PA's Special Offers aka But I thought they wanted my book, not my money ...

The Hard and Hard First offerings appear to be identical, with two different prices, 49.95 and 69.95.
Guess which price PA will charge?

CatSlave said:

TOP 100

We will inform Europe's 100 most powerful speakers, performers, marketers, managers and communicators about your book this month and ask them to read it.

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As if Europe's 100 most powerful speakers, performers, etc. don't have spam filters....

Here's the thread that Chris P started, with a list of email offers he received from PA since 2008:
http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=185342

Another money grab for Frankfurt, and more:
http://www.publishamerica.net/online_bookstore.html

Priority Option
If you want your book to be pushed with priority

in Frankfurt. Your special rep will underscore the primary importance of your book when talking to any of the world's top professionals who want to listen when they convene in Frankfurt October 12-16.

Your book will be individually represented at the Frankfurt Book Fair next month and explained, recommended and promoted to any of the expected 300,000 visitors that we can get to listen. Last year also 10,000 journalists roamed the floor. This is the closest thing to being there yourself!

Must choose a shipping option to activate. No use of coupons allowed. Must mention your book title.

DISCLAIMER: PublishAmerica has no affiliation with David Heyman or Tom Hanks. The phrase "The man behind Harry Potter" is advertised by the Frankfurt Book Fair where PublishAmerica is an exhibitor next month. No specific result from PublishAmerica's best efforts to represent and promote its authors and their books in Frankfurt or elsewhere is suggested or guaranteed.

Your special rep will underscore the primary importance of your book when talking to any of the world's top professionals who want to listen when they convene in Frankfurt October 12-16.

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So, if none of those "world's top professionals" want to listen. . . ?

PA weasel words again.

What do PA authors think PA is going to do for them at Frankfurt? I don't think it's ever sold foreign or subsidiary rights, and no wonder.

Foreign publishers aren't going to come knocking on PA's door just because someone from PA rocks up to a book fair, whether that be in Frankfurt, London or Timbuctoo. If PA doesn't schedule meetings with editors at those book fairs, present them with detailed information about their books including impressive sales figures, rights available, and copies of the book, then nothing is going to get sold. Wandering round hoping to get someone to listen is not how business is done at Frankfurt or anywhere else.

I'm picturing the food vendors at Costco, offering samples to the shoppers.
Maybe PA reps will wear a cute uniform. And a hat.

And their booth will be decorated with ...wait for it... a lollypop tree.

I suppose that due to their previous humiliations by the press, PA now includes a disclaimer on their bogus offers
which excuse them from actually producing anything.

Aren't foreign publishers interested in books that have a solid sales history?

Your book will be individually represented at the Frankfurt Book Fair next month and explained, recommended and promoted to any of the expected 300,000 visitors that we can get to listen.

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I can see them buttonholing random strangers walking through the concourse.

Maybe the wurst-dealers in the food court will be treated to a pitch or two?

Of course, "any of the 300,000 visitors" would include PA's own contingent. So perhaps they'll just sit in their hotel room at night explaining their books to each other?

James D. Macdonald said:

I can see them buttonholing random strangers walking through the concourse.

Maybe the wurst-dealers in the food court will be treated to a pitch or two?

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Only if they're the top professional wurst-dealers.

Of course, "any of the 300,000 visitors" would include PA's own contingent. So perhaps they'll just sit in their hotel room at night explaining their books to each other?

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Well, of course. They're the top professionals at PA. (But how can they explain what they haven't actually read?]

DaveKuzminski said:

Aren't foreign publishers interested in books that have a solid sales history?

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Yes, they are, Dave: but to buy those books they've got to know about those books. And for that to happen, PA would have to pitch their books to them, and prove that they're marketable books with a professional publisher behind them.

An agent friend of mine told me that she has so many appointments with publishers every day that once she sits down at her table in the agent enclosure at Frankfurt she is very unlikely to have the time to get up again before the bell rings at the end of the day. If her staff didn't bring her snacks and drinks she'd starve. And yes, she's proud to have a bladder of iron.

