Saying No and Telling People About It

I wasn't sure what I was going to blog about today. It's been one of those weeks. But an issue came up when an author asked me about an experience I had with a certain e-publisher. It wasn't a good experience and I wouldn't want to see a new writer get taken advantage of, if there's something I can do to help. See, we're all in this together, so we have to stand up for each other.

It should be an easy call, right? Wrong. We all have our reputations to worry about as well. You can't spew negativity all over the place and not expect some kind of backlash. More and more publishers, editors and agents are googling you when you submit to see just what sort of creature they're dealing with.

The key? Professionalism. It's like you're always on for a job interview. You can say why you left your other job, but if you do a big bash and slam, it just makes you look like someone they don't want. There's honesty and then there's honesty tempered with cherry flavoring, kind of like medicine. It helps it go down on both sides just a little easier.

No matter what you're dealing with in your chosen profession, always do your research and look out for yourself. Don't be afraid to say no if you'd don't like something. Just because you're new on campus doesn't mean you have to drink the Kool Aid when know there's a roofie in it that will result in unprotected violation of yourself or your work.