There are things about EP that mean I wouldn't touch them with a barge pole but really, some of the posts here leave a nasty taste in the mouth.
Ravenwing:
EP used to be in Australia, then it was taken over by Ally Robertson. (Canada) Now by all accounts she's a real lulu. Right up on the website she blethered on about her mental illness. That's right. She's manic depressive. She obviously had no sense of boundaries, or proprieties to do such a thing.
I understand that you are upset and frustrated, but this is really offensive.
If you've got actual evidence that Ally's condition had a direct effect on the running of Eternal Press then that's one thing, but labelling someone a "lulu" just for having a disorder says more about you and your attitudes than it does about her and her professionalism.
I don't know why she decided to put the fact on her biography page (to be honest, a lot of the biographies on the Eternal Press site have information that's not pertinent to the business), but I'd be more concerned by the fact that none of the staff appear to have substantial publishing experience beyond freelance work for unspecified contractors.
luvreading:
If she wanted to tell the authors, fine. But it's not appropriate right up there on the website for the world to see. That's not the correct venue for something like that. It's unprofessional. Of course, that's par for the course with Ally. I used to be an EP author, and I can tell ya I'm not proud of it. Ally should never have taken on something like that. It wasn't fair to the authors.
I don't follow your reasoning here. You seem to be saying that it's professional for her to tell her authors on a one-to-one basis, but it's not okay to put that on the company website. Given that her disorder seems to be of such concern to some posters here, I think she's well within her rights to post it onto the website because then people who aren't comfortable with it can make the decision not to submit to her if they think that that the disorder will affect the publication of their manuscript.
luvreading:
I agree. It is nobody else's business. Why Ally chose to post it all over the Internet defeats me.
Yeah well, why you and
Ravenwing feel able to use it as a stick to beat the company with defeats me.
Ravenwing:
Amen to that. This whole EP business is beginning to stink as bad as last week's fish. Why are they trying to hold onto books they say are not selling, and then when the author wants out, attempting to extort hundreds of dollars from him?
If you don't want to pay the kill fee, then the answer is to wait until the contract term expires and then serve a termination notice in accordance with the contract's terms. If you want out early and there's no provision for that in the contract, then you're stuck with whatever conditions EP wants to impose for termination.
Essentially, it's a like it or lump it situation.
Kensington:
Sorry, no sale. Ally chose to make those public herself, right on the EP website. You can't change the rules halfway through the game.
The details may be publicly available, but what posters here decide to do with them is their responsibility and again, speaks more about them and their attitude than it does about Ally (whatever her faults and misdemeanours).
mizging:
EP has done far more to assist their authors with promotion than any of the other publishers I've been with.
Are you able to share some details on the promotion work that EP has done?
Ravenwing:
The question is, did they have to shell out almost two hundred smackers for the privilege? Or, is Eternal Press allowing some to go without strong arming them for moolah? By what I've seen of the contracts and so-called "termination" contracts, I doubt they'd stand up in court.
Really? Have you got a legal opinion that supports that? Because without being a Canadian or Australian qualified lawyer, the termination contract looks pretty solid to me.
Kensington:
You'll also notice that the author doesn't get any such "fee" if the publisher closes up shop before the end of the contract.
They do if they've negotiated an advance to their contract.
That's the danger of going with a non-advance paying operation like this - you're leaving yourself open to being out of pocket if it doesn't turn out the way you hoped (and sometimes even if it does turn out the way you hoped).
luvreading:
I must admit I do hope this outfit goes belly up in the water. That way all those poor authors they're holding up for ransom, and trying to extort big bucks out of, will be free at last.
No they won't. As others have said, the authors could be in bigger trouble than before - especially if the liquidator decides to exercise his/her rights to sell those contracts on to another publisher.
Marva:
HOWEVER, she did think the editing was fine. The cover is very good. The book will be in print in a few weeks. It came up on Amazon in Kindle quickly. They gave her a substantial list of review sites to contact. They arranged a chat or two. She hasn't paid a penny.
EP should be arranging for copies to go to review sites and not leaving it to the author.
Marva:
My friend (and it really isn't me) paid not a penny. While she hates the requirement to publicize her own works, it seems I've heard that even the big publishers's authors must do much the same.
There's a difference between getting involved in publication and being left to do the bulk of it. Even a mid-list author at a big publisher would expect some kind of support - promotional material, review copies etc.
Clementine B:
The $25.00 for cover art, really is a hoot. It gave me quite a chuckle. They couldn't get me to accept $25.00 to use it, it's so awful -- comically so. But then Ally says she writes and performs comedy. So I guess it figures. I think of it as the Eternal Clown Press. Anything goes. Now here's a challenge we can have a bit of fun with: Which cover is the worst?
Why are you attacking the illustrators when it's the company you have a problem with?
Kensington:
The facts are pretty straightforward. After being with EP for two years, an author ended up selling only one ebook. That's right, 1. And when he tried to get out of his contract they hit him with a two hundred dollar bill. Sorry, perhaps I'm biased in favour of authors, and I make no apology for that, but I can't for the life of me see any other "side" to this, except a decidedly shady one.
Actually, this is a fact for one unnamed author. It seems that EP books have been entered into the EPIC awards, with one making the shortlist, which is at least an attempt at steering the company in the right direction.
KimRichards:
Since acquiring Eternal Press we have doubled the distribution of both companies and then some with the addition of two more new venues. We have implemented a marketing plan with funds to back it up. Additionally the sharing of staff and resources has cut expenses for both companies. 2010 looks to be a bright year…and beyond.
Hi,
Kim, and welcome to AW.
Are you able to share what kind of marketing will be done in accordance with this new marketing plan as lack of promotion seems to be a big complaint for EP authors.
KimRichards:
With both companies, we expect authors to partner with us on spending time to promote their books. Thus the new submission guidelines ask for an author marketing plan. We want authors willing to work alongside us for the best promotional efforts possible. It’s been proven time and again how an author can make a difference when they are involved. We are seeing this in action with an EP title which as of today has sold over 400 kindle copies in less than six weeks from an active author. It’s title? Dead, Undead and Somewhere In Between.
How much work are you expecting authors to do in promoting their book?
In the case of Dead, Undead and Somewhere In Between, how much promotional work did the author do and how much did EP do?
How many other EP titles have sold more than 400 copies?
Clementine B:
I intend to rally all the aggrieved EP authors for the purpose of a class action lawsuit. You wanted war, you'll get it.
Why do you need a class action law suit if you believe that EP are in breach of your contract?
pagerette:
A lawsuit might not get you what you want, but it will tie up EP in a court battle. They'll have to defend, which takes time and money. So it will have terrific nuisance value.
That's the very definition of a vexatious law suit and may well be thrown out before ever seeing the inside of a court room.
pagerette:
It would also give the authors plenty of free publicity, if handled right -- with media releases, etc. This will add to increased sales, but here's the rub, if EP is still hanging onto your titles like a leech, they'll have their greedy fingers all over your cash, and you won't see a dime of it. So they'll end up laughing all the way to the bank. For those authors who are finally free of EP, the lawsuit would be a better idea. Then all the financial rewards would come to you from your other titles -- the ones NOT at EP.
And I'm sure that all this cash will be really useful in paying the legal fees for the lawyers handling the case.
Seriously, a law suit is not the way to go here - all it does is make money for the lawyers, tie up your time and effort and ultimately not get you where you want to be.
Maggie Dove:
Thanks to EP, I've gotten my name out there and, frankly, I'm grateful that they took a chance on me.
If they didn't pay you an advance and you're doing a lot of the promotion on your book, then how did EP take a chance on you?
MM