The Old Neverending PublishAmerica Thread (Publish America)

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LV Dutton

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Rose colored glasses said:
Research Guy, I hope it does work out for PA authors to get their books in stores due to the new return policy. I'm just wondering how much the short discount and high price of our books will still factor in, though.

It seems odd to me, though, that PA is being praised so highly for doing something that is just a given with "traditional publishers".

Ya know that is a good question. I am still stuck with one book with them, and my family and friends have stated that book will sell even if it kills them LOL. arent they a loving group lol
 

ResearchGuy

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Rose colored glasses said:
Research Guy, I hope it does work out for PA authors to get their books in stores due to the new return policy. I'm just wondering how much the short discount and high price of our books will still factor in, though.

It seems odd to me, though, that PA is being praised so highly for doing something that is just a given with "traditional publishers".
I am skeptical that PA will in fact accept returns. If it does not, sparks will fly when the hapless authors are caught in the middle between bookstore managers and PA. Time will tell. I hope those folks don't get hurt as a result of reading way too much into the PA announcement. (But if the bookstore managers find out that the return policy is a myth before ordering, and hence do not order in spite of author expectations, sparks will still fly, but of a different sort.)

BTW, "traditional publisher" is PA's own coined term for itself, for its crypto-vanity-press model. No commercial publisher calls itself that.

--Ken
 

Rose colored glasses

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BTW, "traditional publisher" is PA's own coined term for itself, for its crypto-vanity-press model. No commercial publisher calls itself that.


Yeah, I know that. I was just making a point, since they like to believe PA is the real deal.


Was the question ever answered as to who pays for the books that are returned to PA, since they are already printed?
 

Alan Yee

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DaveKuzminski said:
By the way, PA, did you know that virtually every author who posted on your forum when you conducted a smear campaign against David Bowlin and myself has since apologized? Want to try again?

Oh, no. PA is not capable of apologizing. That would indicate some heart and a sense of right and wrong. They've done so many hurtful things to so many people and never once apologized, so I don't expect they'll start apologizing anytime soon. But I know you already know that, Dave:) .

How can they be so hypocritical? They've never once apologized and yet some of their tone letters (which PA indeed needs to apologize for) read, "We expect your apology." But then again, any word they've ever written or said is pure BS.

While I'm here, does anyone know how many documented cases of copyright infringement (i.e. selling books they no longer own the rights to) PA is responsible for? I heard somehwere that the number was something like 10, but there could very likely be more. I think, but I'm not sure if my memory is right, that Jean Marie had this happen to her. I don't think they've terminated very many contracts, but they could have easily inserted gag clauses. And I know very few ex-PA authors can afford to bring a case against them. Please, someone, I need to know.

--Alan
 

Banned-Aide

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Quote:
"Remember PA provides an informative site and message board for free"

If authors are banned for asking questions, stating facts, and pointing out the obvious, is the message board really FREE?

BA
:Smack:
 

LV Dutton

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Banned-Aide said:
Quote:
"Remember PA provides an informative site and message board for free"

If authors are banned for asking questions, stating facts, and pointing out the obvious, is the message board really FREE?

BA
:Smack:

Ya know if they do ban them how is that free? Because most that are allowed on the site dont get on there until they have a contract signed and returned. I can prove that just by the fact that I didnt get into their site until I had been approved.
 

Dawno

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I just finished reading that PAMB post by White Raven. Speaking as a Purple Prose finalist, I'm really glad White Raven didn't enter the contest. We'd have all been sure to lose hands down to him/her.
 

Canada James

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fallenangelwriter said:
what gives? is PA finally going to do something right, or do they have no intention of carrying out this plan?

They are still only offering a 20% discount through Ingram. That means it costs the bookstore more money to bring it into the store than they would make if they sell it.

cj
 

Canada James

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ResearchGuy said:
I am skeptical that PA will in fact accept returns. If it does not, sparks will fly when the hapless authors are caught in the middle between bookstore managers and PA. Time will tell. I hope those folks don't get hurt as a result of reading way too much into the PA announcement.

PA will simply ban the authors who make noise and wait for a new crop of authors to come in.

cj
 

aruna

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Here is an answer to White Raven:
icon_sad.gif
i feel sad at what you said but i know it to be true before i accepted the contract i looked on the internet and almost got suckered in by that babble about PA then i thought the same as you a 7year wait to find another publisher or one that is willing to take a chance on a author who has just been writing for 1year i think i took the right choice in signing with PA no matter what people say about them they took a chance on me and i repayed by taking a chance on them. the people that are against them may not off worked hard enough to get their book noticed enough and failed. PA can only do so much it is the Author that sell the books they write

No comment.


