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An Honor For Writer Beware Co-Founder and Chair, Ann C. Crispin

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Fri, 24 May 2013 15:41:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

I'm thrilled and extremely proud to announce that my friend and colleague, Writer Beware co-founder and Chair Ann C. Crispin, has been named the 2013 Grandmaster by the International Association of Media Tie-In Writers (IAMTW).

The official announcement is here.

This annual honor, the highest awarded by the IAMTW, is given only to the most accomplished and successful authors in the field (previous Grandmasters include Kevin J. Anderson, Peter David, and Keith DeCandido). Ann's outstanding media tie-in achievements include best-selling novels in numerous franchises, including Star Trek (Yesterday's Son and Sarek, among others), Star Wars (the best-selling Han Solo trilogy), V (the original novelization), and Pirates of the Caribbean (The Price of Freedom).

Ann works in her own worlds as well. She created the acclaimed StarBridge series for young adults (recently brought back into circulation in electronic form), and, for adults, the high fantasy novel Storms of Destiny. She's also a respected writing teacher and workshop leader, many of whose students have gone on to be professionally published--and, of course, a founding member of Writer Beware, where she is a force to be reckoned with (just ask Martha Ivery).

On a personal note...Ann and I began as colleagues, united by our concern about the many scams that victimize writers. But our professional relationship quickly ripened into a close and deep friendship. We're not just fellow warriors in the battle against literary fraud, we're companions, confidantes, and trusted beta readers.We've shared so much over the fifteen years since Writer Beware's founding (holy crap--fifteen years!!), both good and bad, and we know each other inside out. That may sound corny...well, yes, it does sound corny. But it's the truth. I can't possibly be as thrilled as Ann that her accomplishments are being honored in this way--but I'm pretty chuffed!

Many people regard media tie-in writing as the red-headed stepchild of publishing. Not writing in your own universe--that's hackwork! A copout for those too unoriginal to make up their own stories! A half-step up from plagiarism! But having been Ann's beta reader through the entire process of creating The Price of Freedom, I can tell you that tie-in writing is a lot more difficult than most people think. It's challenging, exacting, and requires an incredible degree of discipline. Not everyone is capable of doing it.

Ann addresses this issue in her response to the award.

To be honest, for years I struggled with the prevailing attitude among some s.f. and fantasy writers that writing media tie-ins was the ultimate in degrading hackwork, lower on the authorial totem pole even than writing pornography to eke out a living.

Personally, I believe a good story is a good story, no matter what universe it’s written in. I really love being able to put characters from famous universes through their paces, and get inside their heads. I put as much effort into my tie-in books as I do for my original books (though I confess the original books are tougher to write, since you have to make it ALL up), and I was proud of the stories I produced. But I didn’t like getting openly snubbed or patronized sometimes when I was at conventions or writer gatherings.

One time I was talking to my dear friend, Andre Norton, about how I felt about this, and she set me straight. “Ann, you are a STORYTELLER,” she said. “One of the oldest and proudest professions known to the human race. No matter what kind of story you’re telling, be proud of that ability!”

Fortunately, that snotty attitude among the “purist” s.f. and fantasy writers seems much less prevalent today. Earning a living writing is so darned tough these days that whatever type of writing you’re doing, if you can make money doing it, hey, more power to you.

So I’m very proud to be receiving this award, and proud to be a storyteller.

Please join me and Writer Beware in congratulating a wonderful storyteller, caring mentor, fearless activist, and loyal friend: Ann Crispin.

For more info on Ann and her many novels, visit her at her website.

Outrageous French Copyright Grab: ReLIRE Goes Live

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Thu, 16 May 2013 14:37:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

Just over a year ago, I wrote about a new French law that, under the guise of dealing with the pressing issue of orphan works, implements a truly massive rights transfer.

The law empowers the Bibliothèque Nationale de France to create an online database of works published in France before 2001 that are currently out of print (this includes not just works by French writers, but foreign works translated into French). Once a work has been listed in the database for more than six months, the right to digitize it transfers to a collective management organization, which thereafter has near-unlimited power to exploit that right--including granting it to publishers without the author's permission. The collective management organization will also be responsible for distributing (an unspecified portion of) the proceeds from such grants to rightsholders.

There's a six-month waiting period between a book's appearance in the database and the transfer of rights to the collective management organization. To be removed from the database, rightsholders--who are not currently being notified if their works are included--must opt out in writing before the six-month waiting period expires. If they miss that deadline, they lose control of the digital display and sale of their work, and can only demand removal by proving that that they are the sole holder of digital rights.

The database, known as ReLIRE, is now online,with an initial list of 60,000 books. According to a comprehensive post on the program by writer Gillian Spraggs, numerous problems have been noted, including data errors, inclusion of books published after the 2001 cutoff date, and inclusion of books still in print or already available in digital form. Also included are many translated works by foreign authors that are clearly not orphans.

Digital-hungry publishers are already taking advantage of the database. Spraggs writes,

It appears that 10,000 (one in six) of the books in the database have been opted in by the publishers. The ReLIRE website FAQ outlines what a publisher will get out of the arrangement:

‘You will have the possibility of having an exclusive publishing licence for 10 years, implicitly renewable, to exploit the book in digital form, without having to sign a contract with the author or the author’s successors in title for the digital rights.

Sofia [the collecting society] will contact the authors or the successors in title to pay them, in accordance with the terms set out in the publishing contracts’...

Two points that the FAQ discreetly avoids spelling out are:

1. The legislation specifically charges the collecting society with developing contractual relationships that will ensure the greatest possible availability of the works...This puts prospective publishers in a very strong negotiating position and more or less guarantees that the contracts agreed will be bargain-basement deals with very low royalty rates, regardless of the market value of the work.

2. Certain administration costs that in a normal publishing arrangement would be borne by the publisher will instead be borne by the collecting society, which will take them out of royalties (so all or part of them will be taken from the authors’ share of any income). These include the cost of contacting authors and estates.

For authors, Spraggs says, it is "a ripoff deal."

Writers' groups in the US are taking notice of this threat to copyright. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America has sent the letter below (reproduced with permission) to members, a number of whom have already found their works included in ReLIRE.

Dear SFWA Members,

As many of you already know, the ReLire program currently underway in France has scanned many books it considers to be "orphan works" in order to make them available through a public database. This database has already been found to contain many titles that are clearly not orphan works or in the public domain, including a number by prominent SF and fantasy authors. A more detailed explanation of the program is available here.

As this is a program of the Bibliotheque Nationale Francaise (French National Library), the Board is currently discussing options for applying pressure to the French government to prevent further works by SFWA members from being scanned and made available through this program, and we invite any members who have connections with the United States Trade Representative or any relevant branch of the U.S. Government to contact us. For the moment, however, we are informing all members of the issue and making them aware of the process involved in finding out whether a work is included and how to request that it be removed from the database.

All parts of the ReLire website and database are available only in French. The Society of Authors has produced translations of four key pages:

- The ReLire home page
- The Your Rights page
- The Search page
- The FAQ

Here is a direct link to the advanced search page. The search fields are Titre( Title), Auteur (Author), Editeur (Editor) and Date d'edition (Publication date). If you are aware of any works of yours that have ever been published in French, you are strongly advised to search under all of the first three fields, as the entries in the database have been found to have many typos. Please notify SFWA of any of your works that are found in the database, as that will be valuable information in our efforts to protest the program.

If you do find any novels, stories or any other works belonging to you in the database you may request to have them removed. Please note that at this time it appears as though you will need either a French identification card (only available to residents of France) or a valid passport to make the application. We are awaiting clarification on the question of whether any other forms of identification will be accepted.

Thanks to Aliette de Bodard, Lawrence Schimel, Michael Capobianco and Jim Fiscus for their help in researching and co-ordinating SFWA's response.

If any of your works have been published in French, and you find them included in ReLIRE, see this step-by-step manual for applying to have the work removed. For many other helpful resources and links, as well as some of the writing/publishing community's reaction to ReLIRE, see Gillian Spraggs's blog post, French Copyright Grab: the Machine Creaks into Action.

Spraggs writes that a group of French authors are planning to challenge the new law on constitutional grounds. She concludes by urging all writers to protest ReLIRE:

Whether or not you find that any of the books on the list are by you, or contain works by you, make a complaint to your government about the ReLIRE project, and talk to any author societies to which you belong.

The Berne Convention says: ‘Authors of literary and artistic works protected by this Convention shall have the exclusive right of authorizing the reproduction of these works, in any manner or form.’ (9.1) This can only be overriden ‘in certain special cases’ and ‘provided that such reproduction does not conflict with a normal exploitation of the work and does not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the author’. (9.2) The Convention says of all the rights that are guaranteed under it: ‘The enjoyment and the exercise of these rights shall not be subject to any formality‘. (5.2)

By compelling foreign authors, in order to prevent their works’ being co-opted into collective management, to search for them on a database and request their removal, the French government has imposed an illegal formality on their exclusive exercise of the right of reproduction.

The ReLIRE scheme is in no sense a ‘special case’ within the meaning of Article 9.2. By intervening in such an outrageous manner in the fast-developing market for digital rights it interferes with the normal exploitation of the works and most unreasonably prejudices the legitimate interests of the authors.

Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Author Solutions Inc.

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Wed, 01 May 2013 15:56:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

In March, I wrote about New York law firm Giskan Solotaroff Anderson & Stewart LLP, which had opened an investigation of Author Solutions Inc. (ASI).

Well, now the other shoe has dropped. On April 26, Giskan Solotaroff filed a class action complaint on behalf of three plaintiffs against Author Solutions Inc. and Penguin Group USA (ASI is part of Penguin) in US District Court for the Southern District of New York. Allegations include breach of contract, unjust enrichment, various violations of the California Business and Professional Code, and violation of New York General Business Law.

The full text of the complaint can be seen here.

The complaint highlights issues that will be familiar to anyone who has followed discussion of Author Solutions over the past few years: poor quality products, poor quality customer service, relentless up-selling pressure on authors, particularly for ASI's expensive "marketing" packages, and trouble with accurate payment and royalty reporting.

4. Author Solutions' revenues are estimated at $100 million per year. Of the $100 million Author Solutions earns as revenue, approximately one third of that amount, or $33 million annually, comes from book sales. The rest of its revenue is derived from the services it offers, such as editorial services, formatting and design services, production services, and marketing services ("Services").

5. Despite its impressive profits from book sales, Author Solutions fails at the most basic task of a publisher: paying its authors their earned royalties and providing its authors with accurate sales statements.

6. Author Solutions also fails to take diligent care of its authors' works, making numerous and egregious publisher errors -- errors made by the publisher, not the author. These errors include errors on book covers, in addition to various typographical and formatting errors. In fact, Author Solutions profits from its own mistakes. Aggressive sales techniques ensure that these errors are corrected only for a fee of several hundred dollars. Even though, as a matter of policy, Author Solutions promises to correct publisher errors for free, it rarely does.

