is sent a polite form rejection slip. But in addition to the slip, there is usually a second, personalized letter, supposedly from the editor, that praises the literary effort - often claiming that it is brilliant in places -  and says that it is the kind of work his publishing house is looking for. Unfortunately, the manuscript “needs some work’. The letter concludes by suggesting  the manuscript  might benefit from a professional review, then helpfully lists several names, addresses and phone numbers of editing services.

As you can guess, those ‘editing services’ are the same people who opened up the dummy company, or even the ‘editor’ himself working under an assumed name.

For many aspiring writers, such personalized praise can seem like a Godsend  after months or years of rejection slips from other publishing houses. Sure, the editing service might seem pricey ($2-$3 per page) but it can seem like a small price to pay for a real chance to launch a literary career. So they contact one of the services on the list, then send off their manuscript and a check for hundreds - sometimes thousands - of dollars.

Usually, the manuscript is returned with a “cleaned up” version.  Of course, when the writer sends the new manuscript back to the editor who praised his first effort, the only thing he’ll ever get back is a polite, form rejection slip.

Unfortunately, this scam pops up repeatedly because it is so lucrative. Case in point: in 1999, a husband and wife team were convicted of bilking $1.5 million (yes, million) from 50 aspiring writers.

No employee or person associated with SCYWEB BEM or Riamac Group will make referrals to any editing services. No one employed by or associated with SCYWEB BEM or Riamac Group will hint or suggest that an editing service might improve the marketability of a manuscript. Please contact the editor of SCYWEB BEM immediately if you believe this has happened to you.