Parisian Phoenix Publishing

I have four physical writing craft books on my desk and a to-be-read pile of 10-15 books in every room of my house. And this month, I am reading my unsolicited submission pile while overseeing a ridiculous amount of summer releases from my brand. (But as I see the first print copies roll in, it’s so worth it.)

But with all that intense reading, I wanted something lighter for this month’s craft book and it’s summer, right? So, is there a “beach read” kind of craft book? Anyway… I decided on Michael Francis’ book and while the book is a barebones kind of starting point it had some strong advice.

I read it on Kindle, and when I went to add it to this newsletter, I forgot the author name and the full title. So I Googled it.

And all sorts of books came up including one by Andrew Parry with a hideous, unprofessional cover. It had 272 pages and retailed for about $25. Yet, had only one review and, despite the title, Bestseller Blueprint did not have enough sales since its 2024 release to populate categories and rankings on Amazon. I did a little digging.

Andrew Parry has 342 books listed on Goodreads, and every single one has a hideous cover reminiscent of late 1990s Microsoft Paint/Publisher design. Some are 60 pages, some are 300. All involve writing or television, and all cost around $25 or can be found in Kindle Unlimited.

I Googled the author because nothing on Amazon was consistent. And I found one interview, but the answers felt very stock and empty, and the photo did not look like a real person. Is this an example of an AI-generated author and body of work? Do they capitalize on other successful titles and keywords? I honestly don’t know. I do know I don’t see a lick of paid advertising. None of the books have Look Inside samples.