7. Most of Author Solutions' earnings are derived from its publishing and marketing Services. These Services, which can cost authors tens of thousands of dollars, likewise fail to deliver what they promise: more book sales and more opportunities for authors.

8. Therefore, even while Defendant Author Solutions prominently markets itself on its website as "[t]he leading indie publishing company in the world," authors often discover, once it is too late, that Author Solutions is not an "indie publisher" at all. It is a printing service that fails to maintain even the most rudimentary standards of book publishing, profiting not for its authors but from them.

In addition to asking the Court to approve class action status, the complaint requests release of publishing rights for the class, and payment by the plaintiffs of restitution, court costs, and compensatory damages in excess of $5 million.

Authors wishing to contact Giskan Solotaroff about the suit can use this online form.

I've blogged about ASI and its questionable practices a good deal over the past few years. For background, here's a selection of my posts:

Pearson Buys Author Solutions (but questions about ASI's business practices remain open--will Pearson address them?)

A Partridge in a Penguin Tree (ASI expands into India).

Archway Publishing: Simon & Schuster Adds a Self-Publishing Division (outsourced to ASI, and it's eye-poppingly expensive).

Fake Jared And His Friends: Author Solutions' Misleading PR Strategies

Democratization or Disinformation? (ASI's misleading "white paper" on independent" publishing).

Posts by others:

Writer and editor Emily Suess is a relentless critic of ASI, and has exposed many of its business practices and collected many complaints from unhappy authors who've used its services.

Mick Rooney of The Independent Publishing Magazine has a long piece on the Giskan Solotaroff investigation and related matters.

Author and blogger David Gaughran deconstructs the ASI empire.

ASJA Annual Conference 2013, Plus Tidbits

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:57:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

I was in New York this past weekend for the 2013 ASJA Annual Writers Conference. I participated in two panels with Writer Beware-er Richard White: a Writer Beware panel (of course) on schemes, scams, and pitfalls in the publishing industry; and a panel on breaking into science fiction and fantasy publishing.

We had a good and engaged crowd for the Writer Beware panel. Rich and I presented on Writer Beware, what it is and does, and the kinds of schemes and scams we track and warn about. The Authors Guild's Jan Constantine spoke about poor contract terms, payment problems, and other issues confronting writers who publish traditionally; and marketing expert Penny Sansevieri spoke on scams in the marketing field and how to avoid them.

The SF/fantasy panel had sparser attendance, but was still a good discussion, with Rich and I talking about our experience as writers, and editor Sheila Williams and former editor/current agent Shawna McCarthy providing an industry perspective.

As usual, the Writer Beware-hating wingnuts at The Write Agenda had a hissy fit about my and Rich's participation in the conference. However, ASJA staff know wingnuts when they encounter them, and provided an appropriate response--which, predictably, provoked a fresh explosion of indignation. I only wish I had the arcane powers TWA ascribes to me.

P.S., wingnuts: hurrying from the train to the hotel where the conference was taking place, I stepped in a pothole and sprained my ankle. Now you can do another post on karma biting the ladies of Writer Beware. You're welcome.

Turning to other matters...here's some recent publishing news that caught my eye.

- Last year, complaints began to emerge about Noble Romance Publishing, including poor sales, non-payment of royalties, and poor communication. Then, last July, owner Jill Noble walked out without notice, leaving the company to a new owner, Jean Gombart. Since then, things have only gone further downhill. Recently, author Margie Church blogged about the continuing problems and broken promises at Noble Romance. Despite every sign that Noble Romance is "a business in its last vestiges of life," Gombart adamantly refuses to relinquish book rights back to authors.

- The always-insightful Porter Anderson provides perspective on a major Twitter freakout of last week: some literary agents' angry reaction to Barry Eisler's keynote address at the Pike's Peak Writers' Conference, in which he stated that print distribution is the only thing traditional publishers provide that self-publishers can't obtain on their own. I don't entirely agree with him--in the best publishing experiences, there's a synergy among all the various parts of the process that can't be duplicated when you piece them out--and I also think that the potentially substantial costs of creating a really professional self-published book should be emphasized more. But he makes provocative points that are well worth considering.

(I do wish, though, that we could we could get rid of the term “legacy publisher.” It's a term that embodies an assumption about the state of traditional publishing that hasn’t yet been proven [a legacy system is a system that has been supplanted by new technology but is still in use]--plus, it was coined by self-publishing evangelists as an epithet, and has a negative connotation that I don’t think adds to serious discussion.)

- Last February, several independent booksellers filed an anti-trust lawsuit against Amazon and several large publishing houses, alleging that by requiring the use of DRM on the Kindle, Amazon and the publishers have colluded to restrict the sale of ebooks. Now a judge is considering tossing the suit, citing a lack of evidence of any conspiracy.

Tidbits

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 14:35:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

It's spring! Here in chilly New England, climate change seems to be taking a break, and it felt as if the warm weather would never arrive. But daffodils and primroses are blooming in my garden, and it's almost--almost!--mild enough to sit outside.

My family emergency situation is still ongoing, and my book deadline is only three months away--so it'll be a while before I can return to a normal schedule. However, I'm still following the news (and answering email), so I can at least share with you the publishing stories that caught my eye over the past week or so.

One more note: I'll be at the ASJA's 2013 annual conference in New York City on Friday, April 26, appearing on two panels: Writer Beware! How to Avoid Publishing Scams, Ripoffs, Pitfalls, and Deadbeats; and Fiction Spotlight On...Science Fiction and Fantasy. If you're there, stop by and say hi.

- Ebooks accounted for nearly 23% of US publishing revenue in 2012, according to the Association of American Publishers, That's up from 17% in 2011.

- On the flip side, ebook growth in the US, while robust, seems to have plateaued--"only" 41% in 2012, as compared to triple-digit growth in previous years. The market is starting to mature, and print isn't going away as fast as many people predicted.

- Scam publisher Peter Campbell-Copp, of Historical Pages Publishing, has been sentenced to six months' jail time for defrauding authors. It's a sadly familiar story: promises given, money taken, books never produced. In this case, at least, law enforcement took notice (though the authors will not get their money back.) Most deadbeat publishers go unreported and unpunished.

- Another small press in trouble: Leaf Books. The company's most recent newsletter attempts to explain the situation (publication delays of up to two years, hundreds of unanswered emails, ongoing financial problems) and promises to fix them. However, the newsletter was issued last August, and there have been no updates since then, or any indication that the troubles have been resolved. Writers should be very wary.

EDITED 4/20 TO ADD: In the day since I put this post online, Leaf has changed the date on its newsletter to April 2013. However, if you paste the newsletter link into Google's search box, or right-click on the newsletter so you can view the HTML code, you can still see the August 2012 date.

- A new definition of "crowdfunding?" This week I ran across an anthology that presents itself as a crowdfunding scheme, with the "crowd" actually being would-be contributors, who must "donate" £50 in order to submit (and don't get it back if their submission isn't chosen). This is just pay-to-play by a different name. Vanity publishers take note--now you, too, can be a crowdfunding project!

- What could possibly be wrong with a book that collects over 100 "encouraging, motivating, inspiring and instructional passages" about writing from actual writers? (Click the "Show more" link under the book description to see a partial list of "contributors.") How about if the author didn't get permission to use those passages, and is making money from them by selling the book?

Chuck Wendig, who found himself quoted in the book, explains why he isn't happy. The book's author is claiming fair use--but fair use is a slippery thing, and defending it has sunk many a lawsuit. Fair use or not, it's simply polite to ask permission to borrow someone else's words. Especially where you intend to make money from the words you're borrowing.

- Does reading on a screen change the way we read? Is it good, or bad, for focus and/or comprehension? This article takes a look at the many studies addressing this issue, concluding that paper and ink still has the edge for certain kinds of reading--but that, increasingly, "text is not the only way to read."

Why I'm Not Here

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 14:27:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

You may have noticed there was no blog post last week.

That's because I'm currently dealing with a family emergency (helping my disabled stepmother, who has broken her shoulder) that's eating up my time. Between that and trying to maintain my writing schedule (book deadline approaching...) I just haven't been able to manage any blog posts.

I'm hoping to get back to a more normal schedule next week, or possibly the week after.

I am still answering email, so if you need to reach me, it's beware [at] sfwa.org.

Happy writing, and I'll see you all soon!

Author-Unfriendly Terms at Autharium

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 16:24:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

Over the past few weeks I've gotten a number of questions and alerts about author-unfriendly Terms and Conditions at Autharium, a new epublishing startup. So I thought I'd check into it myself.

Autharium describes itself thus:

Autharium was created with the purpose of discovering great writers and publishing their work. The idea struck the co-founders Matt Bradbeer, Simon Maylott and Aaron Bell when they discovered and became frustrated with how difficult or expensive it was to publish a book, break through the old publishing routes and reach readers...

There is no charge to be published and distributed through Autharium, there are no hidden costs and the royalties are always split in the authors [sic] favour. Our mission is to discover and publish the next great books and the authors behind them.

Authors can use Autharium's online tools to upload, format, and edit their books (which sure sounds like self-publishing, although, according to Autharium's FAQ, books are "curated" and not everything that's submitted is published). Once books are uploaded, authors can can send them to the Autharium community for comment and review, or submit them for publication. Payment is 85% of net revenue.

Autharium is in beta, and currently free to use. However (and despite the language quoted above), wording on the site and in the Terms and Conditions strongly suggests that there will be publishing and other fees at some point in the future.

So far, Autharium sounds like one of those combination writing communities/self-publishing services, a la Book Country, YouWriteOn, or the recently-defunct WeBook. As long as there's a decent community sharing feedback, and the publishing service is free or low-cost, where's the problem?

As is so often the case, in the publishing agreement.

Trouble appears in the very first clause of Autharium's Publishing Terms and Conditions for Authors (I've bolded the significant language):

1.1 By submitting your Work to Autharium and accepting these Terms & Conditions, you grant to Autharium the exclusive right and licence to produce, publish, promote, market and sell your Work in any Digital Form...in all languages throughout the world for the entire legal term of copyright (and any and all extensions, renewals and revivals of the term of copyright).

1.2 You agree that Autharium shall also be entitled to license retailers, distributors, agents, licensees, sub-contractors and other third parties to exercise the rights you have granted to Autharium under this Agreement.

1.3 The rights granted in paragraphs 1.1 and 1.2 above shall also apply to any adaptation or any abridgement of your Work or any substantial part of your Work.

In other words, by submitting your manuscript to Autharium for publication, you are granting exclusive digital publishing rights to your work, and to adaptations/abridgements of your work, in all languages, for the entire duration of copyright, as well as the ability to license those rights to others. That's a pretty sweeping grant of rights--not what you typically expect to find in the contract of a self-publishing service.

