If you are a fiction writer concerned about being scammed by someone claiming to be a professional in the publishing industry, whether it be someone claiming to be a literary agent or publisher or something else, then you need to be paying attention to the Writer Beware website.
If you are ever lucky enough as a fiction writer to get a publishing contract, make sure you look that contract over well. Actually, you should probably get an intellectual properties attorney to look over that contract. Don’t believe me? Then maybe you’ll believe the wisdom of The Passive Voice.
If you want to publish your book, you need to understand how the often-insane publishing world works. The sad truth of publishing is that it is a politically charged, intricate chess game with unwritten rules. Navigating this world is tricky and confusing at best, daunting and impossible at worst.