Never thought I'd have a PA problem...

I'd say "Hey Bob, you mentioned PA yesterday, and well, I've been hearing some stuff. Have you you done your homework on these people?" If he asks what you've heard, tell him. Send him here and to Preditors and Editors. You know this person better than I do (well, duh!) so you know how he will react to your input.

ETA: Sorry to hear that Callalily! People like that exist, but it's not uncommon here to get people thanking us for warning them about PA. So it happens both ways.

Claim you knew nothing about PA but did a bit of searching and forward him the links

The problem comes if he's already signed the contract. Personally, I'd ask that first before sending him over here because if he has, he's only going to discover that there's very little he can do (in which case you'll be the bad guy). If he hasn't, then at least he has a chance to step back.

MM

Catch 22, damned if you do and damn if you don't...

My opinion, if he is a grown adult, he should do his homework. As his boss, you don't owe him anything outside of company business.

I would also wonder how this is going to affect his work habits. A happy worker is more productive. A worker that is dealing with outside issues though can bring those issues into the work place. As his time with PA drags on, he is going to become more and more disenchanted and it may lead to a decline in his work.

I have no wisdom to offer on how to handle, but I do wish you luck...

Mystic Blossom said:

Can you offer advice?

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The only advice I can give you is to keep your professional and personal lives separate. Unless this person is a very good friend who trusts you, I wouldn't say anything unless he comes to you first with questions about PA being a vanity press.

~brianm~

Mystic, you are in a tough spot. My two cents: If you can engage him in a conversation about what his aspirations are for his book (i.e., reasonable price, available in bookstores, editing, promotion, distribution, etc.) and if PA is a publisher who will be able to provide what he is seeking. Maybe another publisher would better be able to give him these things. Because there are issues with the dialogue and formatting, it sounds like he isn't locked in... yet. I'd hate to see him sign on that dotted line before knowing more about PA. Your rock is meeting a hard place. Consider this: How will he feel a year from now when his book isn't selling the way he thought it would and he finds out what PA is all about? Ashamed, embarassed, and wishing he hadn't told everyone he was now a "published author." That is hard crow to eat, let me tell you (even with salt and pepper).

Another thought: Slipping a piece of paper onto his desk that simply lists questions to ask a publisher before signing with them.

I wish you good luck with this one. It is a slippery slope to be sure.

brianm said:

The only advice I can give you is to keep your professional and personal lives separate. Unless this person is a very good friend who trusts you, I wouldn't say anything unless he comes to you first with questions about PA being a vanity press.

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I second this. I'd say it was the right approach if the bloke DIDN'T report to you, and since he does, well, I really do think you need to keep your mouth shut unless and until he approaches you.

But I can imagine how hard it will be to keep your tongue bitten. Good luck.

You could always give him Writer Beware's link, and say you read on the internet that anyone considering signing a publishing contract should check on the "Thumbs Down" list of publishers maintained by Writer Beware.

You could tell him you've heard good things about Writer Beware, that they're volunteers, very careful, etc.

Then just give him the link: www.writerbeware.com

If he bothers to look, he'll find PA on our Thumbs Down list, and a specific warning about them on the site.

Then HE'S the one who discovered the problem.

Just a suggestion...

-Ann C. Crispin
Chair, Writer Beware
www.writerbeware.com

A.C. Crispin
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Price of Freedom
Disney Editions
Release Date: May 17, 2011

Something else to consider is that you may not want to point him here, just because if so he would likely see this thread, which could be all kinds of awkward.

I liked the idea of saying you'd found a list online of questions to ask publishers and you thought he might find it useful. If he's already signed there's not much that can be done, but if he hasn't yet the he might ask and start to find out things are a little shady on his own. Good luck.

I say the sort of sneaky-gentle approach suggested by Waylander and Chris P. sounds in order. Say you've heard that there are unscrupulous publishers out there and that maybe he should do a bit of Googling before he signs a contract.

At least that way, you know you did try. If it were me, my conscience would drive me crazy, if I didn't at least make an attempt to steer him in the right direction.

I agree with most others here. Try to point him in the right direction (through questions or suggesting he research or whatever) and then leave it in his hands. He is an adult after all, and he is responsible for the publisher he chooses to sign with.

I also think it might be better to try to help him now, rather than spending the next year or so listening to him talk about his publisher and book. How much tongue biting will you have to do in that case?

Look, he's going to sign the contract (if he hasn't already done so). "I love your book and want to buy it" is the most powerful drug in the universe. There's an entire world of vanity presses and scams that depend on it.

The thing you should be thinking about is what you're going to do/say when he shows up wanting to sell you a copy.

As Uncle Jim said above, it's probably already a done deal. And as Calla pointed out, if it means maintaining peace in the office, most likely you'll have to pony up and buy one; think of it as the more expensive equivalent of a co-worker selling their kid's band candy.

Of course if your friend's experience is like most, you'll have to listen to him bitch about it for the next seven years. That seldom happens with band candy.

Gravity said:

Of course if your friend's experience is like most, you'll have to listen to him bitch about it for the next seven years. That seldom happens with band candy.

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You never saw that episode of Buffy, did you? LOL!

callalily61 said:

You'll have to buy it, Mystic. I once had to buy a volume of self-pubbed sugary-sweet inspirational poetry because the lady was one of the original members of my meatspace crit group, and she's in a wheelchair with permanent pain from a car accident.

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To be honest, I've never had any trouble saying "No," to coworkers and their various financial entreaties. Whether it be the overpriced chocolate bars, the collection for someone's retirement party, or a dog-awful PA book, I just smile sweetly and then whine about my epileptic greyhound's vet bills. Gets rid of them every time.

I don't even get why people ask for advice if they have no intention of following it... I was contacted by a member at CXPulp, where I'm an editor, for advice on PA. He knew I'd released a book through them and his wife had been offered a contract for a book of poetry. I told him all of my problems, linked him here, and in no uncertain terms made it clear I thought it was a bad idea. He politely thanked me for my time and said she was signing anyway.

Poet's spouse: Hey Gillhoughly! I was taking the wife out to dinner--what have you heard about that new restaurant Meiner-Clop-Mirs?"


I've complained to the health department, to the Better Business Bureau, and to the attorney general. I've found tons of other complaints about the food in the papers and online and there's not a truck driver or cop who will go within a mile of the place. It's a garbage dump, stay away if you want to live!

Poet's Spouse: Well that's too bad, but the wife really wants to try them and she knows more about food than I do. Their website says lots of folk eat there and are happy and the page says that no one will get food poisoning! That means they're okay, right?

Hey, where are you going with that industrial size box of Ex-Lax and bottle of ipecac?

Gillhoughly: Thought I'd force feed 'em to your wife. She'll have the same results as she'd get from dining there and save you the expense of going out. You'll both thank me in the morning.

.

You owe me a new keyboard, Gill. Diet soda just spilled all over mine.

Dang it . . . where's the "like" button . . .

Dratted new-fangled forums . . . .

Gil - freaking hilarious!

Did anyone else end up cleaning coffee from their monitor?

allenparker said:

Did anyone else end up cleaning coffee from their monitor?

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Not me! I've gotten in the habit of removing all liquids and food products away from the computer BEFORE I read one of Gil's posts. You never know what she's going to say that will result in hysterical laughter.