The real website for Melbourne Books, the trusted publishing house whose ABN was used by Melbourne Book Publisher.<\/p>\n One of the scammed authors, \u201cAndrea\u201d, an aspiring fantasy romance novelist recovering from cancer, told the Guardian<\/a> she had a video conference with a publishing executive, \u201cMarcus Hale\u201d, who outlined detailed publishing and promotion plans for her novel, down to getting \u201ca presence on TikTok\u201d and a launch at her local bookshop. She realised what had happened when she called Melbourne Books.<\/p>\n Both Andrea and another Australian author, Peter Ortmueller (who also dealt with Marcus Hale), found Melbourne Book Publisher on Facebook. Ortmueller, who lost A$150 he believed was a first down payment on a publishing package, said he thought it was a traditional publisher. Andrea lost A$88, which she was told would buy her an ABN.<\/p>\n Red flags and AI people<\/p>\n An expert from Deakin University\u2019s Cyber Research and Innovation Centre, Ashish Nanda, identified some red flags<\/a> about Melbourne Book Publisher, too. They told the Guardian they include \u201cvarying logos, claims on its website that it was established in 1999 yet a domain search showed it was only registered last month, and a fake 4.7 star rating on Trustpilot (the company has no reviews)\u201d.<\/p>\n The Meet Our Team page on Melbourne Book Publisher\u2019s site used \u201cAI-created images of immaculately groomed white executives\u201d, as did First Page Press. None of these people are known in Australian publishing circles, the Guardian reported. Some of these websites also list real books, which are for sale on Amazon (most of them self-published).<\/p>\n Other websites, Aussie Book Publisher and Oz Book Publishers, have fake testimonials using the images and names of real authors, like Australian children\u2019s author Katrina Germein, who becomes \u201cSarah\u201d on Aussie Books\u2019 testimonial page.<\/p>\n Australian children\u2019s author Katrina Germein appeared as \u2018Sarah\u2019 on Aussie Books\u2019 testimonial page. A representative of Melbourne Book Publisher initially responded to the Guardian\u2019s questions, but later ceased communication, removed some of their websites and altered elements of others.<\/p>\n The network of publishing houses appears to have international reach, including First Page Press, with offices in London and Melbourne, and BookPublishers.co.nz in New Zealand. The true scale of the operation is unknown.<\/p>\n Do you want self- or \u2018traditional\u2019 publishing?<\/p>\n The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) recently issued a warning titled: \u201cAI is making publishing scams more sophisticated<\/a>\u201d. They provided the following advice: \u201cAs a general rule, a cold approach from a company offering services to publish or promote your work should be interrogated carefully, especially if they are requesting payment from you.\u201d<\/p>\n But what about aspiring authors who go in search of a publisher? What should they look for so they are not taken in by one of these scams?<\/p>\n To answer this question, it\u2019s necessary to distinguish between traditional publishing and self-publishing. In traditional publishing, all upfront costs are paid by the publishing house. The author is expected to contribute time and energy to the book\u2019s promotion, but does not pay for services like editing and design. Nor does the author pay for printing, or the production of an ebook. <\/p>\n The main income for traditional publishers is book sales, which only come after the initial investment has been made: the publisher assumes all upfront costs. This means traditional publishing is a financially risky business. Most of the books you see in brick-and-mortar bookshops were published by traditional publishers.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, self-publishing includes any publishing activity the author financially contributes to. Many self-publishing companies offer an array of services that can be packaged to suit the author\u2019s needs, including editing, cover design, marketing, ebook production and printing. <\/p>\n Melbourne Book Publisher offered packages<\/a> ranging from an \u201cAdvance Worldwide Plan\u201d for A$1,495 to a \u201cPremium Worldwide Plan\u201d for $1,799.<\/p>\n Terms like \u201cvanity publishing\u201d, \u201csubsidy publishing\u201d and \u201chybrid publishing\u201d are sometimes used \u2013 but these can be hard to distinguish from self-publishing.<\/p>\n There are no generally agreed upon definitions of these terms. For example, some so-called hybrid publishers operate exactly like predatory vanity publishers, while other times the term \u201chybrid publishing\u201d is used by traditional publishing houses that have a side hustle facilitating a bit of self-publishing activity. Some may require authors to commmit to buying a certain number of copies to subsidise the print run.<\/p>\n My top 5 tips for avoiding scammers<\/p>\n My tips to help aspiring authors avoid a publishing scam vary. They depend on what you\u2019re looking for: a traditional publishing arrangement or a self-publishing service. Of course, there is some grey area in between these categories, and there are more or less ethical actors in both.<\/p>\n 1: Know what you\u2019re looking for<\/p>\n Are you seeking a traditional publisher or a self-publishing service? If a publishing house asks for any financial contribution at all, this is a self-publishing service, as far as I\u2019m concerned. If what you\u2019re looking for is a traditional publisher, this is your sign to walk away!<\/p>\n 2: Ask your bookshop about your publisher<\/p>\n If you\u2019re still unsure whether it\u2019s a traditional publisher or a self-publishing service, ask your local bookshop if they\u2019ve ever stocked any books from that publishing house. If they regularly stock the publisher\u2019s books, it\u2019s a sign that it\u2019s a traditional publisher. Or, if it\u2019s a traditional publisher that also engages in a bit of hybrid publishing, they\u2019re a respected operator who can get your books into bookshops.<\/p>\n 3: Check an online registry of dodgy publishers<\/p>\n Perhaps you\u2019re an aspiring author who is open to the idea of working with a self-publishing service. How do you distinguish between the legitimate operations and the scams? <\/p>\n Writer Beware<\/a> is a website sponsored by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association<\/a> that documents all types of unethical activity in the publishing industry. Searching this website for a company name can be an illuminating exercise. <\/p>\n It\u2019s worth noting, though, that it would not have helped catch out scams like the one perpetrated by Melbourne Book Publisher. The increased availability of AI tools means scam websites can quickly be created with new AI-generated copy and images, making them harder to identify.<\/p>\n 4: Evaluate the publisher\u2019s other books<\/p>\n In the case of Melbourne Book Publisher, they claimed to have published books that were actually published by a different company. <\/p>\n Look for bookseller websites that include the publisher\u2019s books and clearly identify the publisher by name. Some bookseller websites allow you to preview a book\u2019s interior. This is an opportunity to evaluate the quality of the publisher\u2019s editorial and design services. <\/p>\n Even better, search for book titles in library catalogues, including the catalogue of the National Library of Australia<\/a>.<\/p>\n 5: Work with someone local<\/p>\n When working with a self-publishing service or even hiring a freelance editor, it can be safer to work with someone local, rather than through a large online agency. <\/p>\n At least with someone local, there is the sense this person\u2019s reputation in the local publishing industry is on the line. You can also check their bona fides by inquiring with other members of your writing community. Melbourne Book Publisher\u2019s executives are not known in the Australian publishing community: this is a red flag.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/file-20251118-56-hfliqe.png\")
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\n Katrina Germein<\/a><\/p>\n