If Autharium decides not to publish your manuscript, it will notify you, and the grant will terminate immediately. But until you receive such notification you are bound to Autharium, and cannot publish your work anywhere else in digital form. Since there's nothing in the contract that requires Autharium to be prompt, or gives it a timeframe in which to respond, you could be waiting for a while.

It gets worse. Authors who publish with Autharium can remove their work from sale at any time--but this "will not terminate this Agreement nor cause the exclusive digital publishing rights that you have granted to Autharium...to revert to you." So you can terminate your book--but Autharium will still hold the rights and you won't be able to publish elsewhere unless you can get Autharium to give you permission. (Enquiring minds can't help wondering whether, in such a case, a fee might be involved.)

In fact, per Autharium's Term, Termination, Reversion and Suspension of Rights clause, authors have no termination rights whatever unless Autharium breaches the terms of the Agreement and fails to remedy the breach, or allows a work to become "unavailable in all editions" (and "available" might just mean an ebook for sale on Autharium's own website).

There is so much wrong here.

- A life-of-copyright grant term. I've said elsewhere that life-of-copyright grant terms are not a problem as long as there's precise reversion language that ensures that authors can get their rights back once sales fall below stated minimums. However, that's in reference to publishers--not glorified self-publishing services like Autharium. Life-of-copyright terms are completely inappropriate for such services (this is one of the things that made the agreement for Dymocks' recently-terminated D Publishing service so horrific). Even a fixed-term contract isn't desirable when you're self-publishing.

- An exclusive grant term. Exclusivity is also not desirable when you're self-publishing, unless the publishing service is offering something major in return (such as payment for ebook lending, as with Amazon's Kindle Owners' Lending Library). You want to be able to maximize sales and readership by publishing to as many platforms as possible; exclusivity prevents you from doing that.

- A claim on rights beyond ebooks. Autharium publishes "in Digital Form," which is sweepingly defined as "any and all electronic and/or digital forms and media whether now known or later invented or developed." This conceivably could include not just ebooks but audiobooks, enhanced ebooks, and video games. Additionally, Autharium claims the right to publish in all languages, and to license your rights to others. All of this negates one of the main benefits of self-publishing: minimal encumbrance of your rights. A self-publishing service should not require you to grant rights beyond those necessary to provide the service.

- Authors cannot terminate at will. Another of the major benefits of self-publishing is control. If you lose the right to terminate an agreement at any time, for any reason, you're giving up a huge amount of control--especially if the terms of the agreement don't allow you to publish anywhere else.

- Inadequate definition of out-of-print. See life-of-copyright, above. If you can't terminate at will, there should at least be clear, objective reversion terms that allow you to regain your rights after a fixed period of time or once sales fall below stated minimums. Otherwise, the publishing service can hang onto your rights for as long as it chooses, whether or not your book is selling. Autharium's vague out-of-print language, the effect of which is to enable it to keep a death-grip on your rights as long as a single electronic edition of your book is available on a single website somewhere, is completely inadequate.

- Will eager authors discover these unfavorable terms? I signed up for Autharium and uploaded a document. I got as far as the Publishing Options page, where, before they can submit for publication, authors are required to check a box to accept Autharium's Terms and Conditions. Not only is it not stated that these are the publishing terms and conditions (there are also general terms and conditions), the link provided goes nowhere. Often enough, authors barely skim Terms and Conditions or publishing agreements, even when they're easy to find. Making authors work to find them is practically a guarantee they won't be read.

In response to criticism elsewhere, Autharium staff have argued that Autharium is a publisher, not a self-publishing service, because "we do not publish everything submitted." However, publishers don't leave formatting, editing, and cover art to authors, or allow authors to set book prices. Those are hallmarks of self-publishing services. And even if we cut Autharium a hundred miles of slack and agree it's a publisher, its reversion language still sucks.

All in all, a bad deal for authors.

For Those of You Who Are Wondering Why Someone Might Want to Launch a Class Action Lawsuit Against PublishAmerica

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 20:22:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

Here is an example of the sort of solicitation PublishAmerica authors receive daily (if not more often).

Dear author:

For authors with multiple titles only!

The March Madness Multi-title option is here!

We're offering two of our most popular services for ALL of your books, for one low price!

Your own Literary Agent

+

Direct Book Distribution

combo package

for ALL of your books

That's right, ALL your books, one low price, two high exposure services!

**Go to www.publishamerica.net/MarchMadMulti

to activate this super combo deal for only $179.

Direct Book Distribution: Bookstores that use Direct Distribution receive a bookstore discount of up to 55 pct, which is more than 10 times than what they may get elsewhere. And the books they order to carry are returnable . This means that the bookstore can return unsold copies to PublishAmerica's direct distribution center.

Our March Madness Multi-title option will add ALL your books to our Direct Distribution system. Your local bookstore will love it. In fact, we'll get on the phone right away to negotiate the bookstore's first next order of of any one, or all, or your books! They will also keep their Ingram option. PublishAmerica books are non-returnable through Ingram.

PLUS

Your own Literary Agent for ALL your books:

We'll shop ALL of your books around the industry! Our literary agency department takes their job very seriously. Last year they submitted PublishAmerica books to publishers all over the nation and the world. We'll contact publishers and urge them to take a serious, close look at every one of your books for a possible transfer of publication rights. We'll let them know that should they be interested, we'll clear the path and transfer the rights to them smoothly!

The average agented book was introduced to 15 other publishers in 2012. The vast majority of these are U.S. publishers, some really big; twenty percent is foreign, including countries as far away as Germany, South Africa, Australia, India, and Spain.

** Go to www.publishamerica.net/MarchMadMulti to activate today! You will be contacted within 48 business hours by our Special Services Department so we can begin working for your ALL of your books in earnest!

Must choose a shipping option to activate. No use of coupons is allowed.

Include ALL of your books today!

Thank you,
--PublishAmerica Special Services Team

Random House Announces New Terms at Digital Imprints Hydra, Alibi, Loveswept, and Flirt

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 13:33:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

Yesterday afternoon, I had a cordial conversation with Allison Dobson, Director of Digital Imprints at Random House, about the the recent controversy over deal terms at Hydra, Alibi, Loveswept, and Flirt.

Based on strong criticism from writers' groups, authors, and agents, Random House has decided to make major changes in its digital contract. Allison was kind enough to share these changes with me. She asked me to keep them confidential until they could be officially posted on the Random House website, which is why you didn't see this post yesterday.

A pdf of the announcement is here. Briefly, here are the changes:

- Authors will now be offered their choice of two options: a re-worked profit-sharing arrangement and a traditional advance-and-royalties deal.

For the profit-sharing arrangement, there's still no advance. But Random House has eliminated all chargebacks for digital editions, so the split between author and publisher is 50/50 of net revenue (actual sales income) from the first copy sold. In other words: no setup costs, no 10% deduction for sales and marketing. For print editions, if they are produced (and this won't be frequent; these are primarily ebook imprints), there will still be a chargeback for actual production and shipping costs (these costs will be fully broken out for the author ahead of time if a print edition is planned). Random House will cover general publicity costs for the imprint, and up to $10,000 of book-specific publicity. Any book-specific PR above that amount will be borne by the author and deducted from net revenue before the profit split--but such expenditures will be optional.

For the advance-and-royalty deal, authors will receive a traditional publishing contract, with the publisher covering 100% of costs. There will be an advance, and royalties will be paid at Random House's standard ebook royalty rate of 25% of net.

- The contract will still be life-of-copyright, but the reversion clause has been improved. As I've explained on this blog and elsewhere, I don't have a problem with life-of-copyright, as long as it's balanced by precise reversion language. That is now the case. Three years after publication, the author can demand reversion if sales fall below 300 copies over the 12 months preceding the demand.

- Random House will still take both primary publishing rights and subsidiary rights, but performance rights and transformative digital edition rights are no longer included. If Random House wants to acquire these, it will negotiate separately. Random House is also open to negotiation on other subrights.

Overall, I think this represents a significant improvement. I was impressed with Allison's openness to discussion, and with what seemed to me like a sincere commitment to responding to criticism and making the digital imprints' contracts more author-friendly.

Another Class Action Suit Launched Against PublishAmerica

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 17:16:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

I wasn't optimistic that I would ever be writing a post like this, after the class action filed last year against PublishAmerica was dismissed.

However, on January 31, 2013, the Maryland law firm Z Law and the New York law firm Giskan Solotaroff Anderson & Stewart (the same firm that is currently investigating Author Solutions Inc.) filed an amended complaint (the original complaint was filed last November) against Willem Meiners, Larry Clopper, and PublishAmerica LLLC on behalf of Diana Waterman, Jennifer Grant, Danita Clemons, and the class of PA authors in similar situations.

The amended complaint was filed in the Circuit Court of Maryland for Frederick County (case number 10-C-12-003498 OT), and can be read in full here. The electronic case record can be viewed here.

Plaintiffs allege breach of contract, unjust enrichment, fraud, violations of the California Business and Professions Code (for untrue advertising), violations of the California Unfair Competition Law (for unlawful business acts and practices, unfair business acts and practices, and fraudulent business acts and practices), and deceptive acts and practices under New York General Business Law.

The allegations of fraud, unjust enrichment, and breach of contract are similar to those of the earlier complaint, but where the previous complaint sought judgment under the Maryland Consumer Protection Act--and was dismissed in large part because it failed to adequately demonstrate that PA authors should be treated as consumers under the Act--this complaint focuses on laws governing business acts and practices, both in Maryland and in the home states of the named plaintiffs. Does it have a better chance of success? That remains to be seen.

The complaint's Preliminary Statement is worth quoting in (nearly) full.

2. Defendant markets itself as a “traditional advance and royalty paying book publisher” that is home to over 50,000 authors.

3. As PublishAmerica openly states on its website, it specializes in books and authors “who face and overcome hardships and obstacles in life.”

4. Defendants shamelessly prey on ambitious first time authors and those who have faced significant personal hardships, luring them into exploitatively long contracts, often as long as ten years -- that can only be broken for a high fee.

5. On its website, PublishAmerica uses the tagline: “We treat our authors the old-
fashioned way–we pay them.” Nothing could be further from the truth. PublishAmerica makes money from its authors, not for them. As alleged below, authors published by PublishAmerica have no chance of selling their books to a general audience.

6. PublishAmerica makes its authors’ books unsellable in a number of ways. The most obvious is pricing. Plaintiff Waterman’s paperback children’s book is priced at $24.95. By contrast, Curious George, a beloved children’s book, is available online at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for $6.99. In fact, Plaintiff Waterman’s book is priced significantly higher than all of New York Times’ ten best-selling children’s books. See Exhibit 1 attached hereto.

