Should I pay a publisher any sort of upfront fee?

"I have completed my (memoir) manuscript and submitted it to Tate. I was offered a contract and had it revised by a lawyer. When I talked to someone in aquisitions about the revisions they were not willing to negotiate any changes including the $3990.00 for marketing because I am a new author and they don't know how my book will sell. When they said that to me it threw me through a loop because at first they said I had a great and powerful story. ( I grew up in childrens homes and foster homes for 14yrs never having a family of my own)I guess my question is "Where do I go from here?" I don't mind paying for services when I get paid but I don't have money to put up front to get the book going. This is my first book (I am starting my second book about what it was like for me once I was out of the system) and I'm not sure what the best avenue is for a first time author. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated."


As I have answered numerous times on this blog (please visit www.landaliteraryagent.com and download the free ebook, which has the entire blog and all the past questions answered) NEVER pay a publisher any sort of upfront fee to have your work published. It doesn't matter if they call it an "editorial fee" or a "reading fee" or a "marketing fee" or whatever they call it. A legitimate publisher should NEVER ask you to pay an upfront fee. On the contrary, they should offer you an advance against royalties.

So keep your money and instead look for a legitimate literary agent. That begins with writing a query letter, and a proposal, and the submission process. Again, my free ebook will help walk you through all the steps.