Return of a Man Named PAMB and its Quotes

[Gillhoughly]

17 writers on the schedule.

4 with PA

3 with CreateSpace or Lulu.

*1* from a publisher I've actually heard of.

I'm thinking I really do need to clean out my hall closet instead of going to that chat.

Let the poor victim have her delusion. It'd be like hitting a baby to show up and hassle her. No one ever looks good doing that.


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[emsuniverse]

Originally Posted by Queen of Swords

I can't quite understand this mentality. Your books aren't available in bookstores. Your books aren't available in online stores. And you still want to be reassured that PA is the best company for you?

But PA made her a Published Author! Why would anything else, like availability, matter? She's still a Published Author!

[Fae Sutherland]

Originally Posted by Stacia Kane

(when is the last time you saw a professional website with a Guestbook?)

Going immediately to delete the guestbook from my site. *hides face in shame*

[Jersey Chick]

When I had my first site designed, the designer added a guestbook. I had him get rid of it only a few weeks later because it attracted spam and only spam. It was a waste of time. On my new site, I have contact info and that's it. Much better and no spam.

[Queen of Swords]

I could never really see the purpose of a guestbook. If you want to let someone know that you stopped by their site and enjoyed it, you could always send them an email or leave a comment on their blog.

Guestbooks make me think of autograph albums, weddings and funerals, not necessarily in that order.

[M.R.J. Le Blanc]

PA-ers tend to use it as advertising. You can tell by the way they leave messages that the main reason they stopped by was to promote their own site. I think it's all part of that 'promote promote promote!' mentality.

[Fae Sutherland]

Originally Posted by Jersey Chick

When I had my first site designed, the designer added a guestbook. I had him get rid of it only a few weeks later because it attracted spam and only spam. It was a waste of time. On my new site, I have contact info and that's it. Much better and no spam.

See, we've never gotten any spam. Some very nice reader comments left there, very sporadically, but never any spam. It honestly never occurred to me not to have one. Oops.

[Jersey Chick]

I used to get all kinds of nonsense.

Now, I just direct readers to my gmail addy.

[JulieB]

I don't think a guestbook is so bad IF you can control the spam. That's the catch. Or the CATCPHA as it may be. ;-)

[Christine N.]

Once in a while I get lovely reader comments. Never got any spam. I'm building a new website through Google sites (to port my domain name over to) and probably won't include a guestbook.

[Jersey Chick]

It was weird - a lot of Russian nonsense. I did get some nice comments, but it just wasn't worth the hassle.

[Stacia Kane]

Originally Posted by Fae Sutherland

Going immediately to delete the guestbook from my site. *hides face in shame*

I'm sorry honey!!

*is mortified at thought of hurting Fae or Christine N*

[Christine N.]

It's okay. I built my site years ago and thought it was cool. I think at one time it was cool.

[James D. Macdonald]

At one time I did have a guestbook.

Then the Nigerian Scammers found it.

Now, I have a link to my personal newsgroup, which provides interactivity. (Now I have to remember to go post something new.)

[Christine N.]

My biggest problem with Webs isn't the guestbook, it's that people can become 'members', of my site. I get all kinds of people there, and then their picture shows up on my site, as well as any image they choose to upload. It makes me feel violated, to be honest, and I pay for my domain which makes me a premium member, which gets ads off of my site, but doesn't stop people from 'joining'. Weird.

Which is part of the reason I'm going over to Google sites.

[Little1]

Someone asked on the PABord..

I was just wondering has anyone here actually got anything yet...? I'm not really expecting to anytime soon since my books title is Spawn of Satan and its kinda in the middle but I was just wondering...

Some "helpful" Pa Person answered

I did answer one of your other posts about that. Just remember they only send out royalty's twice a year. Same time each year. Also they can't pay you for what they haven't got. If people are buying your books from say Banes and Noble. It does't matter how many they sell, if the store doesn't get off their butts and send there money back to PA. Most book stores do that 3 or 4 times a year.

People tend to think that once a book is sold, it instantly goes back to the publisher. Well it does't. These business are big corporations and they all move slow as molasses.

first I would like to know who bans and noble is. I would assume it is Barns N Noble. I would hasered a guess its NOT BNN that is not paying there bills....

[merrihiatt]

Barnes and Noble. One of my pet peeves is misspelling bookstore names.

[Queen of Swords]

PA supporter 'fesses up on blog

Remember the author who recently stated on the PAMB that PA was a "hybrid publisher" and kept implying it was similar to the major publishers ("oh yes, PA is slow to pay you, but so are the big six")? On his blog, though, he says,

Do I think PA is a vanity press? Yes I do.

He just happens to think that they'll do more for him than Lulu or CreateSpace and he has some beliefs that are not, shall we say, compatible with commercial publishing.

Lets talk about your elitist attitude. Everyone is entitled to be published. They may not make any sales, but they deserve to do what they want, at least in this country I live in.

Yes, it's right there in the Constitution. You are entitled to life, liberty and the publication of anything you want, when you want it.

[Gravity]

And we have the right to ignore his book, and watch it sink without a trace. Ain't freedom grand?

[Jersey Chick]

Argh!

For the love of all that is holy, won't someone take pity on this person and teach him the difference between "there/their/they're" and possessive/plural??? And he's giving advice to people?

GAH!

[Queen of Swords]

That gives me an idea for a blog post about reasons why the entitlement belief is bad for writers, but on another topic, a PA author who's a Facebook friend of mine had posted on FB about his book being available on Amazon. So I checked. Naturally, it was out of stock and I let him know. He replied,

"I think it will be ordered upon request as soon as you express interest Marian. It took my friend three weeks to get hers via the same process from amazon although it wqas out of stock."

So people have to request the book despite it being out of stock, and even then it takes three weeks?

I don't know if he sees the problem in that - namely, that readers who aren't already his friends may not make that effort and be willing to wait so long for an already overpriced book. But I have a feeling he'll learn.

[TheTinCat]

Lets talk about your elitist attitude. Everyone is entitled to be published.

In the sense that everyone is entitled to hit "print", make copies at any scale they want and ask people to read/buy it, yes.

In the sense that everyone is entitled to have a real publisher spend money, time and expertise on their work, or entitled to get their work bought or read by other people? Say it with me ...

[Jersey Chick]

So tempted to comment on so much misinformation both in the blog and the comments. Must. Refrain.

However, I also see a possible blog post in the future.

[Cyia]

Originally Posted by TheTinCat

In the sense that everyone is entitled to hit "print", make copies at any scale they want and ask people to read/buy it, yes.

In the sense that everyone is entitled to have a real publisher spend money, time and expertise on their work, or entitled to get their work bought or read by other people? Say it with me ...

Silence you elitist toady bug! We are all entitled to readers' money! As much as the market will bear, and even more than that!

[Bartholomew]

Originally Posted by Queen of Swords

Yes, it's right there in the Constitution. You are entitled to life, liberty and the publication of anything you want, when you want it.

I know you're being sarcastic, but that Constitution really does say this. First amendment.