7. PublishAmerica sabotages its authors’ ability to sell and market their books by printing them with errors. These errors are inserted by PublishAmerica itself. Plaintiff Grant’s book has glaring typographical errors. On the side binding of the book, the word “collection” is misspelled as “collectrion.” If that were not enough, on every other page, the title of the book is misspelled, replacing “romantically” with “roimantically.” These errors humiliated Grant once the book became widely searchable on the Internet. Notwithstanding these glaring errors, PublishAmerica prices Plaintiff Grant’s book at $30. This price is notably higher than the top ten selling fiction paperback books. See Exhibit 2 attached hereto.

8. The simple fact is that the only consumers who will purchase these overpriced, poorly published books are the authors themselves.

9. PublishAmerica then bombards its authors with services ostensibly designed to promote, improve, and sell books that PublishAmerica knows cannot be sold. But as alleged below, these services are often themselves a scam or simply fictitious. For example, PublishAmerica offers to correct its own publishing errors – for a fee.

I've highlighted the allegations that were unfamiliar to me. Although they fit perfectly with the many other aspects of PublishAmerica's business model that Writer Beware has received complaints about over the years, I still find them shocking. The complaint includes many other gems, including a couple of PA's famous "tone" letters and examples of PA's solicitations for bogus marketing services.

Plaintiffs are asking the court to approve the class, to order PA to release and return publication rights, to order PA to pay actual damages, restitution, and court costs including attorneys' fees, and to order "such other, further relief as may be determined to be just, equitable and proper by this Court, including but not limited to punitive damages."

The contact person for Giskan Solotaroff:

O. Iliana Konidaris
11 Broadway, Suite 2150
New York, NY 10004
Direct: 646-366-5140
Fax: (646) 964-9610

I'll keep y'all posted as this works its way through the courts.

SFWA De-Lists Hydra; Random House Responds

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 18:02:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

Following on my post last week about unattractive deal terms at Random House's new digital-only imprint, Hydra, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America has determined that Hydra will not be a qualifying market for SFWA membership.

SFWA has determined that works published by Random House’s electronic imprint Hydra can not be used as credentials for SFWA membership, and that Hydra is not an approved market. Hydra fails to pay authors an advance against royalties, as SFWA requires, and has contract terms that are onerous and unconscionable.

In a blistering blog post, SFWA President John Scalzi also criticized** Hydra's terms:

This is a horrendously bad deal and if you are ever offered something like it, you should run away as fast as your legs or other conveyances will carry you.

Today, Random House responded to the critics, including me, in an open letter. As the letter requests, I'm posting it here in full, redacting only Ms. Dobson's phone number.

Dear John, Victoria, Jaym and SFWA Members,

We read with interest your posts today about the new Random House digital imprints and our business model. While we respect your position, you’ll not be surprised to learn that we strongly disagree with it, and wish you had contacted us before you published your posts. We would appreciate you giving us an opportunity to share why we believe Hydra is an excellent publishing opportunity for the science fiction community by posting ours below to them.

Hydra offers a different-- but potentially lucrative--publishing model for authors: a profit share. In the more traditional advance- plus-royalty model, the publisher takes all the financial risk up front, and recoups the advance before the author earns any cash royalties. With a profit-share model, there is no advance. Instead, the author and publisher share equally in the profits from each and every sale. In effect, we partner with the author for each book.

As with every business partnership, there are specific costs associated with bringing a book successfully to market, and we state them very straightforwardly and transparently in our author agreements. These costs could be much higher--and certainly be more stressful and labor-intensive to undertake--for an author with a self-publishing model. Profits are generated once those costs are subtracted from the sales revenue. Hydra and the author split those profits equally from the very first sale.

When we acquire a title in the Hydra program, it is an all-encompassing collaboration. Our authors provide the storytelling, and we at Hydra support their creativity with best-in-class services throughout the publishing process: from dedicated editorial, cover design, copy editing and production, to publicity, digital marketing and social media tools, trade sales, academic and library sales, piracy protection, negotiating and selling of subsidiary rights, as well as access to Random House coop and merchandising programs. Together, we deliver the best science fiction, fantasy and horror books to the widest possible readership, thus giving authors maximum earning potential.

As a last point to the SFWA leadership, my colleagues and I would welcome the opportunity to meet with you at your earliest convenience to discuss the advantages of the Hydra business model, describe the program overall, and respond to any of your expressed concerns. Please let me know a good time for us to set up this meeting.

Many thanks and all the best,
Allison Dobson

Allison R. Dobson
V.P., Digital Publishing Director
Random House Publishing Group

I think we'll have to wait for time to show whether Hydra really represents a lucrative business model for authors (I note RH's careful pairing of "potentially" with "lucrative"). Hydra is speculative in more than just the genre it publishes: it, and digital-only imprints like it, are experiments, with authors as guinea pigs.

I also note that in an email I saw from Random House, ebook setup costs (editing, design, production) were estimated as "usually" amounting to "no more than a few hundred dollars"--so I can't help wondering what level of services authors will actually receive.

In fairness, from what I've heard, Hydra is very willing to negotiate, and some authors seem to have been able to arrange considerably better terms for themselves. (I would love to be more precise, but I don't want to inadvertently identify the people who've contacted me. If you're curious, write to me and I'll tell you.)

I'd welcome the chance to meet with Random House staff to discuss these issues. Hopefully this can be arranged in the near future.

-----------------------------

** While I agree with most of John's points about Hydra's deal terms, I don't agree that life-of-copyright contracts are an automatic red flag. For one thing, they're standard in the publishing industry (and that includes many smaller digital-only publishers). Is this fair? Does the publisher need it? Maybe not. But it's a fact.

For another thing, as long as there's precise reversion language that ensures a book goes out of print when sales fall below a reasonable minimum ("reasonable" being keyed to the publisher's average sales expectations), life-of-copyright doesn't have to be a problem. The publisher does not get to hold your rights indefinitely. When your book stops selling, you can demand reversion and get your rights back. I've done this, so I'm speaking from experience.

I have seen terrible life-of-copyright contracts where reversion was left entirely to the publisher's discretion, or where there was no reversion clause at all. If a life-of-copyright rights grant is not offset by good reversion language, or if the publisher is unwilling to insert it at the author's request, writers absolutely should run away. But in principle, life-of-copyright contracts do not have to be scary.

Law Firm Investigates Author Solutions Inc.

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 16:28:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

The New York law firm of Giskan Solotaroff Anderson & Stewart LLP has opened an investigation of Author Solutions Inc. (ASI), alleging deceptive practices.

Authors using Author Solutions have complained of deceptive practices, including enticing authors to purchase promotional services that are not provided or are worthless, failing to pay royalties, and spamming authors and publishing blogs/sites with promotional material.

They're calling for contact from authors who believe they've been the victims of these and/or other deceptive practices. The contact form is here.

Giskan Solotaroff Anderson & Stewart specializes in, among other things, consumers and small businesses in class actions. Where possible, they enter into contingency fee arrangements--i.e., they take a percentage of the winnings rather than a fee. Given that Author Solutions is now owned by Pearson, there are some deep pockets here, which may make a lawsuit more feasible than it has been in the past. (To my knowledge, no lawsuit has actually been filed; this is a preliminary investigation only.)

I've blogged about ASI and its questionable practices a good deal over the past few years. For background, here's a selection of my posts:

Pearson Buys Author Solutions (but questions about ASI's business practices remain open--will Pearson address them?)

A Partridge in a Penguin Tree (ASI expands into India).

Archway Publishing: Simon & Schuster Adds a Self-Publishing Division (outsourced to ASI, and it's eye-poppingly expensive).

Fake Jared And His Friends: Author Solutions' Misleading PR Strategies

Democratization or Disinformation? (ASI's misleading "white paper" on independent" publishing).

Posts by others:

Writer and editor Emily Suess is a relentless critic of ASI, and has exposed many of its business practices and collected many complaints from unhappy authors who've used its services.

Mick Rooney of The Independent Publishing Magazine has a long piece on the Giskan Solotaroff investigation and related matters.

Author and blogger David Gaughran deconstructs the ASI empire.

Second-Class Contracts? Deal Terms at Random House's Hydra Imprint

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 15:46:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

Over the past few years, more and more trade publishers have created digital-only imprints. Another new one just popped up in my newsfeed today: Little, Brown UK's Blackfriars will be launching its first list this coming June.

Last November, there was some excitement over three brand new digital imprints from Random House: Hydra for SF/fantasy, Alibi for mysteries and thrillers, and Flirt for the is-it-or-isn't-it category of New Adult. I was interested by the fact that these new lines were pitched in language reminiscent of self-publishing services:

Under this program, authors will have a complete and unique publishing package. Every book will be assigned to an accomplished Random House editor and a dedicated publicist. They will also have the invaluable support of Random House’s experienced marketing and digital sales teams, who know how to reach out to and expand each book’s dedicated readership. Not only will authors benefit from working with the finest cover designers to ensure irresistibly eye-catching books, but they will also be offered the unique advantage of social media tools and training that will allow them to connect directly with their readers. To reach the widest possible readership, every title will be available for purchase at major e-retailers and will be compatible with all reading devices.

I wasn't alone in this impression--much of the news coverage of the new imprints speculated that Random House was attempting to snag self-publishers, what with the imprints' focus on short content, their willingness to accept previously-published books, and their literary-agent-optional submission procedure.

Authors who are accepted by Hydra and the others will have access to professional editors and designers, and will benefit from Random House's publicity team--just as with conventional imprints. If they desire the prestige of being able to say they're published by Random House, they'll have that too.

Even so, I can't help feeling that, with digital-only or digital-mostly imprints, print-based publishers are offering a kind of second-class publication. Ebooks are still experiencing triple-digit growth, but they're only one of several formats, and publishing in a single format limits your audience. For volume sales, print is still important, and a lot of book discovery still happens in bookstores. There's also the fragility of digital content, where formats are regularly and rapidly rendered obsolete by the advance of technology.

It seems to me that digital imprints require authors to embrace the limitations of digital publishing, without providing any of the offsetting advantages that are available to digital self-publishers--namely, control over format and pricing, and the freedom of not being tied to a restrictive contract. Meanwhile, the publisher can push books into a growing marketplace at a much lower cost than with a conventional imprint, and reap the profits.

Perhaps I'm just too conditioned from having grown up, and begun my writing career, in a time when print was all there was. Not that I'm anti-digital, or resistant to new technology--quite the opposite. But I'm willing to admit that my reservations about digital imprints may have something to do with the fact that I prefer to read print, and am sad at the thought that we're heading for a future in which many books will never have physical existence.

On the other hand...what if digital imprints are offering second-class contracts?

I recently saw the deal terms for Random House's Hydra imprint. A summary:

- It's a life-of-copyright contract that includes both primary and subsidiary rights.

- There's no advance. Net proceeds (defined as net income plus subrights income less the deductions detailed below) are split 50/50 between author and publisher.

