Authors Who Want to Be Friends vs. Authors Who Want Free Labor

Nothing says friendship in publishing like “Hey bestie, can you edit my entire book for free?”

There’s a very particular moment in publishing when an author slides into your DMs, or emails you after a Zoom call, and says:

“We should totally be friends!”

Sometimes, this is pure magic. You click. You share memes. You commiserate about typos and distribution nightmares. You talk about life, not just books. It’s real, and it’s wonderful, and it’s one of the best parts of working in publishing.

Other times… it’s a trap.