This company has expressed an interest in my work, but I am unsure why they charge and up front fee. When I spoke with her she had a good explaination as to why they charge a fee, but I want to know if anyone has had any experience with this organization. Please help![/b]

Agents and managers work on commission. The rule is that you should never be charged a fee for representation. If they are legit and they see your manuscript as truly marketable then they will have no trouble generating their commission.

_________________
The pen is mightier than the sword. I keep the sword in case I run out of ink.

The Harmony Chronicles:
http://kendellporter.blogspot.com

The Urban Bunker:
http://originalorangutan.blogspot.com

A woman claiming to be Barbara Bauer, Ph.D. of the Barbara Bauer Literary Agency, Inc. emailed me over the weekend demanding $1B for the illegal use of her name on our website (see above). She went on to say it's her legal name and her private property, and accused me of unauthorized representation of her proprietary name, blah blah. She did not give permission for me to pubish her email.

Here's my response.

Hi Barbara,

Posting someone's name online to ask about their
business practices is not copyright or trademark infringement.

In asking about your company online, the posters to our forum were
exercising their right to free speech. There is no law preventing people from
publicly asking questions about a company. You should really read up
on the U.S. Constitution before making such ridiculous claims. You have
obviously not consulted an attorney.

I'll be happy to post your objection under your company's name on our
website so people will know you disagree with having your company
discussed there.

Angela Hoy
WritersWeekly.com

She emailed again this evening, saying the name of her company
was used to commit a crime on our website. I've searched high
and low and this is the only mention of her company on the site.
She said nobody was authorized to use her name on our site and
that the unauthorized people representing the company intended
to do harm to her good name, etc., etc. Then she demanded
payment of her $1B invoice.

Here's my response:

Hi Barbara,

One person posted a note to our forum asking about your
company in May, 2004. Another person responded with a generic answer.
Nobody representing themselves as being you or with your
agency has posted anything to our site.

I suggest you have your attorney contact us regarding this
matter because your emails aren't making any sense at all.

Angela