I don't think PA makes appointments with foreign rights publishers at book fairs; I don't think they present their books to other publishers, or pitch them to anyone. And so how can they sell those foreign rights to anywhere?

James D. Macdonald said:

So perhaps they'll just sit in their hotel room at night explaining their books to each other?

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Hah. That summons funny images. A handful of PA execs knocking back shots as they play cards and surf the porn channels in a German hotel room late into the night. Peals and snorts of laughter as one of them lies on a bed reading aloud from randomly selected PA books written by well-meaning dupes whose work, sadly, is every bit as good as Atlanta Nights.

Don Davidson said:

Wow! Anyone who really believes that silly slogan, "We want your book, not your money," should view this page.

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That's quite a slogan. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it a little odd to brag about one of the basic principles of legitimate commercial publishing? (I mean, even assuming they meant it.)

I never heard of PA until I started reading AW. Now I feel like I've had a free vaccination.

Boost your sales.
Let PublishAmerica mention your book on their Facebook page.

You will soon find your own book singled out and especially promoted to the thousands of PublishAmerica "likes" who will automatically be alerted to our post.

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http://www.publishamerica.net/Facebook.html

Prices range from 9.95 to 39.95.

CatSlave said:

Boost your sales.
Let PublishAmerica mention your book on their Facebook page.


http://www.publishamerica.net/Facebook.html

Prices range from 9.95 to 39.95.

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Ah, so this explains why PA has been posting little mini-reviews on its page! Does Facebook allow users to essentially sell Facebook space like this?

Don't know yet. People are waiting for Facebook to review the offer and comment.

The authors who plug their own books on the PA FB page are getting upset
because their posts are being deleted in favor of the "pay to play" reviews.

The nerve!

CatSlave said:

The authors who plug their own books on the PA FB page are getting upset
because their posts are being deleted in favor of the "pay to play" reviews.

The nerve!

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eez, PA don't get mad at me, but I just read an e-mail that says it will promote our book on it's page, but they charging a fee .Everyone else does it for free around here. We promote each others book in each others pages for free . What's up with that?Did I read it wrong?

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To which another responds:

Pub.America wonnot get mad at you [name redacted]. Don't be so negative! There offering a gr8t opportunnity for our books to to have even more pulbcity. Imagene how many PA authers will be reading about books that are availalbe. Did you know they're 50,000 PA authers! If each auther just bought one, well u can imagene how amny sells that would be!

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(FWIW, the poster of this message knows it's full of spelling errors. He/she says it's due to using an iPad to post.)

FB is the new meeting place for cheerleaders with bad information.

The power of OUR Facebook promotion:

When we post a message on our Facebook page, all of these people promptly see it in their own Facebook news feed page. It's like delivering an instant commercial in thousands of computer screens at the same moment. Others can also post on our Facebook page, but under Facebook's rules no one else will be alerted. That only happens if we do the promotion. Under Facebook's rules we can also remove everyone else's posts at will.

The power of OUR Facebook promotion.

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No more free ride, so sorry.

Are u deleting my post about my books?? Or is it a Facebook glitch???
I have posted my books on the wall more than once tonight and they have disappeared each time?

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So now they are charging authors to promote their work and actually making it so authors cannot promote their own work by deleting their posts? PA, so helpful to their authors. NOT!

These people are just oblivious. Facebook (or PA) must have changed the default wall setting on their FB page. It now defaults to only PA posts, but it can easily be switched to show everyone.

Don't be so negative! There offering a gr8t opportunnity for our books to to have even more pulbcity. Imagene how many PA authers will be reading about books that are availalbe. Did you know they're 50,000 PA authers! If each auther just bought one, well u can imagene how amny sells that would be!

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Now would be a good time to ask that PA author how many PA books s/he's bought from seeing the book mentioned on PA's Facebook page, or really, how many books s/he's ever bought from seeing the title on Facebook.

Or how many PA books by other PA authors s/he's bought at all?

merrihiatt said:

So now they are charging authors to promote their work and actually making it so authors cannot promote their own work by deleting their posts? PA, so helpful to their authors. NOT!

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It looks as if some authors are trying to get around that by promo'ing their books in the comments. {{shaking head}}

- Victoria