- Deductions for ebook edition: "one-time out of pocket title set up costs" (editing, cover art, design, etc.), plus a "sales, marketing, and publicity fee" of 10% of net sales revenue.

- Deductions for print edition, if there is one: "actual direct out-of-pocket paper, printing and binding costs," plus 6% of gross sales revenue to cover freight and warehousing costs.

Note that authors are not being asked to pay any costs upfront (despite that scary "out of pocket" term). Hydra "advances" those.

However, the costs are deducted from sales and licensing income, and reduce the amount of the author-publisher split. This is reminiscent of what's known as Hollywood accounting, where net proceeds are made to disappear by charging expenses against profit. Authors going into a deal like this can't be certain of what they will earn on a per-book basis--while the publisher is assured that its expenses will be recouped at the point of sale.

I should also note that I've seen only one Hydra deal memo to date. But the author who contacted me was given to understand that these are Hydra's (and by extension, Flirt's and Alibi's) standard offer terms, and I've heard anecdotal reports of other authors who've received similar or identical offers. Hydra does seem to be willing to negotiate--but publishers don't usually budge very far on core items like royalty splits.

If Random House indeed intends to reach out to self-publishers with these new imprints, it may want to re-think its contract terms. It's hard for me to imagine even moderately successful self-publishers finding a deal like this attractive.

Why Not to Register Copyright for Unpublished Work

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 18:32:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

If you have an unpublished manuscript that you're shopping to agents and/or publishers, or considering self-publishing, there's no need to register your copyright prior to publication.

Why?

Well, for one thing, you're fully protected by copyright law from the moment you fix your work in tangible form (write down the words). In countries that have an official copyright registration process--and many don't--registration provides no additional copyright protection.

It does confer various legal benefits. Where available, official registration provides prima facie evidence of copyright ownership that can be used in court. In the US only, registration is a pre-requisite for filing a copyright infringement lawsuit.

However, you are not in danger of copyright infringement at the submission stage. Many authors have an unreasonable fear of theft by agents and publishers--but good agents and publishers won't risk their reputations this way, and in any case it's easier just to work with you than go to all the trouble of stealing your work and pretending it belongs to someone else. As for bad agents and publishers...they aren't interested in your work at all, only in your money.

It's not until your manuscript is about to be exposed to a large audience--i.e., published--that you need to think about copyright registration. If you publish with a larger publishing house, the publisher will take care of this for you. For small presses, you may have to take care of it on your own. Ditto for self-publishing (you may be able to pay the service to register for you, but this will always be more expensive than doing it yourself).

By the way, don't be confused by the many faux registration services (such as this one or this one). Whatever datestamping or timestamping they provide is not a substitute for official registration--and possibly won't hold up in court, since it can be faked. So-called "poor man's copyright"--putting a manuscript in an envelope, mailing it to yourself, and retaining it unopened--is similarly useless, though it's often touted online as a cheap registration substitute.

Why else might you want to avoid registering copyright for unpublished work? You may be solicited by questionable companies. Vanity publishers and dodgy literary agents have long used copyright registration lists (and magazine subscription lists) to troll for customers. Dorrance Publishing--an old-line vanity publisher that has re-tooled itself for the digital age--is a particular offender in this regard. Here's an example, recently received by a writer who knew better than to respond:

Dear [name redacted],

One of our researchers has discovered your manuscript titled, [title redacted], registered with the Library of Congress and has forwarded your name to me as a possible candidate for publication with our company.

As an author, you are probably aware of (and perhaps have experienced) some of the problems of trying to get your work published by a commercial publisher. Just having your manuscript read by most commercial publishers is difficult and usually involves long delays.

Dorrance Publishing Company, Inc. provides a practical alternative for consideration by authors of book length fiction and nonfiction manuscripts, collections of poetry, collections of short stories, children’s books, etc., who wish to see their works in print.

The Dorrance name has been associated with a tradition of quality author services since 1920. I welcome the opportunity to discuss our services with you and to review your manuscript to determine whether it meets our requirements for publication, and if so, if we can be of help. You may submit your completed, typewritten manuscript to me for a no-fee, no-obligation review.

Also, I will be happy to send you a complimentary copy of our 32-page brochure, Author's Guide to Subsidy Publishing. The brochure outlines our publishing programs, including the manner in which we mechanically edit, design, produce, and promote our books.

The email goes on to provide submission instructions. Note that, except for the word "subsidy" in the last paragraph, no mention whatever is made of fees. In fact, Dorrance charges thousands of dollars to publish.

For more on copyright, see the Copyright page of the Writer Beware website.

Solicitation Alert: Close-up TV News / Close-up Talk Radio

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 18:20:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

Writer Beware has received reports that authors are receiving phone solicitations from an outfit called Close-up TV News, which describes itself as

...a premiere news magazine TV program spotlighting the most successful businesses across America. Close-Up TV News has featured hundreds of industry leaders on our shows. We are a professional News Magazine Show, viewed by millions who continue to be captivated by our intellectual, informative and entertaining storytelling style.

In fact, Close-up TV News is pay-to-play (a fact not mentioned on its website). It produces faux news segments for a fee, which businesses can then use to promote themselves. Several of the testimonials from satisfied customers confirm this--for instance, this one, this one, and this one--as does this summary of a recent indictment against a pair of timeshare telemarketers, who allegedly used a Close-up TV News segment to further their scheme to defraud consumers.

Done in the format of a news segment for the fictional “Close Up TV News,” the segment was hosted by an actor who played the host of the “People’s Court.” In this fake news segment, the reporter described Creative Vacation Solutions as “remarkably effective” in putting buyers and sellers of timeshare units together. Johnson and Todd played the role of a happy couple who owned a timeshare unit that was purportedly sold by CVS.

(Close-up TV News was not charged in connection with the scam.)

From what I can determine, authors aren't being solicited for the fake news segments, but for Close-up Talk Radio, Close-up TV News's Blog Talk Radio channel. Authors are told that they are one of just three who've been chosen from a carefully-selected list of 30 writers, with the goal of finding a single author to receive huge promotion and marketing support, including several Close-up Talk Radio interviews, during the month of March. It's promised that this marketing and promo will make them a best-seller.

The catch? Close-up claims it will "invest" $40,000 of its own resources in scripts for the interviews, email blasts, and other promotion...but the author must share the burden by kicking in $5,000. And authors must make up their minds fast! The promo happens in March, and Close-up needs an answer ASAP.

If the fee isn't a tipoff, the supposed time pressure should be. Pay-to-play schemes don't want you to make a considered decision; they want you to feel rushed, so you'll be more likely to make an impulse decision.

Close-up is not unique. Many other pay-to-play media schemes are out there--for instance, Global Talk Radio, where guests pay to be interviewed on Internet radio, and The Balancing Act, the pay-to-play ($5,900) Lifetime TV show. But Close-up's recent solicitations are certainly among the more deceptive I've heard about.

Writer beware. Even if they don't try to fool you into buying, this sort of thing is not a good use of your money.

Solicitation Alert: Blessed Hope Publishing

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 18:28:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

Recently I received a question about an apparently new Christian publisher, Blessed Hope Publishing. The writer who contacted me was suspicious because Blessed Hope had not only solicited his manuscript, but had accepted it within a matter of days.

Blessed Hope expounds upon its mission thus (their emphasis):

Blessed Hope Publishing’s mission is to spread out the Word of God through manuscripts written on Christianity. The grace of God has been revealed by Jesus Christ who brings salvation to all people. Although this grace is often described as a treasure, we believe that this gift should not be jealously hidden, but should on the contrary be shared to the world.

To this end, the company offers a range of services, including book production, marketing, and distribution--all of which, it emphasizes, are free to the author.

To anyone who is savvy in the wiles of Internet-based publishing, it will be immediately apparent that Blessed Hope isn't a publisher, but an author mill (despite its relatively small--so far--catalog). Its earnest mission statement isn't an expression of faith: it's a cynical marketing ploy designed to draw in Christian writers, who often are more trusting of those who self-identify as Christian.

And that's not all. Here, and on every page of the website, Blessed Hope's parent organization is listed: AV Akademikerverlag GmbH & Co. KG. This company, in turn, is a subsidiary of Verlag Dr. Mueller, a.k.a. VDM Publishing Group--a veritable octopus of author mills all using the same M.O., and notorious for their out-of-the-blue author solicitations, eye-popping book prices, crappy publishing agreement, and frequent sprouting of brand-new tentacles (such as Blessed Hope).

I've blogged about Verlag Dr. Mueller and one of its tentacles, JustFiction Edition. Others have blogged about LAP Lambert Academic Publishing and Alphascript/Betascript Publishing, whose specialty is turning Wikipedia entries and websearches into "biographies" (here's mine). Bottom line: these companies are the very definition of why you need to always be wary of unsolicited invitations to submit your work for publication.

Blessed Hope's Terms and Conditions (a.k.a. publishing contract), which you can see here, are the same as those for other VDM tentacles. Among other unpleasant things:

- It's an exclusive life-of-copyright world rights grant term with no provision whatever for rights reversion other than the publisher's discretion in discontinuing publication if sales fall below 50 copies in a year. In other words, the publisher can hold onto your rights for as long as it chooses, and you have no recourse for getting them back.

- Royalties are 12% of net, paid just once a year. Moreover, if "monthly average royalties" during any account period are less than €50, you don't get paid (my bolding):

the Author shall, instead of a royalty payment, receive a book voucher to the same value which he may freely redeem for all titles produced by the Publisher and by all further publishing houses within the publishing group via the online shops affiliated with the Publisher.

I'm guessing that VDM and its tentacles write few, if any, royalty checks.

- If the publisher decides you've breached any of a long list of warranties, it can not only remove your work from sale, but charge you €1,000.

- Last but not least, the publisher rationalizes failure in advance in true author-mill style (my bolding):

The Publisher shall act at his own just and fair discretion in attempting to market the work of the Author in the best possible manner. Notwithstanding this, the specific level of demand for and thematic field of the respective work may mean that purchase interest is so low as to lead to no or very few sales successes.

If you ever see a disclaimer like this in a publishing contract, it's as good as a guarantee of sales approaching zero.

A Partridge in a Penguin Tree

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 18:01:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

India is a vast book market, and print is still king. So it only makes sense that Penguin (whose parent company, Pearson, acquired self-publishing giant Author Solutions Inc. last year) has just announced the expansion of ASI into India via its new "imprint," Partridge.

According to the official Penguin press release,

Through this imprint, Indian authors now have access to the widest range of professional publishing and marketing services that meet the best publishing industry standards, but are appropriately priced for the Indian market.

