Heacock Hill Literary Agency

kaitie said:

Is it possible that she might be in agreement with Tom Dark and going along with it?

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It is entirely possible, yes.

I have no idea what's going on. But I can't imagine the association is one that enhances Heacock Hill's reputation.

Medievalist said:

They are a couple, and joint owners of Heacock Hill and a couple of other LLCs.

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He clearly has an abusive personality. It's possible he's cowed her into silence and letting him take over everything -- it which case, frustratingly, I don't think there's much we can do for her.

According to Tom's Twitter feed (and you know how reliable his stuff can be - ha!), Catt quit the agency.

Not sure how accurate that is, but hey, a clock is bound to be right twice a day.

Billtrumpet25 said:

According to Tom's Twitter feed (and you know how reliable his stuff can be - ha!), Catt quit the agency.

Not sure how accurate that is, but hey, a clock is bound to be right twice a day.

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Catt or Catt's great Aunt who was married to the founder of the original agency?

Medievalist said:

Catt or Catt's great Aunt who was married to the founder of the original agency?

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His exact wording:

"For the forthcoming lawsuit (that fraud says "Bring it"): These filthy snots upset our 83 year old chief so much she quit! @VictoriaStrauss!"

I think that's referring to the original owner. Catt took it over from her when she retired awhile back.

Billtrumpet25 said:

His exact wording:

"For the forthcoming lawsuit (that fraud says "Bring it"): These filthy snots upset our 83 year old chief so much she quit! @VictoriaStrauss!"

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Yeah, first of all, that's Tom Dark [Peter M. Danison] telling a giant whopping lie. Again.

That refers to Rosalie Grace Heacock Thompson, Catt LeBaigue's Great Aunt (I think it's great aunt, but definitely her relative).

See: http://www.heacockliteraryagency.com/main.htm

Rosalie Grace Heacock Thompson said:

As President and co-founder of The Heacock Literary Agency, Inc. (1978-present), as of November 3, 2009, having, with the late James B. Heacock, over the years sold over 1100 manuscripts to major publishers, it is now time to seni-retire [sic] and no longer launch new authors..

While continuing to actively represent many long time authors presently under contract, the Heacock Literary Agency, Inc. is no longer accepting new clients.

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Note that Tom Dark [Peter M. Danison] is playing fast-and-loose with the truth. Ms. Thompson was retiring for reasons that have nothing to do, at all, with AW. If you look at the documents related to the domains, addresses, and LLCs, you can see that quite clearly.

I'm having a little fun on Twitter today with Tom and his bromantic partner TWA. If you can't shut them up, you might as well laugh at them.

- Victoria

To be very clear, no one, anywhere, has claimed that Heacock Hill charges any sort of fees.

No one, anywhere, has complained about Heacock Hill as an agency. Instead, it's been pointed out, many times, that Catt LeBaigue is an AAR member, and that Heacock Hill has made many legitimate sales.

The only problem with Heacock Hill is that a junior agent, "Tom Dark" (not himself a member of AAR, although he has apparently claimed to be), writes bizarre, rambling, abusive posts and emails. While he makes big claims about sales and influence, he offers absolutely no hard facts back up these claims.

If you want to be represented by someone addicted to making bizarre, rambling, grandiose, abusive statements, Heacock Hill should probably be at the top of your list.

Meanwhile, many people wonder why Catt LeBaigue, a genuine agent with a great deal of experience, doesn't reel this guy in. Is she aware of what he's doing to his own, and the agency's, reputation?

I am seriously worried about Catt. Seriously. Worried. And I don't even KNOW her.

James D. Macdonald said:

To be very clear, no one, anywhere, has claimed that Heacock Hill charges any sort of fees.

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I just want to reiterate this, since Tom Dark has directly accused me of making this claim. He's also accused me of calling the agency a scam, of making false "vicious" posts about it, of "malicious libel" toward it, and of harassing it for the past three years. None of which I've done, as anyone who actually reads this thread will know.

- Victoria

victoriastrauss said:

None of which I've done, as anyone who actually reads this thread will know.

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Correct me if I'm wrong, but Writer Beware hasn't mentioned Heacock Hill or "Tom Dark" in any context at all.

James D. Macdonald said:

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Writer Beware hasn't mentioned Heacock Hill or "Tom Dark" in any context at all.

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You're not wrong. I've mentioned Tom here, and on Twitter after he began to harass me there, but neither he nor his agency has ever appeared on the Writer Beware website, blog, or Facebook page.

- Victoria

Billtrumpet25 said:

His exact wording:

"For the forthcoming lawsuit (that fraud says "Bring it"): These filthy snots upset our 83 year old chief so much she quit! @VictoriaStrauss!"

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Using someone's age to vilify people whom he seeks to brand as harassers is rather amusing in light of one of his recent tweets, in which he insults someone for being old: "[username] Oh. And Mister [name], dismal million number in no-sales? Stay off my timeline henceforth, you overage #absolutewrite troll."

Consistency!

