Directory of Writers' Circles,
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Biddles
www.biddles.co.uk
Biddles range of services for writers includes a new service called "Author's Choice" - Summer 2007.

GUIDANCE

This is a difficult page of links for me to create for many reasons and therefore has not been on this website for more than five or six years. The criterion for listing is that I have to be certain that an organistion is trustworthy.

It has become even more difficult to create such a page of links in recent years (since the growth of the Internet) because so many amateur writers are prepared to hand over hundreds or thousands of pounds to vanity publishers, epublishers and many other book production services without endeavouring to find out who they are giving their money to. Some people are so desperate they will give their money to anyone. BEWARE!

- Most publishers are listed in:

The Writers' and Artists' Yearbook and The Writer's Handbook

- Some organisions fit naturally into the Small Press and Poetry Press pages I have.

- Epublishing, in particular, is never listed on this site. Not because I don't approve (because I was an epublisher at one time). But because too many people asking for a link cannot be trusted. They take your money and run. So unless there is a specific reason for a link - a firm I can verify, having used the services or personally know the people running the firm, I just don't list. I have had several occasions to be sent details of fraud being committed, then had to remove the name, not knowing if they were dishonest or not.

- I am unlikely to list vanity publishers but might do. Same sort of reasons as epublishing. If you are giving thousands of pounds to someone to produce your memoirs you should ask yourself why? Why? WHY? And get advice. Comprehensive advice about vanity publishing and disreputable companies can be obtained from Jonathan Clifford, 27 Mill Rd, Farham, Hants, PO16 0TH www.vanitypublishing.info

If this all sounds too picky, it is with reason. Too many of the people I used to list (taking them on trust) turned out to be dishonest. I am not prepared to knowingly list anyone dishonest and because so many people trust my website and contact me for advice, people assume all names listed on this site are approved and verified by me. So I do not add a link just because I'm asked. I will do my own research to find out if the company is trustworthy.

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