We Accept All Author Submissions. Send your work and see what happens!
www.austinmacauley.com/
The only thing that prevents me from self publishing is that the big publishing houses, with whom I still have a chance as they have had my submission for three weeks now, make it very clear that they won't touch a book that has already been self published. This reduces my chances of getting any follow up books in my trilogy published either – or does it? I am in such a quandary as what to do. But I know that the one thing I won't be doing is paying nearly £3000 for what sounds like a shoddy product.
I don't think the letter was rude or uppity, but maybe they thought so. I certainly don't intend to have further contact with them unless they respond.
And it amuses me that they make such a big deal of sending out acceptance letters when one of their own adverts states that they accept everyone!
Ah, but it's difficult to resist feeling special when you receive a letter on paper thick as cardboard with a stamp of the queen on the envelope. Some of us are more easily impressed than others
This maybe needs re quoting since Austin & Macauley offering contracts to "new authors" is coming up first as a google ad on any google search related to publishing.Austin & Maclauley is a vanity publisher. I've gotten reports of fees in the £3,000 range.
Like many vanity publishers, Austin & Macauley claims to offer "traditional" publishing, and lures authors in with this promise. Once authors have submitted, they get a letter from "Chief Editor Annette Longman" saying that A&C thinks their work "has merit" and "deserves to be published." However, due to "the difficulty in placing the books of new or untried authors, as well as the general increased competition in publishing today, we feel that it may be necessary to ask for a contribution from you." There then follows some stuff about how such arrangements are "likely to be more common in future," and then Annette lowers the boom:
Let me stress: the situation is that, at the moment, we are only asking you to agree in principle [to make a contribution]. I can, however, assure you of one important point. If you were to agree in principle, the amount asked of you would be reasonable; it would be a contribution to initial costs only; it would not match the investment we ourselves would be putting into teh publishing, promoting, and marketing of your work.
The final paragraph of this letter sinks the hook, implying that the contribution may not be required after all: "...on the other hand, [the Publishing Board] may well agree to take responsibility for the entire financial risk."
These are standard vanity publisher sales tactics, designed to make authors believe that a) the publisher isn't solely a vanity publisher, and b) if they pay, the publisher will contribute either its own money or services of substantial value. However, it's quite likely that neither is true. While some vanity publishers do have non-vanity programs, in many if not most cases the claim to provide "tradtional" publishing is a sales ploy designed to make authors feel more confident that the publisher is reputable ('cause any publisher that does non-vanity publishing is reputable, right?). Ditto for the joint venture claim--it's far more likely that the author's "contribution" has been carefully calculated to cover not just publication costs, but the publisher's overhead and profit.
Apart from anything else, A&M's website is deceptive in that there's no indication that any of its authors will have to pay. However, as Old Hack noted, to anyone with any real publishing experience, it screams "vanity publisher."
- Victoria
I'm really hoping this is satire. I'm coming off a brutal work week + food poisoning, so my ability to discern nuance is a little challenged.
It's very odd that that account has only one post and it chose satire in this thread then. I guess considering the book titles it must be after all, so I'm embarrassed I reported it. But the person only having one post made me think it was a bizarre attempt at spam.It's satire. Sorry for being a confused sourpuss, all.
I had an explanation from the OP (I think) that it was satire. A bit heavy, but whatever.
This is one of the pubs that makes me just roll my eyes and go to the other side of the street. I can't help anyone daft enough to fall for them.
I just wanted to say a big thank you for this forum and in particular, this post about Austin Macauley. Last Thursday, I received an email from them to say that they found my book favourable. I was so excited until I read the attachments which said they would want a contribution from me. I then felt so gutted and upset. I have, over the Easter weekend, calmed down but have replied to them to say that I had since discovered that they are a vanity publisher and have a bad name. As a new author, I had no idea these sorts of publishers existed. If someone isn't prepared or have the money to self publish, then you want to go through a publisher, don't you. You simply don't expect to 'pay' a publisher at all. I was just so relieved to find your forum. Thanks to my partner, he said why don't you google Austin Macauley to see if it is a scam, because even he said no way was I going to fork out money. So, I won't give up, because one day my first book will be published and I will remain positive about it.