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Melanie Mills

Georgie

I read on another message board today that Melanie Mills was recently killed in an auto accident in Europe. Has anyone else heard this?
 

jmfishman

mel mills

Yes, I heard the same. If you get any information, please let me know. And what was the other message board? Thanks
 

Rscribe

I can also confirm the death of Melanie Mills. Sort of puts to rest the debate on her merits as a literary agent, doesn't it?
 

Georgie

Melanie Mills- Deceased?

JM Fishman:

I saw a post about Melanie Mills' death at the Speculations SF website at: www.rumormill.org/index.p...l_topics=0

I think it was posted there by Dave Kuzminski, who runs the Preditors & Editors website.

Jeez, regardless of whatever else...I really am so sorry to hear such tragic news about her!
 

jmfishman

Mills

Does anyone know the title of the book she wrote or her penname? Anyone have a decent agent to recommend to take on her clients? And, who is Lisa? Thanks
 

DancesWithBooks

Confirm...?

Rscribe: How can you confirm? Can you point to an online news source (because, right now, I think rumormill is using this board as confirmation, and this board is using rumormill).

Thanks!!
 

Rscribe

M. Mills

I was advised of Ms. Mills death in a message from her assistant. I was on her client list & found her to be energetic, helpful, & enthusiastic. I was kept up to date on submissions, etc. I realize others have had totally different experiences, but mine was quite positive. I'll miss her. BTW, she no longer charged an up-front fee for 'office expenses.'
 

Dave Kuzminski

M. Mills

I received the notice from two sources. One, her assistant posted the news on one of the P&E boards. Her church emailed me with the second confirmation.

Dave Kuzminski, Editor
Preditors & Editors (tm)
 

betjam

Mills

I tried to locate Melanies obit. I couldn't find it online. I hope this isn't a fraud. Could she have felt some heat? The phone is disconnected. I hate thinking this if she has passed away. However, who really knows much about her. She could support herself on all the fees she was bringing in. Her daughter was Lisa. Why didn't she continue the business? should someone investigate this agency?
 

jmfishman

melanie mills

I tried to find obit, too, with no success. What's going on here? Anyone have any info?
 

Victoria

I'm a bit skeptical of the death report. It's my impression, based on the info I've been receiving over the past 6 months or so, that Ms. Mills' agency was in trouble. If you think about it, you can see how reporting your own death might be easier than formally closing your business: no upset/angry authors to deal with, no humiliating explanations to provide. I do know of questionable agents who've used a claim of death to avoid clients and obligations.

I don't mean to sound cruel or hardhearted. If the report is true I'm very sorry for this tragic event, and my sympathies go out to Ms. Mills' family.

- Victoria
Writer Beware
www.sfwa.org/beware
 

Rscribe

Victoria, I know you weren't a client of Melanie Mills, but I wonder how many of the postings have come from writers who were. I hate to see a reputation being bashed unless it's justified. I'll reserve judgement until someone can settle the debate one way or the other.
 

angelwriter4u

Sad

At first when I started to read this, I was all set and ready to be angry at this woman Melanie Mills. What we have here is half the ppl say she's bad other half say she's good. Then when we hear reports that she has been killed instead of expressing sympathy, we think she's faking it because an obit can't be found online. Did anyone ever stop to think that her assistant problem warned her family of the claims of her scamming. Now if she were my family, I wouldn't want to have it publized that she was killed!! Simply because they are dealing with the loss of her, and they have to contend with ppl that still question her ethics. Are we that mistrusting, and judgemental that we would still hold a person to ridiculous standards even after her death. Think if this was your family member how would you feel?? I know for me I'm going to be sure to say a prayer for her family today!
 

DancesWithBooks

Dead or alive

What a strange world we live in when we'd rather think of someone as dead than as cheating us, and we chastise those who won't accept her death guilelessly.

I'd rather give her the benefit of the doubt; perhaps she's making a clean break from her past and has moved on to an occupation more suited to her skills.

In either case, maybe those published authors who had confidentiality issues can now come forward and tell us which books she published for them, and thus clear her name.
 

starmason

Who is Lisa Mills?

In response to betjam above, I was told that Lisa Mills and Melanie Mills were the same person. Melanie, told me this. She said she changed her name. This whole situation just seems to get more and more strange. I think it is very unfortunate that a death report has turned into another question about fraud, but given what we know from this board, there are still a lot of question marks. Melanie represented two of my books, neither published. As far as I know, my second book was only ever sent to one publisher in the course of a year. With my first book, she did submit it, but it was bundled with other books--a practice which I came to find out is considered unprofessional. She also edited my second book (at my insistence). She did show me a book that she had agented and gotten published, but asked me not to tell anyone who it was for the author's privacy. Part of me hopes that the death report really is false and that Melanie is starting over, perhaps with lessons learned for the better. At this point, I would just like some closure on what has to be a painful subject for many of us.
 

sassenach

This would trigger anyone's BS meter

"She did show me a book that she had agented and gotten published, but asked me not to tell anyone who it was for the author's privacy."

WTF?
 

Victoria

I understood that Lisa was Melanie's daughter. If it's true Lisa was an alternate name for Melanie, this is getting closer and closer to some of the wilder cases of questionable agent weirdness.

I too find the "for the author's privacy" thing bizarre. How can an agent's claim to have sold a book impinge on an author's privacy? The book is out there, or going to be, with the author's name on it--there's no privacy in that. For a lot of reasons, I'd really like to know the author and the title of the book--please feel free to e-mail me privately if you [email protected].

- Victoria
Writer Beware
www.sfwa.org/beware
 

Jim Breuer

This stuff really reeks of that whole "Martha Ivery-Kelly O'Donnell" agent silliness that happened a short time ago, with an agency called, "Prestige" or something similar.

These days, it seems that some of these "pseudo" literay agents themselves -- are providing the best subject matter for new story ideas, I think.

Sheesh!
 

writerruth

An author who wans no puiblicity for her book? Yeah, that's real.
As real as an agent that won't list it in her credentials. uh-huh
 

WritersWeekly

That old Martha Ivery thing - still good entertainment

For those of you who don't know about the topic listed two posts up, you can read that story here. Martha Ivery still holds the distinct title of being the most entertaining Warnings investigation we've ever done at WritersWeekly. See:

www.writersweekly.com/war...stige.html
 

Gerard Jones

Moot

Somebody just told me Melanie Mills was dead; if that's true all this wrangling would be a trifle moot, but I don't know whether it's true or not so I'm leaving her on my little list. G.

everyonewhosanyone.com
 

betjam

Melanie told me that Lisa was her daughter???
If she has passed. I'm sorry for her and her family. If she was a scam artist I'm sorry for all those who she took for their money. Many writers are struggling to be published. The time and money wasted if she wasn't for real is sad. Writers have hopes and dreams for their work
and it shouldn't be taken advantage of. Some may have given up. It's not only cruel, it's criminal.
I checked newspapers in her area nothing. I think sites like this help keep us aware.
 

danceswithbooks

no news is strange news

I've checked the online newspapers, too. There's nothing there. Stranger and stranger. Maybe she also signed confidentiality agreements with the news media.....
 

danceswithbooks

MM

Her website is gone. But still nothing in any newspapers that I can find.

I guess the safest thing to do is to keep our eyes open for someone new who uses that same m.o.