The press release emphasizes--not once, but twice--that "Penguin Books India will be watching key Partridge titles with hopes of picking up authors for the Penguin list." This claim is prominent also on the Partridge website:

Penguin is watching Partridge India

Penguin Books India has established itself as the country's largest English language book publisher over the past twenty-five years. Its authors are regarded as India's literary royalty, having won Nobel Prizes, Magsaysay Awards, Jnanpith Awards, Sahitya Akademi Awards, and Commonwealth Writers Prizes, to name a few. Now Penguin will also be watching Partridge India titles that have sales velocity and authors who have a platform for possible acquisition.

Who could resist such a juicy carrot? Whether it is a real or phantom carrot remains to be seen.

Partridge offers a familiar ASI-style range of fetchingly-named publishing packages, starting with the "Coral" (Rs 12,450, around $240) and running all the way up to the "Diamond" (Rs 149,950, around $2,775). Prices are in the low range for ASI services (compare with AuthorHouse, which runs from $749 to $4,249, or Trafford, which runs from $599 to $10,999).

There's also a small (by the standards of the American ASI brands) suite of "marketing" services, some of which are cheaper than the same services offered elsewhere in the ASI universe. Compare Partridge's standard book video, at Rs 86,500 ($1,600) to the $2,699 charged by for this service by ASI's American brands. (Perhaps production costs in India are lower?) A press release blast is also cheaper--Rs 16,200 ($299) for Partridge's Essential Press Release, compared with $429 for the American version.

Other marketing services, however, will cost Indian authors more. For example, Partridge's website creation service will set an Indian author back Rs 25,400 ($470), whereas American ASI brands charge $379. A DIY audiobook from Partridge costs Rs 37,800 ($699), not so very much more than the American version of this service at $649--but that's only if the book is 300 pages or less. For 300-600 pages, an Indian author must hand over Rs 48,600, or $899.

And check out the markup on the Kirkus Indie Review. You can buy one of these yourself, directly from Kirkus, for $425 (or $575, if you want it faster). But if Partridge facilitates your Kirkus Indie Review, prepare to surrender Rs 86,500 ($1,600).

Indian authors should also be aware that unless they obtain a foreign tax number, Partridge must withhold 30% of their royalty earnings. Partridge's FAQ also provides US copyright information only, possibly encouraging Indian authors to incorrectly believe they must register copyright in the US in order to have legal standing to sue for infringement elsewhere.

Orphan Works: Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Weighs In

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 17:59:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

The issue of orphan works--out of print, still-in-copyright books, films, photographs, etc. whose rightsholders can't be found--is one that has been much in the news over the past few years.

Concern over a potential monopoly on orphan works was a major component of the criticism of the now-defunct Google Book Settlement, which sought to resolve authors' and publishers' objections to Google's unauthorized scanning of in-copyright books.

Orphan works also played a major part in the Authors Guild's recent lawsuit against a number of US universities, which combined digitized books--including unauthorized scans provided by Google--into a repository called HathiTrust. HathiTrust's proposed Orphan Works project, which was intended to make the full text of selected orphaned books available for faculty and student download, was put on hold after the Authors Guild demonstrated that HathiTrust's research process was flawed, and many of the books included in the project weren't orphans at all. The courts subsequently ruled against the Authors Guild on the larger issue of the Google scans, deeming them fair use--but it didn't address the question of orphan works.

Why should we worry about orphan works? A good summary of the importance of this issue is provided by former US Register of Copyrights, MaryBeth Peters:

The problem is pervasive. Our study recounts the challenges that publishers, film makers, museums, libraries, universities, and private citizens, among others, have had in managing risk and liability when a copyright owner cannot be identified or located. In testimony before the Senate, a filmmaker spoke of the historically significant images that are removed from documentaries and never reach the public because ownership cannot be determined. In testimony before the House, the U.S. Holocaust Museum spoke of the millions of pages of archival documents, photographs, oral histories, and reels of film that it and other museums cannot publish or digitize.

The problem has been created, in part, by the changing provisions of copyright. Copyright used to be dependent upon rightsholders' obligation to register their works; if works weren't timely registered or re-registered, they fell into the public domain. Now protection is automatic, with no need for registration, and the term of copyright has been extended far beyond authors' lifetimes. The unintended result is a huge pool of orphan works--whose rights no one is managing, and whose content no one can use. (How huge? It's estimated that in Europe alone, over 3 million books--13% of all in-copyright books--are orphans.)

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America has long been concerned with the issue of orphan works, and has just provided comments in response to the Copyright Office's Notice of Inquiry on Orphan Works and Mass Digitization. I've reproduced a summary of SFWA's comments below; the full statement (which includes a fascinating discussion of the efforts of SFWA's Estate Project) can be seen here.

-------------------------------------------------

COMMENTS CONCERNING ORPHAN WORKS
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc. (SFWA)
P.O. Box 3238
Enfield, CT 06083-3238

SUMMARY OF COMMENTS

The problem with orphan works and the use of orphan works centers on the problem of determining when a work is truly orphan and the standards of due diligence required of the prospective user before a work can be used. The majority of the works that are now in question and are proposed to be orphan works are not, in fact, orphans by any reasonable definition.

We believe that the Copyright Office’s request for comments in this matter errs in suggesting a standard for declaring a work orphan when a “a good faith, prospective user cannot readily identify
and/or locate the copyright owner(s).” This standard is too low. While good faith is essential, there must be a standard of due diligence for any such search. We suggest that the Copyright Office’s 2005 language requiring “a reasonably diligent search” is more appropriate.

As a working definition, we suggest: “An orphan work is an original work of authorship for which a good faith, prospective user cannot locate the owner(s) of the publishing rights it seeks after a reasonably diligent search in a situation where permission from the publishing rights owner(s) is necessary as a matter of law.” For the purposes of this commentary, only textual works for which some or all of the publishing rights owners can be identified will be addressed, as SFWA believes that works in which there is no easily and inexpensively searchable identifying information, such as photographs, should be treated separately.

We believe there are several actions that the Copyright Office should undertake regarding orphan works.

A) The Copyright Office should define due diligence when it comes to the obligations of a prospective publisher of a work to undertake a reasonable search for the rightsholder. It should be made clear that such due diligence is necessary to determine if a work is, in fact, an orphan work. The initial assumption underlying any search for the rightsholder must be that there is a rightsholder who can be found, and not that the work is an orphan. The Copyright Office should use the rulemaking process to define due diligence.

B) The Copyright Office should establish an Author Information Directory containing author contact information and information about authors’ works. The Directory should draw upon existing records and allow authors to easily obtain a unique identification number, and should be searchable by anyone seeking to find a copyright holder. The same approach could be used for photographs and graphic works.

C) A process should be established, either through a rulemaking procedure or through statute, requiring payments for use of orphan works into an escrow fund managed by the Copyright Office or an organization it designates.

D) The Copyright Office should clarify and simplify the procedure for registering freelance contributions to periodicals, anthologies, and other collective works.

E) The Copyright Office should state, whether as part of a rulemaking on orphan works or otherwise, that failure to perform due diligence in attempting to find the rightsholder should be the most important factor considered when a court determines whether to award enhanced damages for infringement.

-------------------------------------------------------------

A sampling of other responses to the Copyright Office's Notice of Inquiry:

National Writers Union
National Press Photographers' Association
Carnegie Mellon University
Microsoft Corporation

Christian Writers Guild Publishing: Pay to Play from Jerry B. Jenkins

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 17:14:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

Earlier this week, a press release caught my eye: Bestselling Author Jerry Jenkins Announces Innovative Publishing Firm. Since "innovative" in publishing press release-speak often means "charges a whopping fee", I decided to investigate.

Per the press release,

To help aspiring writers achieve their publishing dreams, Jenkins is launching Christian Writers Guild Publishing (CWGP). He says it will be different from other custom publishing houses in that it features Published, a six-month course mentored by an experienced author. When students with works-in-progress complete the course, CWGP will publish their books -- providing a copy editor, proofreader, cover and type designer, eBook formatter, printer, and a free package of promotion, marketing, and social media materials, everything the writer needs for a successful book launch. "This is different from self-publishing," Jenkins says. "It's mentored, coached, and educated publishing. We come alongside through this course and surround them with seasoned industry professionals."

According to PW, this new "come-alongside publishing" venture represents an "about-face" for Jenkins, who had previously opposed self-publishing. However, he recently experienced an "epiphany:"

Despite the best efforts of his guild's training, he said, not enough new authors have been able to land deals with traditional publishers, in part because houses continue to insist that authors have a significant "platform." As a result, "good, passionate authors are ignored because they're unknown," Jenkins told PW.

I have a feeling that the epiphany had at least as much to do with dollar signs. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

CWGP's required 6-month Published course consists of 12 lessons with titles such as "Presenting Yourself as a Professional," "The Writer and the Creative Process," "Characterization," and "Writing in Scenes"--all, by the descriptions, very basic stuff aimed at beginning writers. Course participants are paired with mentors, who are described as "published author[s] who will come alongside and walk you through our Published course, showing you how to turn your manuscript into a book that will keep readers turning the pages." (Novelists take note: of the seven mentors, only one is a fiction specialist.)

At the end of the course: publishing! Before you get too excited, the services included in the CWGP "Premier" publishing package really don't look much different from the lower-end packages offered by most self-publishing service providers. True, there are some extras--copy editing, a book on social media marketing--but the basics--ISBN assignment, design and formatting, cover art, ebook creation--are standard-issue.

So how much does all this cost? According to the Registration page, publishing through CWGP will set you back a cool $9,995. And that's just if your book is 75,000 words or less (for longer word counts, there's a surcharge) and you don't want custom interior design or "substantive content editing" (also extra). It's also not clear to me--either from CWGP's own description of the package or the contract, which can be seen here--whether any distribution is provided. In fact, the wording of the contract kind of suggests it isn't (my bolding):

The Author is responsible for the marketing and distribution of the Work, though CWGP will provide free helps and optional resources to aid in this effort.

Can CWGP really be expecting authors to pay nearly $10,000 for a path to publication that doesn't even get their books into retail channels? Even the dreaded Author Solutions imprints do better than that. (I contacted CWGP to pose this question; as of this writing, I haven't heard back.)

Even with distribution, $9.995 is a hell of a lot of money. You could buy a similar publishing package from Lulu for around $1,600, or put together an equivalent suite of services a la carte from CreateSpace for around $1,000 (assuming you don't just go ahead and use Lulu's or CreateSpace's free services). As for the writing course, there are cheaper alternatives there as well. The Long Ridge Writers' Group, for instance, offers a similar beginners'-level series of lessons--with a much wider array of qualified instructors, and more course materials--for around $1,200.

As always, the important thing when choosing a path to publishing is formulating your goals and thoroughly researching (and understanding) your options. Always remember that when you pay for publishing, you're a consumer purchasing a service--not a writer submitting to a publisher. Consume wisely: don't be swayed by hype, or by the presence of famous names.