This thread, however, makes me sad for the authors and mad at PA:
http://bb.publishamerica.com/viewtopic.php?t=6560
 
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JohnJStephens

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'Kay, so I was looking at PA's website a few minutes ago, and I thought hmmm, this site looks kinda familiar. And then I thought, Wal-mart!

I agree with you, there is a similarity, and it is worth drawing Walmart's attention to it. Companies such as Walmart are on a continual lookout for any form of infringement of intellectual property rights. If it is possible to drag PA into their sights, this can only be a good thing.

Walmart Head Office will be informed of this tomorrow, to draw their attention to it.
 

JohnJStephens

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Are the any bio's of the 'orrible trio Larry, Willem, and Miranda anywhere? I am especially interested in Willem, because I want to know more about the circumstances behind his departure from Europe. Dates and places of birth would very useful.

Also, are there any sites with financial info about PA, shareholders etc, because I don't to want to have to pay for this info if not strictly necessary :) It would also be helpful to know who the suppliers of PA are. This includes businesses that provide them with professional services (lawyers, accountants, market research bureaus and so on).

In line with the adage 'know your enemy', the more information we have about this outfit, and the indviduals behind it, the better.
 

Richard

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I agree with you, there is a similarity, and it is worth drawing Walmart's attention to it. Companies such as Walmart are on a continual lookout for any form of infringement of intellectual property rights. If it is possible to drag PA into their sights, this can only be a good thing.

At the risk of being negative, those two sites don't look remotely similar. There's a few common page elements, like the rounded tabs and the three column design, but nothing that points to any kind of rip-off. Amazon's as close a match as Wal-Mart.
 

JohnJStephens

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At the risk of being negative, those two sites don't look remotely similar.

I think it's all in the eye of the beholder, Richard. It's not a big deal, but for me the similarity is there, and the PublishAmerica Star accentuates this. It is unlikely, however, that PA has deliberately ripped Walmart off, and who knows, maybe it was Walmart was inspired by PA's wonderful website design :)

But I love the PublishAtlantica/PublishBritannia web page. Definitely a collector's item! So the scum have finally landed on my sceptred isle. I wonder if they have the same Maryland-based standard contract or a special British one?
 

Mac H.

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JRD said:
My son pointed it out to me. He designed and runs a web site for my book, and somehow is able to track where people come from when they visit the site.

There's alot of good info here. I would have liked to have known about this site a couple of years earlier...
Ahh yes - I put a link to your site in the post!

Sorry Jules, but I ended up padding out my Amazon order with Joseph Campbell's "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" instead of your book. (I've felt guilty for years about having never read this classic. My only consolation is that at least I waded through the entire of the unabridged version of "The Golden Bough".)

Jules - definitely check out the rest of the forums - this one thread is only one of many, and it certainly isn't the most informative.

Mac
 

Richard

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So the scum have finally landed on my sceptred isle. I wonder if they have the same Maryland-based standard contract or a special British one?

Oh, for a long time. Well, in a way. They claim to be in Milton Keynes, but you have as much chance of finding them there as Nessie, Sasquatch and Lord Lucan at a tea party.
 

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Rose colored glasses said:
Research Guy, I hope it does work out for PA authors to get their books in stores due to the new return policy.
The important thing to remember is that there is no return policy, just PA's talk about starting one, maybe, if it works out. PA's given no details about how this is supposed to work, and bookstores will notice that even if PA's authors don't. (Remember PA's "partnership" with the New York Times, which consisted of three ads--each smaller than the last--but which resulted in lots of authors buying copies of their own books to get on the bestseller list? PA's counting on authors buying over 40 copies of their book to make them returnable: Short-time offer! Get it while you can! Returnability is the reason managers won't stock your books--yeah, yeah, for years we said non-returnability was a good thing, but forget about that--so if you don't take advantage of this opportunity, you've only got yourself to blame when your book doesn't sell! Buy now or be branded a whining loser!)

I'm just wondering how much the short discount and high price of our books will still factor in, though.
Lots and lots and lots. Bookstores aren't going to ignore those problems just because PA says "We're going to make our books returnable, under some vague and unspecified conditions."

It seems odd to me, though, that PA is being praised so highly for doing something that is just a given with "traditional publishers".
It's almost like people know PA isn't a real publisher, isn't it?
 

JohnJStephens

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Should we be worried? Enjoy!

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OCTOBER 2, 2005

Following the astounding success of PublishAmerica, acclaimed by authors, agents and publishers everywhere, from Sea to Shining Sea, we are honored, privileged and delighted to announce a new range of exciting new projects.

