This is an honest unpaid review of an uprising book publisher that caught my attention lately. Austin Macauley Publishers, a publishing company founded in 2006 has offices in London, Cambridge, New York, and Sharjah, and they are also opening another office in Sydney.
Why write about Austin Macaulay?
Before becoming a mom, I used to read a little more than I do now, and finishing one book per week during my commute times and bedtimes was the norm. I read all the time while on my maternity leave and finished two books a week. I promised myself once the baby is born I will buy him two books every month.
I failed so badly at that, my saving grace is the total of three illustrated children’s books I received at my baby shower (have written a review on all three). The friend that gifted those three books (I don’t know what were her merits though) picked two books from Austin Macauley Publisher and one from another publisher called Little Bee. Ok, So, it happened that I read a couple of self-help books and motivational books from this very publishing company named Austin Macaulay Publishers.
For this reason, the name stuck in my mind, and when a friend asked to recommend a small publisher who would take her I thought of Austin Macauley Publishers automatically. They have some good illustrated children’s books and self-help books, don’t they? But before recommending it to her I decided to do my research, and that’s where things got interesting …
Austin Macauley Publishers Reviews Online
Although I have had some decent professionally edited books from Austin Macauley Publisher sitting on my bookshelf (and I am sure one is under my bed somewhere, and one I forgot at my doctor’s office – never got it back or finished it even), online reviews said otherwise. From (my own) reader’s perspective books were of good quality but online reviews from the author’s point of view were mixed.
While their own website and social media displayed happy authors, other places were even called scammers. However, I found it hard to believe that scammers could function under the same name for so long and still grow into a company functioning worldwide with head offices in four major countries. So I decided to dig even deeper.
Austin Macauley Publishers has a YouTube channel of their own but there are other mentions of them on YouTube. There is one previously published author (self-publish) C T Mitchell who said he has received a traditional contract from Austin Macauley Publishers (which by the way no scammer offers), and a copy of the contract earned him a membership in The Crime Writer’s Association. The guy was really excited about it. On another YouTube channel named book reviews and more shared author Tim Wotton was awarded the People’s Book award.
From what I researched AM Publishers are not traditional publishers per se. This means that they will not pay the author upfront for acquiring his book but they are not publishers either. Why they are not vanity Publishers? Because as their websites claim they do consider manuscripts submitted for offering a traditional contract.
As proof, I have come across at least a dozen authors who published with them with a traditional offer. However, many times most manuscripts are submitted by wanna-be authors who do not meet the cut. They do not refuse to publish them, they are willing to take the risk but not monetarily.
Instead, AM Publishers will offer, that you can fund your own publication under their name. They will help you promote the book post-publication. They organize meet and greet events at Barnes and Noble and other promotional activities.
They are getting all the hate because they will give a chance to new authors who will be otherwise turned down by any big publishing house. Big-time authors are not comfortable with new authors getting support from a proper publisher, they would rather see these aspiring authors go from literary agent to literary agent and then finally give up.
In return AM publishers will get to publish more books, make some money, and be more “heard of”. This is the reason the company is growing quickly and opening new offices in big cities.
Publisher’s Weekly mentioned them as one of the fastest-growing publishers in 2018 and often mentioned their books under the title of self-published, which is weird because AM publishers often claim they are different from vanity presses and are a hybrid publishing company.
AM Publishers prefer to refer to themselves as Hybrid publishers as they offer both traditional publication and something similar to self-publication.
Final Word for Austin Macauley Publishers
So I decided to tell my friend to send her manuscript to Austin Macauley Publishers, with the worst-case scenario, they will try to trick her into paying them some crazy amount which she can decline and move on to other publishers on her list. She did and surprise! surprise! She got an answer from them in two weeks.
They suggested a few changes to the plotline and agreed to offer her a traditional contract only if she agreed to the suggested changes. Although she was actually offered a traditional contract, the amount they were offering was not enough as suggested by some authors on YouTube and my dear friend was not ready to make the changes suggested. Although it was totally her choice to make, (she declined their offer and moved on to self-publishing her books) if I were here I would have taken the offer as a first-time author.
Can I have a General Intro About Austin Macauley Publishers?
Austin Macaulay was established in 2006 in London. It is an independent and advanced publisher. They work their finger to the bone with a dedication to giving their author the best chance of success in an increasingly crowded marketplace.
How does Austin Macauley Deal with Authors?
Austin Macaulay deals with writers in an elegant manner. As soon as a new writer is accepted as Austin Macaulay’s author, our team which consists of editors, typesetters, designers, illustrators, and proofreaders assists him at every step. We guide him in a humble and professional way to turn his manuscript into a book. Our team ensures that the book of the newly joined author looks beautiful both inside and outside. Furthermore, we give confidence to the authors that their book’s potential will be enhanced, regardless of its size and complexity.