Legal Tidbits

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 17:18:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

Author Solutions Inc. and Free Speech

In 2008, following a bitter divorce, Iowan Scott Weier paid one of the Author Solutions Inc. imprints to publish his memoir, Mind, Body, and Soul. Subsequently, Weier's ex-wife filed suit against Weier and ASI for libel, citing allegations in the memoir that she was a bad mother, had been the victim of molestation, and had a personality disorder.

An Iowa district court ruled in 2010 that, since ASI was not a media entity but rather a business paid by authors to print and distribute books, ASI was not subject to the protections of the First Amendment and should be treated like any other private defendant. This freed the lawsuit to proceed against both Weier and ASI.

Weier and ASI appealed the ruling to the Iowa Supreme Court. Last week, the Court handed down a majority ruling denying Weier's appeal but granting ASI's and dismissing it from the suit. The court held that ASI is in fact a media entity, and thus entitled to free speech protections. According to the Associated Press,

Friday’s ruling extends free-speech protections long enjoyed by newspapers and broadcasters to companies that distribute Internet content, such as book publishers...The definition of media goes beyond businesses that report news, the justices found, extending protections now to any person or company that receives writings and makes them “more suitable and accessible for the public to read.”

The full ruling, which experts deem "significant," can be read here.

There's more to the case than just this--Weier and ASI had wanted the court to strike down Iowa's doctrine of libel per se, eliminating the distinction between media and non-media defendants that makes it easier to bring a defamation suit against individuals--which the court refused to do. Also, the ruling is significant for the precedent it sets in giving protection to Internet content providers, rather than for any benefit it affords to ASI in particular.

Still, it's interesting to contrast this outcome with a similar defamation lawsuit brought against ASI imprint AuthorHouse in 2006. In that lawsuit, the plaintiff won--AuthorHouse was ordered to pay nearly $500,000 in damages--and the court's treatment of AuthorHouse as a non-media entity wasn't challenged.

Lance Armstrong and Digruntled Readers

You knew it was coming. Two California book buyers are suing Lance Armstrong and his publishers, Penguin Group and Random House, for various allegations, including false advertising, over his two autobiographical books, It's Not About the Bike and Every Second Counts.

The two plaintiffs seek to represent other California buyers of Armstrong’s books to recover unspecified damages against Armstrong and Penguin Group (USA) Inc., the publisher of “It’s Not About the Bike,” and against Random House Inc., the publisher of “Every Second Counts.”

They accuse Armstrong and the publishers of marketing the books as “true and honest” works of nonfiction and allege they violated California laws against unfair competition and false advertising, among other allegations.

This isn't the first lawsuit of this kind, and the results have been mixed. Last April, a class action by readers against Greg Mortenson, who allegedly fabricated portions of his bestselling book Three Cups of Tea, and his publisher, Penguin, was dismissed.

In 2011, James Frey and Random House were sued by readers over alleged fabrications in Frey's memoir, A Million Little Pieces. Frey and his publisher settled without admitting wrongdoing.

In 1998, Disney Hyperion was sued by readers over book jacket claims on the five bestselling Beardstown Ladies' Common-Sense Investment Guides, after the ladies' claimed return rate was proven to be false. In 2002 Disney settled, allowing book owners to select a free book from a list of other Hyperion titles.

Do you know of others? Post them in the comments.

Venerable Vanity Publisher Vantage Press Closes Its Doors

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 18:12:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

You may have heard that Vantage Press, one of the USA's oldest vanity publishers, closed its doors at the end of 2012. PW reported on this in December:

In a letter to creditors received by PW, law firm Hendel & Collins of Springfield, Mass. writes, “Vantage does not have sufficient revenue to sustain itself as a going concern. It has, therefore, ceased all business operations.” The Web site and phone for Vantage are down and all inquiries are being directed to Hendel & Collins partner Joseph B. Collins in Springfield. The letter cites “substantial” liabilities to general and unsecured creditors against which Vantage has few assets.

Vantage was found in 1949 as a classic vanity press operation, with authors paying a premium to the company to print and bind their books. Like so many vanity publishers, however, Vantage engaged in deceptive advertising. In 1958, the FTC issued an order prohibiting the company from claiming that it was selective and that it aggressively promoted its books. In 1977, a class action lawsuit was brought against Vantage for similar misleading claims. The courts eventually awarded 2,200 authors more than $3.5 million in punitive damages.

(For a fascinating and detailed discussion of the arguments and counter-arguments in the case, see this article by Jonathan L. Kirsch. The dispute about what a publisher is and isn't, and what should be defined as publishing--as opposed to printing--will seem very familiar to observers of newer vanities like PublishAmerica.)

In recent years, Vantage had attempted to adapt to the changing publishing landscape by re-branding itself as a self-publishing service, while still charging the same enormous fees. The company was purchased in late 2009 by investment banker David Lamb, who set out to upgrade Vantage's systems. Among other initiatives, he added trade publishing imprints Vantage Point Books and Andover Press, and arranged for Vantage books to be distributed by Ingram Publisher Services. (As of this writing the Vantage Point website is still live, though I've seen a report from one Vantage Point author who was told by Ingram that, per instructions from Vantage's lawyers, books from the imprint are no longer being shipped.)

Signs of trouble began to appear in 2012. Sometime in the summer, Vantage quietly re-located from Manhattan to Great Barrington, Mass., presumably in an effort to save money. According to self-publishing watchdog Mick Rooney of The Independent Publishing Magazine, a number of staffers left the company at around the same time. And in October, Mick started to receive complaints about communications problems, publishing delays, and payment delays.

Even so, the company's sudden collapse caught just about everyone by surprise--including its authors, many of whom hadn't even known about the move to Massachusetts. Some authors apparently were notified of the closure, but many, if not most, were not. As Rooney reported in December,

The authors I've heard from are clearly, deeply upset, angry and confused as to what is going on at Vantage Press, and understandably, following continued non-communication from the company by phone and email, have begun to record complaints with their legal authorities, online watchdogs and organisations like BBB, Ripoff Report and Work From Home Watchdog.

For Rooney, Vantage's demise is "a further sign that the heyday of self-publishing providers with a paper-centric model is dead and buried." I tend to agree. (Are you listening, Author Solutions?)

In the past couple of weeks, lawyers for David Lamb (representing Lamb personally--not the corporation) have begun sending out an update on the company's status, confirming that Vantage has ceased business operations, has no funds, and will not be making royalty or other payments (or, presumably, refunding authors who've paid for books that were in production at the time of closure). (Click here for a .pdf of the update.) Attached to the update is an Assignment and Release Agreement by which, in return for a release of rights, the author

irrevocably releases and discharges Vantage from all debts, claims, actions, demands, causes of action, suits, accounts, covenants, contracts, agreements, damages, and any and all claims, demands and liabilities whatsoever of every name and nature, both in law and in equity, that Author holds against Vantage, its affiliates, agents, attorneys, officers, directors, and employees, expressly including claims for royalties now owed, earned, or as may be earned in future sales, up to and including the date of this Agreement.

Vantage also promises to provide a full accounting of sales, and to return source and production materials for books that were in process at the time of the closure but haven't yet been published--but only if authors sign and return the Release. Clearly this is an effort to head off not just payment demands, but lawsuits (one possible reason that authors have a very small window for return of the Release: just until January 31).

Vantage's contract required an exclusive grant of rights, so getting a release is crucial for writers who want to re-publish their books--even if they plan to self-publish. However, although I am not a lawyer, it seems to me that a class action lawsuit is a real possibility in this case, and if you sign the release, you won't be able to participate. Nor will you be able to sue individually.

On the other hand, even if there is a suit, the chances of getting your money back are slim--so you may feel that getting a quick rights reversion is the best outcome for you. If Vantage goes into bankruptcy, it's likely that your rights will be tied up until the court decides to release them, as Vantage's contracts will be considered potential assets that could be sold to satisfy creditors (US courts don't typically honor bankruptcy and liquidation clauses in publishing contracts). For more information on publisher bankruptcies, see here and here.

Another question, to which I don't know the answer (any attorneys who are reading, please chime in in the comments): if Vantage does go into bankruptcy, will the Release be honored by the courts, given that it was (presumably) sent out in order to reduce the company's liabilities after it closed its doors?

Whatever their situation, I urge Vantage authors to get legal advice from an attorney who has experience in publishing law, before deciding what to do. On the Legal Recourse page of Writer Beware, there are some suggestions about how to go about this, including links to lawyer referral services.

Rooney has established Vantage Press Authors Together, a Facebook group for Vantage authors to share their experiences. I'll be updating this story as information comes in.

Alert: UK Speaker Scam Targets Writers (and Others)

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 18:13:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

John Scalzi reported on this scam earlier this week, and his post was widely disseminated on Twitter--but since not everyone reads the same blogs, and the scam is a recurring one that isn't limited to science fiction and fantasy writers, I thought it was worth covering here.

Writers should watch out for this spam that's currently actively doing the rounds:

From: Arthur peterson [bexleycollegeoflondon@gmail.com]
To: [email address redacted]
Date: January 5, 2013 at 7:23 PM
Subject: BEXLEY COLLEGE HALF TERM BREAK SEMINAR.

Greetings [name redacted],

I am Prof. Arthur Peterson from Bexley College (Holly Hill Campus) here in London UK. We are officially writing to invite you and confirm your booking as our guest Speaker at this Year Bexley college Seminar which will take place here at the campus ground.

Bexley College (Holly Hill Campus).

The Venue as follows:
VENUE: Upper Holly Hill Road Belvedere, Kent
London, United Kingdom
POST CODE: DA17 6HF
Expected audience: 450 people(mainly students & invited guest). Duration of speech per speaker: 1 Hour
Name of Organization: Bexley College Campus.
Topic: ”Mystery of Life and Death”
Date: 18th February 2013

We reached your profile at http:// www.aboutsf.com// and we say it’s up to standard. The College will be so glad to have such an outstanding personality as you in our midst for these overwhelming gathering. Arrangements to welcome you here will be discussed as soon as you honor our invitation. If you have any more publicity material you wish to share with us, please do not hesitate to contact me.

An Official Formal Letter of invitation and Contract agreement would be sent to you from the College as soon as you honor our Invitation. The College have also promised to be taking care of all your travel and Hotel Accommodation expenses including your Speaking Fee.

If you are available for this date, include your speaking fees in your reply for it to be included in the DOCUMENTATIONS.

Stay Blessed
Prof. Arthur Peterson
Bexley College (Holly Hill Campus).

Tel: + 44 702 407 0611

This is a long-running scam (I got reports of it last year, with a different university, "professor", and address harvesting) that has been around at least since 2009 (Googling "British speaker scam" brings up a number of articles and posts, several with extensive comments from others who've been solicited). The institution isn't always a university; sometimes it's a church, sometimes it's a conference, sometimes it's a fake organization of some kind, as in this recent solicitation aimed at female business speakers. Otherwise, the details are the same.

