Last year I entered a poem competition with United Press. Not long afterwards I received a phone call and then a letter saying I had been chosen as one of the top 100 UK winners who would be published in the Anthology in 2017, and that the overall winner would be judged by the 100 people, a price of money at stake. I was informed that I would receive my copy of the book in Dec/Jan along with paperwork to vote. I have still heard nothing, I have phoned but calls aren't answered, I have emailed. Is this a scam? They also informed me that another one of my poems would be published in another magazine/publication. If this is a scam does that mean that they can now freely publish my poem in various publications? Any help greatly appreciated, I am fairly new to entering competitions of this nature and it has put me off a little, thank you
I'm sure I've read about this company before. Could be vanity publishers, which aren't quite the same as scams. It seems to be more common in poetry competitions from what I've read in the past.
It's tempting to get work into a competition quickly, especially if you discover one that has a fast-approaching deadline. What I would suggest is look over a competition's website carefully. Google the names of the winners, past and present, see if they've done anything else or been placed in other competitions.
It's a scam.
Google them. I did and came up with this from 2014 on this very site.
https://www.writersandartists.co.uk/question/view/322
Also:
https://www.abctales.com/forum/sun-2012-07-15-1734/united-press-poetry-anthology
To be avoided like the plague.
If in doubt, always check the company or competition online first.
Lorraine