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RamRamPublishing / Rambunctious Ramblings Publishing

Old Hack

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Does anyone know anything about RamRamPublishing, or Rambunctious Ramblings Publishing? I am asking for a friend.

Website here.


From their submissions page:

[h=2]Submissions[/h][FONT=&quot]RRPI accepts submissions of every fiction genre in every phase of development. With each submission, we give full feedback, whether we chose to work with you or not. RRPI will never accept money from any of our creators.[/FONT]


Their "about us" page doesn't seem to give any real information.
 

InsomniaShark

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"RRPI accepts submissions of every fiction genre in every phase of development." That's really....broad. I'd think organizations who specialize in one/a few genres, and that have high standards, are more efficient/better/expert-like than organizations that want to accept anything and everything.

"With each submission, we give full feedback, whether we chose to work with you or not." That's really...generous. How can they have the resources to do that? Sounds like they're setting expectations kind of high on the writers' end.

"RRPI will never accept money from any of our creators." Having to point out they're not looking to take money from creators makes it seem like they're trying to show they aren't scammy. Which just makes me think they're scammy. =/ (It's like the unsolicited promises Gavin DeBecker talks about in The Gift of Fear. It's suspicious when people start telling you what they're not going to do, because it means they're trying to get your guard down so they can do it anyway.)
 
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mschmidt

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AVOID these guys at all costs. Recent events in July/August 2016 have highlighted a few issues in the company. They have been dumping most of their authors thorugh really terrible means!!


I made a blog post on my experience with RRPi or Rambunctious Ramblings Inc. The Managing Director, Aaron Hughes, displayed some childish behaviour in avoiding signing me as an author (I was not yet signed).


You can see my post here: https://millieschmidt.wordpress.com/2016/08/15/publishing-journey-the-good-the-bad-the-ugly/

I was searching RRPI on twitter and found a tweet by Samantha Paulsen:


Samantha Paulsen (@SamanthaPTTYLFM)

20/08/2016, 10:56 AM

An account by another former author with RRPI. It should be the first post on his author page. tmblr.co/ZHuttl2Ay_Ilj


Turns out I'm not the only one who has been dumped by these guys!

Here is Samantha's warning post on her blog: http://samantha-paulsen-author-nonsense.tumblr.com/post/149195394981/an-addition

And here is Benjamin Phillip's warnming post on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BenjaminWPhillipsAuthor/posts/313536125657517

That's all I've found so far but I'm sure there are more.

DO NOT submit to these guys!!
 

mschmidt

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Yeah now I'm a little bit wiser to the bad side of the publishing industry. I'm so lucky I never signed and I saw his true colours sooner!! I feel bad for Samantha though as she was signed with them, her story is pretty soul-crushing :(
 

mrsmig

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What a twisted way of doing business. I get the feeling that the company bit off WAY more than it could chew and is now in frantic damage control mode. I am so sorry for the authors who got sucked into the vortex.
 

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I have never before heard of a publisher withdrawing a contract offer because the recipient used the wrong format to write the date down. Blimey.
 

ctripp

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The website didn't look like they were much of a publisher but they must have had grand visions of becoming one. Took on more then they could afford and then desperately found any reason's to get out of the contracts. Seems they have kept only a few Authors, one of them being a self published Author with a series that came out in 2015. They are pacing the re-release of them all the way to 2019?
I suppose it's a blessing in disguise for the Authors who have had their manuscript's returned, rather then being handed back a "technically" published book.
 

Ravioli

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I have never before heard of a publisher withdrawing a contract offer because the recipient used the wrong format to write the date down. Blimey.
And it wasn't even wrong, it was location-appropriate. That's like an american publisher rejecting a novel for "bad English" because the British author writes "colour" rather than "color". Not to mention the wording of the email is incoherent and not good writing. Something a publisher should generally display.
 

Hyperion

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I am not party to this discussion in any way, other than as a bystander. However, I do have some insights. I operate a small press. We work with people from all around the world. Not knowing that date formats differ in different places is indicative of vast inexperience. Further, the attitude displayed by the publisher is inexcusable.

You are better off out of it.

Self publishing would be better than locking yourself into a terrible contract with an amateur press.
 

mschmidt

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Thank you for all your comments guys. I'm glad to know I wasn't just overacting and that the managing director’s comments were definitely pretty unreasonable. As Filigree and mrsmig said, it must be a reflection of how young the company is.

