Hill and Hill Literary Agency (Christopher Hill)

roger said:

The Danuta Kean article about Hill that I mentioned above led to this post on a Harper Collins editor's blog, concerning the activities of Mr Hill.

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In fact I contacted Danuta Kean about CH weeks ago before she'd heard of him. The HarperCollins Kate Hyde contacted me for her blog information (other clients were then invited to contribute data) and I told her about Danuta Kean's interest. Sadly, the sub-100 word report in the Daily Record pulled the rug under Danuta's ability to sell the extended stories to the major newspapers, but the renewed interest via Kate Hyde means The Times is once again involved. Watch out for an article by Jack Malvern in that newspaper this week, possibly Monday.

Geoff

GeoffNelder said:

In fact I contacted Danuta Kean about CH weeks ago before she'd heard of him.

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As did I. I received no response.

- Victoria

Has anyone seen this article yet?

Summary: "Hill's been telling his authors that he submitted their stuff to HarperCollins and heard back favorably from our 'Chief Editor'. Not only do we have no one that goes by that title, but we've also never seen those submissions. Hill's been lying."

Just in case anyone's still on the fence about whether Hill has been deliberately scammy.

Gak. That article really drove it home. But it was the comments that got me choked up and misty eyed. It's one thing to fleece for money and then red-shift out of the atmosphere with money bag in hand. It is quite another thing to dangle the brass ring out in front of author and then yank it back. That's extreme cruelty, which I think might even surpass PA for the sheer gall of it. I'm uplifted though, after witnessing the courageous behavoir and attitudes of those plagued by this menace called Christopher Hill. I wish them all god's speed and success in their craft.

Tri

Human

Hey all- Just checking how everyone has been getting on since the Hill saga?? I had a looooong break to gather myself up, and I am once again ready to face the world of 'real' agents!!
After papering my livingroom wall with Hill's emails, I am searching for a replacement. Trying not to be too suspicious of everyone around me lol

Human xx

Good luck, Human.
Most of us at the H&H survivors group - still active by the way - have moved on with their writing and search for reputable agents and publishers. I still receive the occasional e-mail from former clients who haven't heard about the crash of the agency - poor souls.

All the best

Geoff

Carry on

I can't believe some people still do not know about what happened!!? As you said poor souls.
Victoria has been great as usual in helping me find an Agent that is worthy of my writing!! Lol
It would be nice to hear some good news from the other guys,
Hi all- Hope your getting offers from all over the globe!
Take care
Human

Did you pay Christopher Hill to ghostwrite your book?

After yesterday’s disclosure that the infamous Christopher Hill charged an author $400.00 per month to ghostwrite her book, I thought I would bump this thread for any other writers who have been similarly scammed by Mr. Hill.

For the $400.00 per month that he charged, Mr. Hill plagiarized a best selling novel, which the “client” had published by a pay-to-play vanity press, Roval Publishing. Here are some links to her story.

http://dearauthor.com/wordpress/2007/10/11/top-10-tips-for-plagairists/

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=80354

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=80224


If you paid Christopher Hill to ghostwrite any portion of your book, please let us know by posting in this thread.

Just thought that the people following this thread would like to know of Hill's latest involvement with the writing world. Here's a link.

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=80405

Thanks, Brian, for bumping this up with those concerns. I'm wondering how wide-spread Hill's involvement is in this mess.

Tri

As one of CH's former H&H Literary Agency clients and one who has organized the clients into a thriving support group, I have a feeling he has not dabbled much in the literary field since. It seems his work with Lanaia began in 2005 at the same time as the sham agency. He finished with her a few weeks after the agency crashed. There is an open police file on him in Scotland and he knows the FBI have an 'interest' file on him because of former US clients who lodged complaints there.

He may be a con man but he's not stupid; and I'd like to think, neither are we.

Geoff

GeoffNelder said:

As one of CH's former H&H Literary Agency clients and one who has organized the clients into a thriving support group, I have a feeling he has not dabbled much in the literary field since. It seems his work with Lanaia began in 2005 at the same time as the sham agency. He finished with her a few weeks after the agency crashed. There is an open police file on him in Scotland and he knows the FBI have an 'interest' file on him because of former US clients who lodged complaints there.

He may be a con man but he's not stupid; and I'd like to think, neither are we.

Geoff

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Then why has Victoria been able to gather info on him that shows he was still conning his latest mark up until sometime this year.

