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Q: I'm interested in submitting to a small press, but I can't seem to find any submission info. Where are they hiding?

A: The best place to look on-line is Duotrope.com.  This is a free (but donations are greatly appreciated) site that lists just about every small/independent press, zine, web-zine, and literary journal there is. The site is searchable, and you can also sign up for weekly updates on markets which will be sent to your email account. They even offer info for poetry writers. Another nice feature is the "response" section, where they tell you who is still active, who responded to queries, how long the response time is, and who didn't respond at all.

Another excellent resource is "The International Directory of Little Magazines and Small Presses," published by Dust Books, a small press located in Northern California. It's basically the "Writers Market" for independent presses/zines. The index is easy to use and the information updated yearly.
 

Q: What is Print-on-Demand? Is it a scam?

A: Print-on Demand, otherwise known as POD, is a confusing term, because the term POD is used to mean different things. Print-on-demand is actually a printing term. It's a digital printing service in which only the number of books needed at a time are printed, rather than using an "off-set" press (the traditional type of printing) which requires you to order a large number of books up front, regardless of how many are sold. POD can be cost effective for the publisher and it's a lot easier to manage printing one book at a time, rather than having 200 boxes of books stacked in your garage. The biggest POD printer in the U.S. is Lighting Source.

The other way the term POD is used is by publishing firms like I Universe and X libros. These are companies which, for a fee, help a writer self-publish their book. They often offer some type of help with design and marketing. But again, the term POD is referring to the printing process these companies use.

So no, POD is not a scam. It's just a printing term for a digital, print-a-book-for-each-order, process. The thing you need to watch out for are subsidy publishers (companies who charge you money to publish your book) who will take all you money and leave you with a poorly manufactured book. I Universe and X libros do great work and I know people who are happy using them. But watch out for scammers.