How exactly do the scammers rip you off? Various theories have been floated: a phone scam that overcharges you for an overseas call, getting hold of your banking information, overpaying your speaker's fee (with a fake check) and asking you to send back the balance right away. My own guess was travel fees.

In reality, it's fake work permit fees.

This article by Patrick Schwerdtfeger, from May 2012, details how the process works. The mark is told s/he must pay a "Government (United Kingdom) Main Application Fee for a UK work permit" of several hundred pounds. Once that money is sent, the scammers ask for more:

Non-Briton Immigrants coming into the United Kingdom and taking up a legally paid job will need to secure their stay with a bond otherwise referred to as a repatriation fee...The Home office has required that such applicants pay a refundable sum of 2,500GBP as a ‘Bond’ to enact their stay. As soon as they get back to their respective countries, the fee will be paid back to them in full.

There you have it.

Looking closely at the solicitation I've reproduced above, there are plenty of scam "tells." Still, for someone who does regular speaking engagements, and for whom an out-of-the-blue invitation is not unusual, there's least some degree of surface plausibility. Mr. Schwerdtfeger confesses that he was taken in by the first phase of the scam, and one of the writers I've heard from was very nearly taken in as well.

Good reason to treat any unsolicited invitation with caution.

Global Talk Radio: How to Waste Money and Fail to Influence People

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 16:41:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

You'd think that dodgy publishers, publicists, and others would know better than to spam Writer Beware. But no. Disproving the frequent spammer claim that their email lists are carefully targeted, I get quite a substantial number of advertisements, press releases, and solicitations.

Today's solicitation (which I've reproduced below) comes from Global Talk Radio, an Internet radio network. It encourages me to sign up for a "promotional interview" that "might open doors to new opportunities."

The catch? GTR is vanity radio. Hosts pay to have shows; guests pay to be interviewed. The carrot? A supposedly large, fast-growing, "highly targeted" audience. GTR's actual audience metrics, however, say something a bit different.

On GTR's front page, there's a screenshot of its traffic ranking from Ranking.com, under the headline "Global Talk Radio's traffic surges!" The screenshot appears to show a big jump--from the 180,000 range into the 100,000 range over the course of a few months. However, if you look closely, you'll see that these figures are from 2009 and early 2010. 2012 figures from Ranking.com peg GTR right down around 180,000 again. Three years later, its audience hasn't actually grown at all.

The info from Quantcast, which measures actual visitors, isn't any more encouraging. Even if, as GTR claims, "traffic monitoring sites tend to only track about 10% of a website's true traffic," 15,000 visitors a month is not exactly a mass audience. Last but not least, GTR's Alexa ranking is far from impressive (compare, for instance, with the ranking for this blog).

Audiences for individual shows will vary, obviously. But overall, buying an interview on GTR is not likely to get you a lot of exposure. As I say so often here and elsewhere--there are better uses for your promotional dollar.

You do get to download a FREE MP3 of your interview, which you can post on your website. To those who don't know how GTR works, it will look satisfyingly official--right alongside your faux award from Reader's Favorite and your claim of Amazon bestsellerdom based on your #2 position on the Spiritual Fantasy Novels for Teenage Misfits list.

Here's a new and FUN way to promote your book!

Talk about it "on the air" in your own words... reach a highly-targeted audience and you might open doors to new opportunities! By some estimates, there are over 1,000,000 million books and e-books published every year (that's 2700 per day) -- A RADIO INTERVIEW CAN SET YOU APART FROM EVERYONE ELSE!

Global Talk Radio produces 5-minute and 10-minute professional interviews with authors and entrepreneurs for our top-rated "In The News" program. Interviews are pre-recorded by telephone, and you supply "talking points" to help focus the conversation on what is most important. Recent guests included Emmy-nominated writer/producer Dr. Kenneth Atchity, authors Melvin Abercrombie and Kimball Carr, health expert Dr. Herb Ross, executive success coach Susan Freeman, and business owner Cristine Berensohn. You could be next!

Your promotional interview includes:

A professional interview, recorded by phone

Your interview is posted on our station's site indefinitely

Your archive is fed into Google and other search engines via keywords

You will also receive "honorable mention" on our home page

GTR will hyperlink your archive to a website or web page of your choice

You can download a FREE MP3 copy of the interview

THIS WEEK ONLY!! Send us your picture or graphic, and we'll post it with a link back to your website!

Hurry! Only 5 guest spots are available! (Promotion ends Friday, January 11th and is first-come, first-served.)

5-minute interviews... ONLY $97 (regularly $200)
10-minute interviews... ONLY $147 (regularly $300)

Sign-up is easy. Please visit us at http://www.globaltalkradio.com/publicityworks.htm for details and to book a guest spot. (Limited spots are available, first-come first-served. Not all applications will be approved.)

All the best,

Jen Harris
Global Talk Radio
406 Amapola Avenue #210
Torrance, CA 90501

2012: Year in Review

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 17:35:00 +0000

Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware

As we begin the new year (Writer Beware's fifteenth--good heavens!), here's a look back at some of Writer Beware's most notable posts and warnings from 2012.

JANUARY

The Delmont-Ross Writing Contest: The Saga of a Fake Literary Competition: The amazing tale of serial conman Mitchell Gross, a.k.a. Mitchell Graham, who created a fake literary competition to promote his debut fantasy trilogy. Gross was later arrested and indicted for bilking several women out of millions of dollars. (See Ann's followup post, on Gross's attempt to bribe her into silence.)

FEBRUARY

Why Poets Should Not Seek Literary Agents: What many poets don't realize: reputable literary agents rarely represent poets (it's just not a lucrative enough field) and those who claim to do so are usually either inexpert or fraudulent.("Literary agents for poets", or something similar, is one of the most frequent search phrases that brings writers to this blog.)

MARCH

When a Writing Contest Has a Hidden Agenda: Some writing contests aren't really contests at all, but ways for their sponsors to make money on entrants. This post discusses some of these sneaky techniques, from charging high entry fees, to selling merchandise to winners, to using entrants as a database for paid publishing solicitations.

New French Law Seizes Digital Rights: This legislation was ostensibly intended to address the problem of orphan works, but in fact goes much farther: under the law, any book published in France before 2001 can be scanned into a database without authors' permission, and if authors--who may or may not be notified of their inclusion--don't opt out within six months, they lose control of the digital display and sale of their work. A really shocking seizure of rights.

Publishing Industry Terms and Contracts: Some Resources, and Some Advice: Confused about publishing industry terminology? Want to learn more about publishing contracts? This post provides a host of helpful online resources, plus some general cautions about small press contracts.

Alert: Raider Publishing International/Purehaven Press: Raider Publishing is the subject of serious author complants (both made directly to Writer Beware and posted online), including publication delays, quality issues, non-payment of royalties, communications problems, and broken promises.

APRIL

The DOJ's Ebook Price Fixing Lawsuit Against Apple and the "Agency Five": An Overview: A discussion of the issues involved in the Department of Justice's lawsuit against Apple and five major publishers for alleged ebook price fixing, and the possible implications of dismantling the agency pricing system. (At the time I wrote this post, only HarperCollins, Hachette, and Simon & Schuster had agreed to settle with the DOJ; since then, Penguin has also agreed to settle. Macmillan remains the lone holdout.)

The Importance of Reversion Clauses in Book Contracts: Why reversion clauses are important (especially in life-of-copyright contracts) and why they should be precisely formulated, with examples of good contract language.

MAY

Two Surveys: Two interesting writer surveys--one of traditionally published authors, the other of self-publishers. There's some very interesting data here, some of it counter to entrenched ideas about both forms of publishing.

Editing Clauses in Publishing Contracts: How to Protect Yourself: The title of this post says it all. What you don't want to see in an editing clause, and what a good editing clause should include.

Vetting an Independent Editor: With the growth of self-publishing, more and more writers are turning to independent editors to provide the final professional polish to their work. Problem is, many of the editors who've hung out shingles on the Internet are dubiously qualified, or, in some cases, not qualified at all. This post offers advice on how to screen an independent editor for competence and quality.

JUNE

Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against PublishAmerica: Many people had high hopes that this lawsuit would result in punitive action against PublishAmerica. Sadly, it was later dismissed.

JULY

In Praise of Ripening: I occasionally host guest blog posts, and in my opinion, this is one of the year's best. Author and educator Marcia Yudkin provides a compelling discussion of the importance of taking the time to learn your craft before diving into the ever-more-accessible world of publishing.

Pearson Buys Author Solutions Inc.: For me, Pearson's purchase of troubled "self-publishing services" juggernaut Author Solutions Inc. (for a surprisingly small price, considering ASI's dominant position in the POD-based self-publishing marketplace), and its decision to fold ASI into the Penguin Group, was one of the biggest publishing news items of the year. The question now: will Pearson/Penguin make an effort to clean up ASI's tarnished reputation, or will it be business as usual (poor customer service, hard-sell marketing to authors, and deceptive advertising)?

AUGUST

Fake Jared and His Friends: A discussion of the numerous misleading advertising and marketing strategies employed by Author Solutions Inc. to promote their services.

SEPTEMBER

7 Freelance Writing Scams and How to Avoid Them: Another excellent guest blog post: freelance writer Patrick Icasas takes aim at common scams that target freelancers.

OCTOBER

Dear Agent -- Write the Letter That Sells Your Book: Yet another terrifically helpful guest blog post. Author Nicola Morgan offers a sensible, structured approach to creating compelling query letters.

NOVEMBER

Archway Publishing: Simon & Schuster Adds a Self-Publishing Division: Following in the footsteps of Thomas Nelson, Harlequin, and others, S&S has outsourced a pay-to-play publishing division to Author Solutions Inc. While I understand why such divisions are attractive to publishers--they are moneymakers that help support publishers' bottom lines--I'm very disappointed that S&S chose not just to ally itself with the most hated name in the self-publishing services world, but to make its services eye-poppingly expensive.

Publishers Hate Authors? Really? In which I debunk one of the year's stupidest HuffPo publishing posts (and that's saying something).

DECEMBER

The Albee Agency: Book Publicity Faked: In which I expose a PR agency that fabricated author testimonials. (Although even without the testimonial fakery, this would have been an agency to avoid.)

AND THE ONE IMPORTANT STORY I DIDN'T COVER:

Random Penguin: Penguin Group and Random House merge to create the world's largest publisher, reducing the "Big Six" to the "Big Four Plus Giant One."

Happy Holidays!

noreply@blogger.com (Victoria Strauss) — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 15:48:00 +0000

Writer Beware is taking time off for the holidays. Unless there's some especially major publishing news, look for us to be back after January 1.

I'll still be answering emails. To contact me: beware [at] sfwa.org.

We wish all our readers peace, happiness, and excellent writing. Thanks so much for being here, for reading and commenting and sharing your experiences and spreading the word. See you in 2013!