Blue Feather Books, Ltd. / Limitless Dare 2 Dream Publishers

Is anyone familiar with this company? I've checked them out as best I can (they are in '04 Writer's Market, not '03), and I've read nothing negative.

And thanks to those who've offered insights on PA, PODs, etc. Your posts have been helpful to me.

Limitless D2D

I submitted a short story collection to them a few months back - heard back from them very quickly. They turned down the ms. but sent a very nice response, which I have posted here:

Ms. Brown:
I want to thank you for thinking of us and it is clear you are a talented writer. However, at this time we are publishing primarily mainstream and alternative works and since your work is more literary in nature we believe you will be better served by another publisher. I would highly recommend you review the section in Writer's Market specifically for this genre as your work clearly has merit. Having been published before and being an award winning author should go a long way to getting you through the door, so to speak.
We wish you the very best of luck and encourage you to feel free to submit future works to us.

Sincerely,

Samantha E. Ruskin, CEO
Limitless, Dare 2 Dream Publishing

Deejay

Limitless D2D

I've heard of them. Most of what they've published so far has been lesbian fiction. The quality of their editing is spotty; other than that, I don't know much about them.

Limitless Dare 2 Dream Publishers

Hi,

I know someone whose family member is about to sign with Limitless Dare 2 Dream Publishers in South Carolina. I'm not sure they know the questions to ask about editing, distribution, and all that good stuff so I am snooping around. From their website, I cannot tell if they are POD, traditional, or "other", or how they operate in general. They hope to see this book in bookstores and I'd hate for them to be disappointed.

Thanks for any info.

Re: Limitless Dare 2 Dream Publishers

Their printer is Lightning Source, so they're definitely POD. That doesn't necessarily say anything about their business practices (POD is just a technology). But from their unprofessional-looking website I suspect they operate on a shoestring budget and rely on their authors as an unpaid sales force. I think that it would probably be up to authors to get their books into stores, solicit reviews, etc.

- Victoria

i was looking

i was looking up the dare to dream publishers and I found one book that might offer some insight:

www.amazon.com/exec/obido...ce&s=books

if you notice under the publisher section, Dare to dream is listed as "Dare 2 Dream Desktop Publishing." This was back in Jan 2003, so things might be different now, but this is something to take into consideration. I haven't found much more yet, but i'll let you know if i see anything.

Also, check Preditors and Editors, they have a link, but not much info on this publisher.

In addition, send them an email. Ask about their initial print runs, advance, royalties, and distribution. Ask upfront, you may find that they could give you the answers themselves. Of course, you should always fact-check afterward.

Looking through the site, I also found reference to stocked books. And a reference to

<quote> NEW PRINTER SALE!!
PRICES SLASHED on all
IN STOCK books. Limited
time. Will be withdrawn
without notice so buy
now!!! </quote>

Finally, take all the books and see where you can find them. They should all be listed at the very least on Amazon. I found a sampling of them on Amazon, but some of them were not, which may mean that they are not yet printed. Also, check the www.bordersstores.com. From here you can check their inventory. See if any of the books are in stores.

good luck, and hopefully all pans out.

beat me with a stick and call me Tuesday

Looks like Victoia beat me to the post. I wasn't even watching, so caught up in the chase. Follow her advice, it's better.

Terrific information

Thank you for your input and ideas on this publisher. It is allowing me to help my friend compile a list of questions that need to be addressed before anything gets signed. The contract has been reviewed by an attorney with experience in the area of publishing. I've suggested she ask for copies of book reviews, see what publications the reviews come from, snoop around local bookstores with the ISBNs of other books from Dare 2 Dream to see about ordering and availability, and a few other tasks all to help determine if this book is going to have distribution aside from the internet big guys and her own sweat equity.

It really is a helpful and enthusiastic bunch here at the Water Cooler. I've been enjoying my time here.

Thanks again

Re: Terrific information

Asking about book reviews is a good strategy. A publisher that's actively trying to promote its books will work hard to get reviews in Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and similar venues--readers don't always see these reviews, but librarians and booksellers do. If the publisher can't show you any reviews, or if all the reviews come from personally-owned reviewer websites, it's a good clue that this publisher is not really doing much in the way of marketing.

Check the book prices also. Since this publisher uses POD, the cover prices are going to be higher than is normal for trade-size paperbacks, but the prices shouldn't make you scream and run away.