Does Austin Macauley Publishers Work as Traditional Publishers?
Austin Macaulay does not work as a traditional publisher. Unlike traditional publishers, they will neither pay the author upfront for acquiring his book nor publish the book themselves.
Why do Austin Macauley Publishers Face Controversy?
Austin Macaulay publishers face hate and controversy due to some well-defined reasons. Its seems that
1. They do not hesitate to accept the work of new authors and appreciate their efforts
2. They motivate the new authors to more innovations instead of giving up due to rejections by big publishing houses
3. The support of Austin Macaulay publishers for both new and established writers makes them more prominent in the literature world.
4. In return, authors also favor them by providing more books to publish. This scenario increases the competition with other literacy agents in the market.
How Austin Macauley Became a Fast-growing Publisher?
Austin Macaulay has become a fast-growing publisher due to its unique strategy and non-traditional working style. They allow the new authors to come forward with the same honor as given to experienced authors. As a reward, new authors work with enthusiasm and give more books to publish. The more they publish books, the larger the amount of money they can make. In this way, Austin Macaulay is growing quickly and opening new offices in big cities.
What Benefits does Austin Macauley Publishers Offer to the Authors?
The working style of Austin Macaulay is different than the traditional publishers as they offer the following benefits to the authors.
1. They accept the work of new authors and motivate them to write further.
2. Their expert team helps to increase books’ potential.
3. They organize meet and greet events at Barnes and Noble and other promotional activities.
4. They provide a platform for your book publication (under their name).
38 thoughts on “Austin Macauley Publishers | What I think of | Honest Review”
Hi,
My sister has just been offered a ‘partnership’ contract by Austin Macauley Publishers:
Pay to publish.Did your friend get offered similar. This has been helpful.
thank you
OJ
I do not understand why you removed the earlier comments. Are you looking for better and more pleasing comments about Austin Macauley?
Waste no time trying to praise these Austin Macauley criminals. They are thieves, crooks, scammers on their way out. Why waste time when the ONLINE is replete with negative stuff about these thugs.
These crooks of Austin Macauley vanity press scam lie a lot.They claim to have a wide network of marketing for their kind of books and that their kind of books are sold in bookstores. Which bookstores? This is a total lie. Their kind of books are only advertised on Amazon. Authors, please, avoid them like the plague. They are only out to steal your money and are to no good whatsoever for you. Don’t let the louts to bamboozle you
Terrific content. Expect to integrate this.
No glowing comments for your propaganda review of the Austin Macauley scammers yet? What a pity that you should waste your time with this useless effort which aligns you with AM thieves, crooks and louts, warts and all! First of all, I don’t understand why you removed the ones that some individuals had written. Was it that they were not sweet enough for your propagandizing aims? You are lost soul and strange bedfellow of the AM scammers.
Hi Syeda,
Thanks for your review! I was in doubt accepting AM’s offer to publish my book, because of some negative reviews from Authors on the net… My friend recommended them to me, but still… Thanks for giving some objective information and another confirmation that I will be doing the right thing… Where do you live btw?
Has anyone anywhere in the world ever seen books by Austin Macauley (AM) stoked and being sold in bookstores? If no, why not? And why should anyone waste time writing promotion for such a company as Gurru does, unless the promoter himself or herself is a member of Austin Macauley.
Authors should avoid vanity or charging presses like AM, as with it they will go nowhere because it is a waste of time, talent and money to try to do business with such a scam. Remember that publishers should pay authors and not authors pay publishers. If a company claiming to be publishers asks to be paid upfront as AM does with authors, such a company is a scam and authors must avoid it like the plague.
Louis Tom Kelly in New York, September 14, 2019
I dealt with Austin Macauley publishers.
Liars!, thieves,! Bullshitters!
The left hand does’t know what the right hand is doing.
I got trapped into their web and they keep one lie on top of the other.
No one the knows what the other-one is doing..They pass you around like a ping-pong ball.
I live in Canada and they know that I can’t reach them physically, but I do have connections who will take care of the matter for me
VERY UNPROFESSIONAL .
Bang! Nail on the head about these Austin Macauley’s thieves, con artists and scammers who claim to have an office in London while what they have there is a postal address for their criminal activities while they hide out in Cambridge. I believe Seyda Gurru is a very serious, but misguided, person on this issue of AM. People who have been scammed by these crooks will not appreciate her gospel promotion of the fraudsters
Greetings! Very useful advice within this post! It’s the little changes that will make the biggest changes. Many thanks for sharing!