(He's also advertising that blog post he's always spamming by acting like it's Miley Cyrus porn: "Miley Cyrus! Ready, horny, barely 18 and hot for YOU. Yes, YOU! [link]" Which is totally professional and not completely disgusting in any way. [/sarcasm])

lilyWhite said:

Using someone's age to vilify people whom he seeks to brand as harassers is rather amusing in light of one of his recent tweets, in which he insults someone for being old: "[username] Oh. And Mister [name], dismal million number in no-sales? Stay off my timeline henceforth, you overage #absolutewrite troll."

Consistency!

(He's also advertising that blog post he's always spamming by acting like it's Miley Cyrus porn: "Miley Cyrus! Ready, horny, barely 18 and hot for YOU. Yes, YOU! [link]" Which is totally professional and not completely disgusting in any way. [/sarcasm])

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Yeah, I noticed that, too.

lilyWhite said:

Using someone's age to vilify people whom he seeks to brand as harassers is rather amusing in light of one of his recent tweets, in which he insults someone for being old: "[username] Oh. And Mister [name], dismal million number in no-sales? Stay off my timeline henceforth, you overage #absolutewrite troll."

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Compare that to Tommy's own post here:

Tom Dark said:

The people I work for are in their callings for life. They understand hell, high water, disappointment, success and failure and purpose, some of them far better than I do. Doctor Professor Pasquale Schiavella, for instance, just turned 93, and still chairs the philosophy department at his college. Those of you here to pull hair won’t appreciate where he’s been, either, or how he got there.

One of my mentors is about to turn 103. I learn all about real writers, real writers, and how they behave, from her. “I still don’t know how I feel about Dorothy Parker,” she said one day. Her friends comprised the Algonquin Table; they attended her wedding, following behind as Bo Jangles danced at the head of the procession. James Thurber handed her the very first copy of The New Yorker for her birthday. Robert Benchley was as funny in person as he was in his essays. And so on. Merci herself was a publisher.

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(Excerpted from a long, rambling, bizarre post by the man himself right here at AW. Read the whole thing to get a flavor of what Tommy's bringing to the table if you hire him as your agent.)


Moving on to other topics, yes, Victoria has gotten death threats. Yes, she's reported them to her local police. The one that also mentioned me, I reported to my local police. NO ONE, ANYWHERE, has EVER said that "Tom Dark" sent them.

Speaking of death threats, check this out:



A better question would be WHO is "Joseph Mayomana aka Charles Williams aka Rocha Nefwani"?

Here's the answer: Rocha Nefwani is the author of The True Third Secret of Fatima Revealed & The Return of Christ (NeKongo Press Publishing, 2001). What is interesting about that? Someone named "Tom Dark" is listed as the book's "Compiler."

As long as we're talking about urging violence, here's Tommy again:



(Victoria's home address redacted.)

Tom, listen. The folks at The Write Agenda are not your friends. They are using you. The guy behind that hate site is an adjudged stock swindler turned fraudulent agent. (A judge in a real court case wrote, "Basically, Fletcher and LAG were running a fraud …" Ask your pals at The Write Agenda why they don't post that document. I know they have a copy.) A real agent, if he stepped in some Robert Fletcher, would scrape it off the sole of his shoe. Use your brain, man! Use your common sense! Who profits by this nonsense they're feeding you? It certainly isn't you.

You don't charge fees. Why are you hanging out with people who do?

I was wondering what this whole thing was about. I got added to the whole Twitter convo when Tom mentioned me in one of his little mini-rants. He's evidently added a third member to this little bromance, Dr. Omar Zaid, who needs no proof of Tom's grandiose claims. Tom's friendship and advice is all he needs. This time, I can honestly say I didn't bait these guys. They came looking for me, I swear.

Guess I'm still making the right kind of enemies.

lilyWhite said:

Using someone's age to vilify people whom he seeks to brand as harassers is rather amusing in light of one of his recent tweets, in which he insults someone for being old: "[username] Oh. And Mister [name], dismal million number in no-sales? Stay off my timeline henceforth, you overage #absolutewrite troll."

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Ha! That was me. He's older than I am, and he doesn't know how to check book sales figures, so I win on both counts.

Plus, he's a tosser, and I'm not, so that makes it three for three to me.

TheOneTrueBen said:

Guess I'm still making the right kind of enemies.

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That you are, Ben. That you are.

ETA - Seems the Write Agenda has tried to pester me now. I do emphasize the word "Tried."

ETA #2 - It looks like Tom's twitter account has been suspended. About time, too.

Billtrumpet25 said:

ETA #2 - It looks like Tom's twitter account has been suspended. About time, too.

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Took them long enough.

Glad to hear this!

Better late than never!

Lunacy has its place in literature; not so much in literary agents. The distinction seems to have escaped Mr. Dark.

Personal for "Robert Danison":

The email you sent me had an incorrect/non-existent return address.

Tom Dark has died

"Tom Dark was a Literary Secret Agent, a writer, a lover of horses and caretaker to 6 of them, a musician, and many other things. He passed away October 28th unexpectedly.

"The family (and horses) appreciate all your support as they handle the financial challenges of dealing with the heavy costs that loss of life can bring."

See more at: http://www.youcaring.com/memorial-fundraiser/tom-dark-memorial-fund/101673#sthash.maspKcba.dpuf



http://www.youcaring.com/memorial-fundraiser/tom-dark-memorial-fund/101673