More questions for your friend to ask:

- Are your books returnable by bookstores for full credit? (If not, bookstores will be unwilling to order them)

- Do you work with a distributor as well as a wholesaler? (A wholesaler, such as Ingram or Baker & Taylor, provides ordering and fulfillment services. A distributor provides ordering and fulfillment services, plus a staff of sales reps who pitch the publisher's catalogue to bookstores. Ideally, a small publisher should work with both a distributor and a wholesaler, or else work with a wholesaler and maintain its own staff of reps. If the publisher's books are available only through Ingram or B&T and it has no sales staff, the burden of selling will fall on the author.) (P.S. If the publisher doesn't know what you mean by this question, that will tell you something too.)

- If you don't work with a distributor, how do you sell your books into stores? (The answer should be: "We have our own staff of sales reps." If the answer is something like "We send out mass mailings and/or fliers", it's roughly the same as saying "We don't sell our books into stores at all", because stores ignore that kind of stuff as spam and junk mail).

- If you don't sell your books into stores, what's the focus of your marketing efforts? (If the answer is "our own website" or "we list with all the online bookstores", they're basically saying "marketing is up to you, kid".)

- Vicctoria

Dare 2 Dream

Another thing to consider is that Dare 2 Dream is a niche publisher, specializing in gay/lesbian fiction, including explicit erotica, which many other publishers won't touch.

Things to ask the author are:

has this manuscript been submitted to other publishers? what were their comments?

what is the content of the manuscript? is there explicit sexual content?

how long is the manuscript? is the author willing to cut it or allow an editor to cut it?

I've worked with several small publishers in this genre (including D2D), and I've noticed that many authors within this genre are unwilling to do the types of rewrites and revisions that a traditional publisher would require. That being the case, sometimes a small POD publisher is their only option. D2D makes no claim to be anything other than what it is: a small POD publisher that does rely on authors to do their own marketing, which again isn't unusual in this particular genre.

Hello from a newbie

Hi there,

I just joined through a link from P&E. I'm looking for information, good or bad, about a publisher named Limitless D2D. Anybody?

Thx.<img border=0 src="http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/roll.gif" />

Re: Limitless D2D - bad experience

I've had a bad experience with them. I would suggest you steer clear as, along with my own experiences, it is my understanding that they are under financial strain.

Hope this helps.

Re: Dare 2 Dream

This may be a long-dead subject but, I was once published with D2D and they did virtually nothing to market my book. I did much of the leg work along with several attempts to get my book into book stores - to no avail.

Author beware.

Re: Dare 2 Dream

P&E has gained new information about Limitless Dare 2 Dream that is not flattering and will earn them a not recommended.

Re: Dare 2 Dream

Good on ya! I wish that warning had been there when I signed with them. Oh well. Many lessons learned.

Thx.

ISBN (aka eyesben)

Re: Dare 2 Dream

The marketing of their books is somewhat staggered.
Exposure isn't up to par.
Some are available on Amazon, most are only available from their site. What the hell is that?
Payment, I think, isn't all that high, cause they're so small. Graphic work topped out at $150.

Limitless Dare2Dream too limited?

If Dare2Dream features lesbian erotica, would mainstream manuscripts be tainted with "image problems?" For a new author, would affiliation with Dare 2 Dream be risky?

Re: Dare 2 Dream

Did you regret signing with them because of their lack of promotion? Was your book at all successful?

I'd say avoid them

You said: is Limitless Dare2Dream too limited?
If Dare2Dream features lesbian erotica, would mainstream manuscripts be tainted with "image problems?" For a new author, would affiliation with Dare 2 Dream be risky?

* * * * *

I'd be less concerned about being associated with a lesbian publisher than with being associated with a low-quality pubisher.

I'd also check with their authors to see if they're receiving any royalty payments.

AI

Re: I'd say avoid them

Having gay and lesbian connections doesn't hurt book sales. The industry noticed a while back that gay book stores were selling a lot of copies. Gay content immediately lost a lot of its stigma.

Capitalism. Gotta love it.

Being connected with erotica is no big deal. The great paperback boom was accompanied by a less heralded boom in text porn, and a generation of writers made ends meet by writing it. I could mention some writers of name who didn't just write porn; the number of book-length works they each wrote is in the three figures.

Being associated with a trashy vanityPOD, now -- that really is a social drawback.

Re: I'd say avoid them

Would you characterize "Limitless Dare 2 Dream" as a cheezy POD? What measure should one apply to categorize them? For a first-time author, would it be better to accept defeat and put the manuscript in the closet than accept that company as a publisher? Success in getting into print seems like a needle in a haystack process.

Re: I'd say avoid them

There are worse things in this world than remaining unpublished. Being published badly is one of them.

Try writing a new, different, better book.

Dare2Dream Publishers

Would anyone care to share their latest (last 18 months) experience with Limitless Dare2Dream?