Dark Moon Press

[ericortlund]

See here: http://www.darkmoonpress.com/

Looks very small and kind of ... what's the word? Not high-end. But I'm a beginning author and I'm frankly not terribly picky.

Anyone had good/bad experiences with them?

Remember, I'm more concerned with getting my books out there than finding the one *best* publisher.

Thanks all ...

 

[Helix]

This would give me pause: http://www.darkmoonpress.com/product/phantom-of-the-opera/

That cover is a combination of the mask and rose from Phantom of the Opera (https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00004YTY2/?tag=absowrit-21) and a typeface similar (but not identical) to that used for Queen's 'A Night at the Opera'.

Also the covers and blurbs are not very good.

 

[EMaree]

Ericortlund, how did you find this publisher? They seem very specialist, working with a small local niche of writers who appear to know each other or have links through paranormal interests. They also don't provide submission guidelines, only a submission address, so it's unclear how much they're actively seeking subs.

This would give me pause: http://www.darkmoonpress.com/product/phantom-of-the-opera/

That cover is a combination of the mask and rose from Phantom of the Opera (https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00004YTY2/?tag=absowrit-21) and a typeface similar (but not identical) to that used for Queen's 'A Night at the Opera'.

Also the covers and blurbs are not very good.

Oh, yikes, that's just flat out stolen. The listing is odd, too. It seems to just be a re-issue of the original book with nothing added, and it's not listed online on Amazon (possible because it'd get taken too fast?).

Their other covers are similarly... not good. Lots of weak photo-manipulation.

"These Haunted Dreams" is one of their best covers (weak typography but truly fantastic art) but the art there was created by the author. Most of their stronger covers seem to provide author-provided art or photography, and the art is usually let down by the supporting fonts.

Their print layouts are shocking. White text on black is a common rookie layout that's really hard to read, and this one gave me eyestrain trying to parse it. Black text on orange is... not better. This one is unreadable for a dozen different reasons, from tiny crammed-in fonts to overlaying white text on top of teal on the spine.

Their editing does not get good reviews. Krampus 'The Unholly King' has reviews complaining about poorly-matched stories and typos, and for the life of me I can't figure out if 'UnHolly' in the title is a typo or a reference to the plant.

Their Amazon listings are sloppy, with the press called 'Dark Press' as often as 'Dark Moon Press'.

Looks very small and kind of ... what's the word? Not high-end. But I'm a beginning author and I'm frankly not terribly picky.

There's no shame about being picky about who you sign over the rights for your work to. Remember that you're literally signing away commercial benefit here: do DarkMoonPress take film rights, audio rights, graphic adaptation rights? Do they have the people to utilise any of those rights? (Looking at their website, no, they're strictly e-book and paper only, so they should only ask for ebook and paper rights.)

Remember, I'm more concerned with getting my books out there than finding the one *best* publisher.

If this is your only concern, and you're willing to throw away your rights to the first publisher you find, I would strongly suggest self-publishing as an option instead.

 

[Chris P]

Yeah nothing about this publisher impresses me. Even on the idea of getting books "out there," I wouldn't start here. I fell for the out there thinking with my first book with a much larger and better known (but vanity) publisher and sold 12 books, ten of them to myself. My second book went to a small publisher with no marketing power, and I sold 20 books. The only way I would have been successful was to do all the marketing and publicity work myself, in which case self-publishing would have been better for me.

Off the topic of this publisher, but to the "out there" idea, I'm reminded of the Fermi Paradox, which states that the universe is so big and so old intelligent life is bound to have emerged several times. However, the universe is so big and so old that the chances of us encountering it are very slim. Likewise, the publishing universe has gotten so big that the chances of a random reader I don't already know finding and buying my book without targetted marketing power by me or my publisher is slim. I don't know what marketing power you have behind you, but I would be surprised if this publisher has much on its own.

 

[KMTolan]

I'm going to join with Chris and the rest about just tossing the book out there. Nah, don't do it. Research your prospective publishers. Ensure they have a good distribution system, great covers, and reading samples of their work doesn't make you gag. Too many "I are a publisher now" places out there.

This outfit looks to be a bit less professional with the graphic art and such, as was pointed out. I'd think they would be further along since being in business since 2005. I haven't dug in deep to look at the quality of their writing myself, so I can't say these folks are outright bad. EMarie, however, seems to have done some of the legwork for ya. Might want to keep the folks in mind, but continue shopping your work around.

 

[mrsmig]

See here: http://www.darkmoonpress.com/

Looks very small and kind of ... what's the word? Not high-end. But I'm a beginning author and I'm frankly not terribly picky.

Anyone had good/bad experiences with them?

Remember, I'm more concerned with getting my books out there than finding the one *best* publisher.

Thanks all ...

I know this is going to sound harsh...but are you out of your mind?

Have you looked at their covers? They are uniformly ghastly. Even with the larger "thumbnail" size they use on their website, most of the titles are illegible. Is that the kind of cover you want for your book?

Have you utilized the "Look Inside" feature on Amazon for any of these books? I have. They are rife with editing errors. One book refers to the writer having "Scarlett" fever as a child (I guess she lay in bed running a temperature while murmuring "fiddle-dee-dee"). Another states:

I bought the house but have no intention of living there, and am reticence about that issue goes beyond the research and the excitement oflookingpast The Veil and seeing History.

Is that the kind of editing you want for your book?

They can't even get the titles of their own books right on their website. Look here, and here, and here ("apocylapse"...sweet Jesus).

You can do crap covers, sloppy editing and a half-assed website all by yourself, and probably make more money and get just as much "exposure" as you would with this outfit. If you're going to put the effort into writing a book, why settle for a low-end publisher like this?

I shudder to think what kind of contract they're offering.

 

[cool pop]

The web site and covers alone would make me run.

If you're looking for the "best" publisher this ain't it.

 

[VeryBigBeard]

I know others have said this, but:

Be picky.

You have done your work. You have written a book. If it is a good book, it has value to every publisher that publishes in your genre.

Start high. You want to best possible deal for the work you've done.

Experience for authors is not like experience in other industries. There are, in fact, advantages to being a debut writer (e.g., you could be a star + your advance is going to be cheaper). There are also advantages to having an established sales record. But these things determine how much you'll get paid by legitimate publishers. If a publisher is in any way sketchy, you're better off passing. You have the property people want. It is far worse to be published badly than not published, because being published badly leaves a negative trail (poor sales, poor PR, poorly edited books).

Start high. Look for agents, too. Then work down your list. While you wait for responses from the best agents and publishers, write another book. This will help far more than just about anything else you can do. When you get to a certain point on your list, trunk Project #1 and start sending out Project #2. Do not waste Project #1 by sending it to dubious agents or publishers. Not only will it leave a trail, it will also burn your rights to Project #1--rights you may want if Project #2 goes on to sell big.