RECORD AMERICA!

Why remain a struggling and unrecognized musician! From today, you can sign up with us, and your CD’s will be on sale in every music store in the land. From Sea to Shining Sea! Fancy yourself as a bit of a Diva? Wanna strut your stuff on MTV? We make your dreams come true! Because we don’t want your money, we want your music!

HOLLYWOOD AMERICA!

What do film stars like Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman and the rest of the Hollywood glitterati have that you do not? The answer is… nothing! They simply had the luck. But you have the talent! This is wrong, wrong, wrong! We think that everyone should appear in films, everywhere! Just make your film (and we have our very own film set here in ‘East Coast Hollywood’ which, as all insiders know, just happens to be Frederick, Maryland). Way to go!!! OK, this needs a little money up front to hire Larry Clippety-Clopp and his team as your film crew, but once the film is made, we will make sure that is available everywhere. From Sea To Shining Sea!

PUBLISHAMERICA WORLD!

We are delighted to announce our most exciting business venture ever! A Publish America Theme Park, set in sunny Maryland! Remember the film ‘Westworld’, where the two dudes got the girls (thousands of them!) and got to shoot big bad Yul Brynner into the bargain? And you thought it was just a movie? Well no more! PublishAmerica makes this a reality! Welcome to PublishAmericaWorld! You, best selling author-in-waiting, can now savor the pleasures of receiving your Pulitzer Prize, being begged for inspiration by Stephen King , and having the world’s biggest film directors knocking on your door. And not just begging for the film rights, but offering you every form of sexual gratification if you agree! OK, so they won’t be real robots, it will only be our very own moaning Miranda offering you a blow job. But we guarantee, based on our own personal experiences, that she will seem like a real robot! Isn’t it worth paying a few thousand $$$ to prepare yourself for this form of adulation? We know it’s going to happen one day, because we at Publish America have confidence in our authors! But PublishAmericaWorld makes it happen today! Of course, if it all goes horribly wrong, like for the poor dudes in the movie, and your Pulitzer Prize audience suddenly start throwing rotten tomatoes at you, and shout at you to stick at the day job, then what the hell. It will have turned into a reality show!

Exciting times are ahead! That’s for sure! From Sea To Shining Sea!!!
 

astonwest

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I still hold to the belief that PA is working this angle in order to point and cry, "See, returnability doesn't matter," when stores still refuse to order copies of PA books to stock on shelves (because of the other problems with the publisher).

The question is, how long will PA keep returnability active before they pull the plug? (and of course, the follow-on question: will they even tell an author when their book is now returnable?)
 

Christine N.

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carley said:
'Kay, so I was looking at PA's website a few minutes ago, and I thought hmmm, this site looks kinda familiar. And then I thought, Wal-mart! Seriously, http://www.walmart.com/books?path=0%3A3920&dept=3920 and then www.publishamerica.com

I guess it's funny to me because Wal-mart is seen by some as corrupting business practices.

Anyway, I'll go get a life now! :hi:

This is from a couple of pages back, but... (man, step away for a day and race to catch up!)

I asked about this. Wal*Mart pulls books from the distributors database. If the book is in either Baker and Taylor or Ingram's base, it will show up on the WM site. Because it's "not in stock" means that Wally doesn't carry it. That's all.

Edited: whoops, you were talking about the similarity b/w the two sites. Sorry. But I'll leave this here in case anyone is wondering why PA books show up on WM's site.
 
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the bollocks

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Unfortunately, PA has prepared for that pretty well... the contract calls for required arbitration. In other words, lawyers can't bring a class action suit at this point (as much as they'd love to)-- authors have to go through arbitration individually first.

So sorry you're here because you found out the truth about PA the hard way. If you can prove you've been shorted on royalties, though, it's time to start shouting loud and clear to people in authority-- your attorney general, police, consumer reporters, lawyers, whomever might be in a position to help you. We're all working on that, and you never know who's going to be the one who finally cracks this case wide open!

How many people are filing legal action against PA? Does anyone know?
 

Ken Schneider

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the bollocks said:
How many people are filing legal action against PA? Does anyone know?

I'm sure those who have, and are, won't post it here. This is where PA gets their information.

This board is like the holly grail for the stooges. As they know little about true publishing, they come here to be educated.

Ken S.
 

aruna

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Ken Schneider said:
I'm sure those who have, and are, won't post it here. This is where PA gets their information.

This board is like the holly grail for the stooges. As they know little about true publishing, they come here to be educated.

Ken S.

However, it's likely that many of those who ARE doing so, read this board. Wouldn't it be good to have a single, private coordinator so that they could all communicate and see what the other is doing?
 
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