Are you suggesting that as soon as a con is rumbled, the perp simply folds up and own up to it, promising never to do it again?

That very rarely happens. They simply modify their MO, try even harder to stay under the radar.

There are numerous and detailed reports of con men being rumbled again and again and again. Oh, and the majority of them know the authorities have them on file, but a big part of the game is to also avoid getting nabbed the second or third or twenty-ninth time around.

GeoffNelder said:

In fact I contacted Danuta Kean about CH weeks ago before she'd heard of him. The HarperCollins Kate Hyde contacted me for her blog information (other clients were then invited to contribute data) and I told her about Danuta Kean's interest. Sadly, the sub-100 word report in the Daily Record pulled the rug under Danuta's ability to sell the extended stories to the major newspapers, but the renewed interest via Kate Hyde means The Times is once again involved. Watch out for an article by Jack Malvern in that newspaper this week, possibly Monday.

Geoff

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The Record are also again looking into it.

GeoffNelder said:

As one of CH's former H&H Literary Agency clients and one who has organized the clients into a thriving support group, I have a feeling he has not dabbled much in the literary field since. It seems his work with Lanaia began in 2005 at the same time as the sham agency. He finished with her a few weeks after the agency crashed.

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This is incorrect. As is made clear in my blog post, the agency crashed in September 2006, which is around the time that Lanaia (who did indeed hook up with Hill as a literary agent in 2005) began paying him for ghostwriting. He blew her off just this past May. (That's May 2007.)

When Lanaia first contacted me, in June 2007, I thought someone was having me on, and I reacted very suspiciously. Later, she sent me enough information to convince me she was telling the truth, but I still didn't take much note of it, because like Geoff, I had heard nothing about Hill since the previous fall, and there was no other sign that he was still dabbling in literary waters.

I think it may indeed be an isolated incident. On the other hand, it's also conceivable that he might have managed to string a few other clients along the same way he did Lanaia. No way to know.

- Victoria

What ever has happened with Hill, it seems clear to me that Lanaia has been scammed from every direction and shouldn't be rounded on the way that she has been. She's made several very bad choices but is obviously clueless about how publishing works, which makes some of those choices excusable. Hill and Lanaia's agent, however, should know better and deserve a pasting.

Mr Nelder, any idea where Hill is these days? Did anyone ever have an address for him? Wasn't it in Edinburgh?

Hello OH,

Last we heard of CH he was still living in his cottage in Tranent, a small township to the East of Edinburgh.

Victoria, I'm not sure what you are saying I got incorrect; possibly in my use of weeks? I should clarify that although the Hill & Hill Lit Agency collapsed during September 2006, some of us were receiving communications and repayment cheques from him up until December. In early 2007 I was receiving e-mails from his former clients, some of whom remained in denial that he was a sham and insisted he still represented them.

I agree that Lanaia deserves our sympathy.

Geoff

The money that Lanaia was sending to Christopher Hill up through May of this year ... I suspect we now know where he was getting the money to send "refunds" to the other folks he'd defrauded.

James D. Macdonald said:

The money that Lanaia was sending to Christopher Hill up through May of this year ... I suspect we now know where he was getting the money to send "refunds" to the other folks he'd defrauded.

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What a horrible thought. I was refunded £130, I only paid £80. At the time I chuckled at his incompetence - now it leaves a bitter taste.

I spoke to Hill by telephone once. He is very persuasive and convincing in his manner. I knew nothing of the publishing business and as far as I was concerned I was learning from him.

His latest victim may have made bad choices, she may be guilty of ignorance or naivety, but she’s also been prey to a devious conman who isn’t happy with simply taking money from his victims, he raises their expectations of life. And that’s what does the most damage. Losing a few quid might sting for a bit, but imagine being told you had the winning lottery ticket, planning the holiday, the new car etc, only to find out you’ve been given last weeks numbers.

Hopefully, this time, he’ll get his comeuppance.

He'll get his comeuppance. It might be happening sooner rather than later too. One of his victims (I couldn't bring myself to say 'clients'), a Frank de Sales, has had a novel publiched through a small publisher. There can be no better revenge than his victims doing well!

Several of Hill's former clients have been published since the debacle, and some now have bona fide agents. There were positive aspects to his sham agency. While he 'represented' us we spent that 18 months writing rather than scurry around looking for agents. And many of us, especially in the support group we created and still occupy, have become good friends.

Geoff