The fact that AM keep on churning out glowing reviews on a near weekly basis should be the first red flag: if they were really that brilliant, why haven’t they turned out any best selling authors? Why aren’t their books reviewed in quality press and magazines? The people paying to get published think they have become ‘published authors’, but they aren’t really. They have paid to have a book printed. In most cases, follow an AM (or Olympia or any vanity publisher’s) new title and see where it goes. Apart from an author’s own review on Amazon or a review in a local newspaper, their books don’t get into book stores, nor anywhere else of note. With the customer having paid several thousand pounds for the ‘privilege’ of having their book printed, the said book slowly but surely dies a lingering death. Meanwhile, Austin Macauley trawl their net of promises via google for the next unsuspecting customer.
I’am happy with Austin Macauley Publishers. To me is the best and only Publisher that took my book, the crime collection, that they are working on and are the only ones who are putting right a mistake they made to C19.
I have tried self-publicising, but I’ve not made a lot of money out of this; I feel that their team is very understanding and caring, but I think they should change their publishing contracts and office a free warranty.
‘This would save them time and money, and those of their author doesn’t have a day job, they should consider this, Austin Mauley should pay the authors not the other way round, those of us who are getting on in years and would be happy to have a book published but they ‘are put off when they have to pay for this. Don’t publishers make money from the sales of the books? Isn’t that how it should be.
How will the authors make a living out of this, if they have to pay for this? Austin Mauley also doesn’t pick up the phone when someone called them. ‘this can put the authors off, and they could found another one; if Austin Mausley what to keep their authors, they need to changes things so that people won’t keep saying bad things about them, why do the authors have to wait so long before any one get’s back to them?.
After reading your post, I have decided to send AM my first book. I have been searching for an article that would help me decide what to do. This one did just that. Thank you!
good or Bad
I have read some bad things about this publisher that they threaten their authors and seal from them. Is this right or not? They are still keeping me waiting for a radio interview and have lied to me about the sails of my book, the crime collection.
When I’ve questioned them about this, they become homestay to me when I have defended them. I feel very upset about this.
They have done an excellent job on this book, but they won’t tell me what I want to know is were as that money Gone ‘to….? can they put my mind at peace and say that it not true what those people say?
Thank you
Michael Thomas Hill
(Eugene Pike penname)
If your writing is represented by the quality of your review, I would find another line of work. R.T.
By John Brown at Trustpilot
Class Action Lawsuit
It is not going to be enough to vent anger and frustration in a blog or bang your head against the wall for the bloody mistake we made about engaging with AMP. It is becoming clearer that a bunch of scoundrels, I dare suggest sociopathic criminals, are exploiting us not only for the money we pay to them BUT ALSO for the days and months and even years of hard work. Every author has spent thousands of hours, if not tens of thousands; and with so much work we do these brood of vipers are abusing the gullibility of authors who are temporarily blinded by the self-flattery of having a name on a book. In an unsuccessful attempt these criminals made on a well-famed man, who happened to contact me about it, I began to review all the postings and believe there is a strong possibility to file a class-action lawsuit. I believe you will not recover only what you have paid these scoundrels but also recover payment for the hours of work you put in to write the books. It will be in thousands and tens of thousands of Pound Sterling, depending on individual merits. I am assisting my friend with my expertise and connecting him with law firms in several countries where the class-action lawsuit will be filed. Please keep the contract you made handy if you decide to join in the class-action lawsuit. The nuts and bolts of the process will be posted here for further pursuit.
If there is a class action against AM, I am interested in joining. I am a new and unpublished author who recently signed a contract with them, but I have not yet paid them for anything yet. I only signed a contract. If they really are scammers, then I will not pay them, for they asked for a contributory fee of 4,100 USD for me to pay out of my own pocket. I don’t have income yet, for I was just hired for a part time job. If you know more about Austin Macauley scamming authors, I am interested. I want to know before I naively give away my money to them.
Dear Mr Doug Dunford
I am really on the same boat but can you tell me more about what can be done.
Yours sincerely
Farah A. Nur
2 years almos tfrom the signing of the contract. Although I live in Australia I may just hop on a plane and see this mob, 21 attempts at a front cover even thaough I sent them an initial drawing, Now I spend time on the “final proof” 3 rd version awaiting. I’m in Cheers
Ed
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I’m in the process of being published by AM – at first I was flattered to get an offer and impressed by the website and the initial research that I did (not enough). I saw some negative reviews but also some positive ones and so decided to go for it and paid £1,000+ for the privilege. I realised quickly that all was not well when they sent me a garbage book cover proposal and then I heard nothing more for months. I have more or less given up on the prospect now and written off this one to experience – I have other books in the pipeline and so I’m not going to lose any more sleep over this debacle but I will see what happens when deadlines are reached. Advice to anyone else, don’t do it, you’ll regret it.
