letter
Here is a copy of my letter going out to anybody with initials......FBI, fraud division. IRS, FTC, AG, BBB and so on.....my girlfriend just told me I forgot the NAACP, AARP and AAA but I ain't done yet.....
To Whom It May Concern:
This letter is to formally lodge a complaint against PUBLISHAMERICA, INC. of Frederick, Maryland, and Lighting Source, listed below... and to request an investigation into possible criminal activity and Internet fraud on their part. My reasons for the complaint are listed below, but I need to give you some background information before detailing my current complaints.
I contracted with PublishAmerica in 2002 for publication of my book, THERE AIN’T ENOUGH FRONT PORCHES (ISBN# 1-4137-0098-5) based on misleading claims published at that time on their website that they are not a print-on-demand (POD) publisher when, in fact, all their books are printed by LIGHTNING SOURCE using digital technology, known as print-on-demand in the publishing industry.
PublishAmerica also claims on their site that their books are available in “brick and mortar” bookstores. While this in and of itself is true only for a infinitesimally number of PublishAmerica books because of their non-standard discount schedule, return policy and non-competitive book prices, the following statement purported by them is completely false: “Now PublishAmerica can make your next book available in all bookstores nationwide.” (This claim can be found at
www.publishamerica.com/benefits.htm) Books-A-Million has a corporate policy that prohibits PublishAmerica books from being stocked, shipped to, or sold on consignment in any of their stores.
PublishAmerica’s editing claim found at
www.publishamerica.com/facts/index.htm “We assign an editor who goes through the text line by line. We edit for spelling, mechanics, grammar, typos, and trust us, that's a vital and time consuming job. Together, our editing staff makes more than 35,000 (!) corrections, each day, to the books they work on that day. We then send a book back to the author, up to three times, to ensure that it looks exactly as the author wants it to look.”
A comparison of the original MSWord file of my manuscript that was sent to PublishAmerica and the first set of proofs I received after it had gone through PublishAmerica’s editing process (I have copies of both) clearly shows that no corrections whatsoever were made to it. From the spelling errors alone, it is obvious that Spell Check had not even been run on the file. As a result, I had to hire my own editor to make all the necessary corrections, and although my editor sent PublishAmerica the 95 pages of corrections they made or missed.. my book was still printed with my name spelled incorrectly in the running header. When I called this to PublishAmerica’s attention, they admitted it was their error but refused to replace the misprinted books with corrected ones.
PublishAmerica claims on their website: “PublishAmerica has a full-time, full-fledged marketing department whose sole mission is the growth of the company. PublishAmerica sends review copies and book release announcements, gratis, to reviewers, sponsors and attends seminars, industry trade shows, works on direct mailing campaigns for each individual book, and sends out 10-15 press releases about our new authors each day.” The only thing PublishAmerica did for me was send out order forms to my friends and family, and they incorrectly called me “Mr. Brent” in that letter. Consequently, I hired a public relations firm for promotion of my book. This PR firm took out ads and sent several thousand press releases to independent book stores and media services on my behalf. I received numerous responses from my paid efforts, but upon learning of PublishAmerica’s non-standard policies, all promotional offers were withdrawn.
I am 66 years old and now totally disabled, largely as a result of stress brought on by my experience with PublishAmerica, and I would never have contracted with them had it not been for their deliberate misrepresentation, fraudulent omission, and fraudulent inducement. Under threat of a lawsuit, PublishAmerica did release me from my contract in May of this year and returned all rights to publication and sale of my book to me. Therein lies my current complaint.
Although no copies of my book should have been printed or sold by PublishAmerica after May, Ingram Book Company currently reports their stocking of six more copies of my book than they stocked in August, and they also report selling three copies in the past month. Ingram is a wholesale book distributor and purchases only from PublishAmerica. Although PublishAmerica claims they have instructed the online booksellers to remove my book from their databases, the booksellers tell me they have received no such notification and continue to sell my book to this day. When I attempt to contact Lightning Source directly to request that they print no further copies of my book, they refuse to talk to me.
This continued printing and sale of my book is illegal, and PublishAmerica not only refuses to comply with my requests for this to cease, they have instructed me never to contact them again. I have spent in excess of $5000 as a result of my association with PublishAmerica, suffered mental anguish and had my health adversely affected by stress, and now PublishAmerica is selling copies of my book and not even paying me the 8% royalties they are obligated to pay.
I want all sales of my book stopped immediately, I want Lightning Source to give me an accurate, detailed account of how many books they have printed (with dates) and I want PublishAmerica penalized to the fullest extent of the law or corresponding regulations.
Contact info and particulars:
My name and address:
PUBLISHAMERICA, INC.
230 E Patrick St
Frederick, MD 21701
www.publishamerica.com
Original Business Start Date: 9/1/1999
Principal: Willem Meiners, President
Local Phone Number: (240) 529-1031
Fax Number: (301) 631-9073
TOB Classification: Publishers-Book
Lightning Source, Inc.
1246 Heil Quaker Blvd.
La Vergne, TN USA 37086
/www.lightningsource.com
Voice: (615) 213-5815
Fax: (615) 213-4426
Principal: J. Kirby Best, President
Will let you know if I hear anything.
Molly
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