I'm just really angry that Aaron Hughes didn't come clean and say 'hey, my company is the one that has made a huge mistake, we took on too many authors when we couldn’t really cope and now we have to get rid of most of you'. Instead he made it out as if it was my fault, or that the stars hadn't aligned correctly or something... someone like him should not be at the helm of a company like that. But as you all said, I'm very lucky I got out of it!

Ravioli - all of the managing director's emails were a bit 'odd'. They just didn't sound right. Confusing language and unfair questions. Apparently it took me a few days too long to send back the contract (I mean, was I not supposed to read it or even let a lawyer look over it??) So he said this:

U3x0WgZ.png



Oh and Hyperion, I'm thinking about self-publishing now! (Which is probably the level my book is at anyway…) Should be fun :) RRPI were only able to publish my book end of 2017 or beginning of 2018 anyway. This way, once I get my beta readers back on board and my patiently waiting editor, I can go ahead and publish as soon as I want!!
 

Filigree

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WTActualF? He took you to task for a WEEK delay? That's so unprofessional on his part it's getting a sub-mention in Filigree's Rule. With the publisher's damned name.

Seriously, any 'real' publisher is going to allow you at least a couple of weeks to make a decision. Or they better be willing to have really really good terms and advances. I am so tired of new agents and publishers so certain they are hot shit, that no one would dare make them wait...

<Stalks off, ranting, to write a ranty rant>
 

Helix

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Their Indiegogo campaign last year didn't go very well: nine backers, $173 out of $3000.

Some interesting word choices here.

I want to open the flood gates and mentor authors. I want their bright and wonderful ideas, I want to help mold them into something that can bring merriment to the masses. I want to help them grow into something fantastic. So I thought "How do you do that?" I bounced ideas off of my wife and Ashley, our Branding Director, and came up with a solid concept.

RRPI is a company that goes after the small fry to help them complete their dream of becoming a professional author. We figure out how they work, how they think, and what they need that they can't easily do themselves. Some people need a boot in the rear end, whereas others need to know that what they're writing isn't garbage, while some just need a timeline for completing work.
 
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pinkbowvintage

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Oh my goodness, I read their email to you...that is just. Wow. "I believe in signs"?? How about you believe in honoring a contract, not arbitrary signs that you pull out of a hat?

I'm so sorry that happened to you, Millie.
 

Ravioli

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Their Indiegogo campaign last year didn't go very well: nine backers, $173 out of $3000.

Some interesting word choices here.
My under-coffeinated morning brain saw a Disney-like animation, but of the old Disney, of all kinds of "freaks" on the premises of a circus, rehearsing their gigs. Hunchbacked crickets juggling on unicycles, funny dressed monkeys with tiny drums, chained to exhausted ponies, and a director who is herding another bunch of resisting, kidnapped street children and unwanted into the paddock. "Go after the small fry", "merriment to the masses"... I'm sorry, none of that is anything short of terrifying.
 

mccardey

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There's an element of pig's bladder-onna-stick about bringing "merriment to the masses".
I'm in favour of merriment. Not sure about masses, though.

ETA: I've heard pigs' bladders can be surprisingly fun. But not from anyone whose idea of fun I would trust...

ETA2: Ahem. I've heard the bladders of pigs can be etc.
 
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mschmidt

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Oh my goodness, I read their email to you...that is just. Wow. "I believe in signs"?? How about you believe in honoring a contract, not arbitrary signs that you pull out of a hat?

I'm so sorry that happened to you, Millie.

Thank you, it was really painful at the time. Tears and everything

Their Indiegogo campaign last year didn't go very well: nine backers, $173 out of $3000.

Good find!! Just wow. LOL

WTActualF? He took you to task for a WEEK delay?

Yep!! I replied to that email explaining why it took me sooooo long to send the contract back through (I told him I wanted to give it a good read over), and the next email was his 'I believe in signs' email and 'you put the wrong date on the contract' and 'sorry but we won't be publishing you.'

Argh

And if he was getting rid of authors because they had too many, I just found a tweet where he was fielding submissions during #pit2pub around the same time he was dumping authors!!! I just can't even

2c2TwAX.jpg
 
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