The latest on the Alleviate Publications front is that they have again deferred the publication of the Alleviate Anthology, this time to July 20, 2012. This is apparently to better leverage their "bolder web presence" and "extensive marketing campaigns in June 2012":
http://www.alleviatepublications.com/alleviateanthology.html
Interestingly, they are also in the process of refunding everyone who paid a fee to be included in the anthology. Why? "Since the company is doing so well, we no longer feel it is necessary or appropriate to charge a competition fee".
Which is nice for the entrants but presumably the unnamed charities which were due to benefit from the anthology will now get even less money from the profit (if there is a profit).
And the company is doing so well? How can they be doing so well when they don't appear to have any books published? The catalog on their website shows six books due to be published at future dates. If they have any already published that are contributing to the well being of the company one would think they would be listed.
Unlike other publishers they seem extraordinarily coy about their whereabouts. They claim to be based in NYC with regional offices in Canada and Europe. Their NYC contact number is (646)2332172 but "note only limited telephone support is available". When I rang it I got a recorded message saying they were "unavailable at this time". For a company that is purported to be "doing so well" one would assume they would have someone hired to answer the phone during regular business hours.
The original listing in the GoDaddy domain registration website showed Alleviate Books to be registered to a Draya Mooney - one of their featured authors - at an address in a housing estate in Galway City, Ireland. This was subsequently changed to delete her name and to show the address as NYC.
It's all very curious.
Perhaps their spokesperson Emma McCarthy - she who is so ready to threaten legal action against anyone who so much as doubts their bona fides - would be so good as tell us the office address in NYC and to give us some more information on the factors that have contributed to the company "doing so well".