I feel the way
I find this a little strange. I have received a contract agreement from AM, just three weeks ago (March 2023). In that agreement there is a timeframe for AM to follow in regard to print and promote of my manuscript. 270 days. If they fail to do so, it’s in the contract. Your money is refunded in full. I’m still researching AM and options. They are being patient with my questions, queries and concerns. I want to be published, but I am not naive. I tried to entice/convince them to offer me a traditional contract. Their argument is a valid one. I am a gamble as a new author. I’m still having conversations on relevant sections of the agreement. Their replies have been quick (within 7 days), clear, concise, on point and professional. My biggest issue is with the ambiguous ‘net’ royalty wording. I would prefer they just wrote in 15% of gross sales. They have included in the agreement, royalty payments and pre-pay deals for the various varieties of publications i.e., paperback, hardcover, eBooks, audio, etc. They are all higher than traditional publication offers, but that is relevant to the fact that it is a ‘partnership’. What people don’t seem to understand is this; it is just the reverse process. Traditional contract may well pay a fee up front; but the author receives no royalty payments for sales until that up-front fee payment has been earnt back and paid back to the publisher. Authors being paid a fee is not a gift!!!! It’s an incentive to write. Good luck all in your quest to be read and re-read.
Good write-up. I absolutely appreciate this site. Keep writing!
My manuscript was met with a great deal of optimism. AM was convinced that my work would be viewed in the same way as the great Stenbeck’s was. It really looked good, but, unfortunately I’m a poor boy and couldn’t afford to be writer and publisher as well, so I declined their offer to “publish.”
I well understood that business is business and they just couldn’t justify spending money on an unproven author. I’m still cranking out the novels, short stories and poetry like nobody’s business!
I will probably end up posting it all in e-book form on amazon.com for free, so, watch out for Hollister King . . .
There is no ‘conspiracy’ by established authors to keep newbies/wannabes away from traditional publishing. Anything or anyone that makes the public buy more books is good for all of us.
Many of the pro AMP posts are badly written. And to be honest, your own blog is far from perfect. This illustrates why the industry needs gatekeepers: to maintain standards.
This is not the same as enforcing a bland uniformity. But there is a difference between deliberate departures from standard grammar, and those that result from carelessness or ignorance.
Most if not all professional writers are obsessive about perfection. We’ll never achieve it, but have to try. And there is no easy way.
AMP are not miracle workers. They are vanity publishers. By praising them, by promulgating the conspiracy theory, us against the big boys, you encourage people to spend serious money to discover they’re not natural writers.
You should be ashamed.
I was offered a publishing contract by AMP that required me to pay $3000 upfront which I quickly realised was just a con. They are simply vanity publishers who are full of empty promises. I got my book published on the amazon bookstore by A1 Book Publishing UK for only $300 with no confusing contract.
As the author of “A Window on the Past,” I was taken aback by the failure of this publishing company to actually pay me the ridiculous sum of 90 pounds after hounding them for more than three weeks. “Oh sir, we didn’t have your banking information” etc….” Perhaps they can discern the routing number I gave them via email.
STAY WELL AWAY! I paid, unfortunately, for AM to publish my YA novel. The “editing” was abysmal, obviously generated by computer. I had to re-edit repeatedly. As for promoting, forget it! AM will sned you suggestions. YOU PAY! This is a SCAM through and through. STAY WELL AWAY!
Greetings,
After teaching for thirty years, I resigned to crown those years and put my experience in a series of six educational books which I believe and hope will make a shift in the teaching of the Arabic language to native speakers. I contacted many publishing houses and ended up contracting Austin Macauley, Sharjah UAE on October 10th, 2021. As this is my first experience, I bombarded them with lots of queries; but I had three major points which I kept repeating and reminding them of almost in every e-mail:
Time frame
Price
Production design
None of the above points have been met so far.
My journey with them has been full of disappointments, frustrations and bewilderment at their lack of professionalism , competence and at their unkept promises.The first stage of proofreading did not take long as the book is clear and simple but has lots of details.
First communication with the production department was on December 6th, 2021. The first year was a waste of time and effort due to miscommunication, unprofessionalism and carelessness on the part of the publisher. I expressed my frustration and disappointment many times and wanted to nullify the contract at one point. They apologized and promised to do a better job so I decided to be patient. Although they assigned the book to various staff members over time and I did all the work, up to this very day the book is still at the in-design phase with even more frustrations and disappointments without any explanation for the persistent delays.
Without getting into details, I would like to share with you this unhappy, frustrating journey with Austin Macauley – Sharjah UAE Publishing House which I will definitely not recommend to anyone who cares about their work, time or money.
I am hoping by filing this complaint with you that you will be able to help and support me in any way to get this book out, as I am confident it will make a positive impact on learners and instructors.