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Ockham Publishing Group Ltd. / Vulpine Press

folieadeux

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Saw some posts on FB about Vulpine Press having a new commissioning editor of romance, looking to sign authors. Site looks geared to authors more than readers to me. Asked about what they do for promo and they said, "Vulpine Press is one of a dying breed of independent publishers that partake in significant publicity efforts, and our expertise stems from ex-big publisher experience (HarperCollins and the like). A list of our recent media appearances (up to around March) is available on the website here: https://www.vulpine-press.com/media/ The likes of the BBC, the Guardian, etc, are high-traffic worldwide media that authors dream of being featured in. And of course there's also various subscription lists and readers groups that we use."

Looks like a lot of books for just opening in 2017, but maybe that's just me. Any deeper insight or authors with experience?

https://www.vulpine-press.com/
 

Madame Medusa

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Well, I learned more about Brandy the cat from their "About" page than I learned about the company, if that tells you anything.

In looking at their covers, I'm not too impressed. They all look really generic, and most don't give a hint about the genre, even, never mind the story. In this day and age, it's not hard to buy better clip art, never mind premade book covers. (They also use two different covers for the same title, "The Last Woman" - both of which are pretty generic.)

Lots of titles from what looks like only a handful of authors.

I agree with the home page targeting writers more than readers - that's always a red flag for me.

My two cents...
 

SaraC

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I got a pitch contest like from them. At first, I was going to ignore it because of the cat bio and the fact that the homepage was not their books. Then I saw some of their books had good sales rank on amazon, so I queried with the requested three chapters. But if they request a full? Not sure if I'll send it. I'd need more information.

I was bothered by a lack of staff listed on the page and a lack of info about their distribution and printing. Are they POD createspace? Ingramspark?

Libby M Iriks is the Vulpine romance editor, according to twitter, facebook, and linked in.
https://twitter.com/RomanceEditor27
https://www.linkedin.com/in/libby-m-iriks/

Previous publishing experience was "Territory Sales Manager" for scholastic.

And that is about the extent of what I can add right now.
 

C Alberts

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...and a lack of info about their distribution and printing. Are they POD createspace? Ingramspark?

I can't tell you how they print, but based on what I see on Ingram I am guessing it is POD of some sort. I can tell you that they have 55 titles listed on Ingram. A spot check of those titles shows that they can be ordered via Ingram but at a short discount (some are 20% off list, some are 25%). Some are listed as returnable, some are nonreturnable. These terms are prohibitive as far as a bookstore deciding to carry their books on the shelf. My shop would be willing to special order these at a customer's request even though we would barely make a profit; many stores would not.

Based on the lack of info on their website (nothing about distribution or bookstore contacts) and what I see on Ingram, I doubt they are doing much to get their books into bricks and mortar stores.
 

Coconutqueen

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Vulpine Press

Hello,

I'm new to Absolute Write. Is this the right place to ask if any of you have heard of Vulpine Press? I participated in a Twitter Pitch session yesterday, and this publisher expressed interest in two of my romance novel pitches. I haven't been able to find out any information on them except for their website and the name of the editor who "liked" my pitches for Vulpine. I'm a little wary when I can't find any information no matter how good a publisher makes itself out to be in its website. Anyone or any entity can say anything they want about themselves.

On their website, they make no mention of the author having to pay anything up front, but doesn't mean they won't mention it somewhere down the line.

Thanks, Jeanne
 

Old Hack

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Hello, Coconut. I'm going to merge this thread with our existing thread on Vulpine, and hope you get the answers you need.
 

V-Man

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I recently queried Vulpine/Ockham on a whim; exactly 2 weeks later, their "Submissions Team" requested the full manuscript. Another 2 weeks after that, I got another email from the "'Submissions Team" referring me to an associated hybrid/vanity press:

Thanks for sending this across to us. Unfortunately, whilst it's well written, our commissioner for this area hasn't decided to pick it up. But please don't be disheartened, as this is not a reflection on the work itself, but rather of there being a high volume of quality submissions.

However our Invisible Imprint side of the publishing house would be happy to work with you on it. Do have a look at the website (https://www.theinvisibleimprint.com/) and don't hesitate to let us know if this is something you would like to look at.
 

Unimportant

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Wow, that's about fifty seven red flags all in one.
 
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Maryn

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You want flags? We got your basic red, your crimson, your scarlet, your carmine, your candy apple, your cardinal, your vermilion, your fire engine, your venetian, your garnet, your ruby...