Fable Press

Taran · Feb 27, 2014

A small press specializing in sf, and fairly new. I'm wondering if anyone here has had any experience with them? I'm aware of a not-confidence-inducing thread from last year, but that's it.

http://www.fablepress.com/

Dmbeucler · Feb 27, 2014

An acquaintance had a book published with them. I have not read it (my reading time being severely limited due to toddler) but I've seen a lot of mutual friends pick it up and I believe physical copies were stocked in an independent bookstore.

Since they pay on net, I'm super wary. And the fact that they have a disclaimer about experience (or their lack of it) at the bottom of their about us page.... it sets off red flags for me.

Marian Perera · Feb 27, 2014

The titles they give themselves are too cutesy for my liking. "Marketing Ninja", "Slayer of Flawed Prose", etc. Maybe I just prefer it when sizzle isn't presented in lieu of steak.

And then there's this...

While decades of experience in the publishing world may convey a certain amount of respect & confidence,

And expertise.

Can you imagine a surgeon preparing to operate on you and saying, "Unlike those other doctors with their decades of experience, I've got something better. I worked in customer service!"

I'm not sold. I've heard (and experienced first-hand) many reports of neglect and abuse from these so-called "publishing veterans." Authors are treated like gnats unless they have some established reputation or sponsor.

"Sponsor"? This guy doesn't know what he's talking about.

And I'm speaking from first-hand experience too, because I don't have any established sponsor and I was never shown the door to the dungeon where the unsponsored authors huddled together in a trembling mass.

And even if they are a valid client of an imprint/house, they are sometimes ignored or discarded.

Oh, now we're clients? Or valid clients, whatever those might be. I wonder what an invalid client is.

This is the problem with having no experience in an industry - he doesn't even know what terminology to use, let alone what really goes on.

I just don't get it.

No, you don't.

But let's hope any writers considering this press do.

So, as you (the author) or you (the reader) check out Fable Press, I urge you to consider that 'experience' isn't the sole factor in measuring a company. If I didn't truly believe I could form a solid team and do this better than most - I wouldn't have even tried.

Every person behind every failed press we've seen here has realio trulio believed they could form a solid team and do this better than most.

That being said, it's good that they specialize in a genre, the covers are adequate and I didn't notice any egregious mistakes on the website. If it was just that, I'd recommend waiting for a couple of years and checking them out again.

But trying to compensate for their lack of experience with claims that the "valid clients" of major publishers are ignored, discarded, abused, etc. is just ridiculous scare tactics.

kelliewallace · Oct 21, 2015

Any updates on this company? I was going through my email folders and came across a rejection from these guys. Totally forgot about it so I decided to google them. The first listing is this forum. Their website is gone. In fact everything is. Closed down perhaps?

Dmbeucler · Oct 21, 2015

They seem to be gone. My acquaintance's book is being released by another press, so I'm assuming all the rights reverted on schedule, but I don't have any firsthand information.

CaoPaux · Oct 22, 2015

Last release Nov '14, and in March '15 an author speaks of it closing "within the next few months".

Fable Press

Taran

Dmbeucler

Marian Perera

starting over

kelliewallace

Dmbeucler

CaoPaux

Mostly Harmless