Okay, they've replied. This is what they sent me via e-mail today:
Dear Mr. Crane,
We have received your request to terminate your book's contract. As a
general rule, publishers are not in favor of that. When a publisher agrees
to contract a book, it is done with an expectation of entering into a
profitable venture. PublishAmerica never charges any of its authors any
money in return for producing and publishing their book and making it
available to a worldwide audience. This is why we enter into contracts with
a seven-year lifetime, which affords the book ample opportunity to turn a
profit.
If your request was granted, PublishAmerica would be denied, prematurely,
any hope of recovering its expenses. This is why we would prefer to keep the
contract in place until its expiration date. Your book is currently being
carried by major wholesalers throughout the world, and listed by numerous
vendors. Every bookstore in the U.S. and Canada has immediate access to your
work. All this at PublishAmerica's sole and recurring expense. We still
harbor a reasonable expectation that, at a minimum, your book will allow us
to break even on our investment.
Therefore, if you were to persist on wishing to relinquish your status as a
published author, we can only grant your request if you agree to a $300
damage payment, which will help to offset some of our losses. Please let us
know if you want to proceed with termination. If not, we will both
understand and applaud your decision. As said, we prefer to keep the book in
publication.
Thank you,
Darcy
Public Relations/Web
[email protected]
What should I do now?
