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One of the reasons I named this blog Off the Beaten Shelf is because I’ve found so many excellent books in unconventional places––small, indie presses being just one of them.

I’m constantly reading and sharing about indie press books because I believe in them wholeheartedly. They do important, necessary work in the book world and I love shouting them out when they really get it right and do a good job. This is most often the case.

Unfortunately, there are some outliers. Presses that rip off writers by accepting their work and not paying royalties. Not only is this stealing from hardworking authors, it’s misleading to readers and the book community at large.

I wish my first time getting quoted in Publishers Weekly was for a better, happier reason, but something needed to be said on behalf of book bloggers who feel taken advantage of by shady presses too, and I was the one to say it.

Get the full scoop on Curbside Splendor and why you shouldn’t support them in this Publishers Weekly article.

I still believe in small, independent publishers and I’ll continue to share their good work here. But you won’t find me speaking favorably about Curbside Splendor ever again.

Instead, please spend your book buying dollars at other indie presses like Two Dollar Radio, Graywolf, Coffee House Press, Melville House, Hyacinth Girl Press, And Other Stories, or basically any small press except Curbside Splendor.