Ridan Publishing

[thothguard51]

Regarding the holdups for the StarBridge books. There are a number of reasons they were delayed. The books are now being released.

The reasons were:

1. A death in Robin's family, which had her flying back and forth from coast to coast to settle matters.

2. A demand from Kindle for the reversion letter for StarBridge, which could not be located, not by me, my agent, or Ace. A new reversion letter had to be generated. Fortunately, Ace was cooperative and my agent was persistent, so this happened very quickly. It was a rude shock to look through my safety-deposit box and realize there was no trace of that 13 year old document. Authors, keep your documents in order!

3. I came down with a serious infection and was in the hospital for five days.

4. Robin came down with a serious bug and was unable to work for more than two weeks.

We are trying to get back on track now. Unfortunate timing all around. The first three books are now out, and the fourth is in the pipeline. Books 5, 6 and 7 need author proofing, then they, too will be in the pipeline.

I don't believe any of this amounts to any chicanery. Merely a combination of bad luck and unfortunate timing.

-Ann C. Crispin

Thank you Ann for the update. I look forward to reading the rest of the Star Bridge series...

 

[priceless1]

Folks, should we really be commenting on the attitudes or thoughts of someone who can no longer speak for themselves?

I'm not saying she should or should not have been banned. But once banned, is it fair to discuss her?

Heavens yes, it's appropriate to discuss this company. Just because Robin managed to get herself banned, does it make what's going on in her company any less vital to those looking for a solid publisher? I think not.

 

[robjvargas]

Heavens yes, it's appropriate to discuss this company. Just because Robin managed to get herself banned, does it make what's going on in her company any less vital to those looking for a solid publisher? I think not.

No, *Robin*. As I said in another post, the company is fair game.

It's a hard distinction to make, sometimes, when a company consists of one person. And that's the case here.

Anyway, I've said my peace.

 

[veinglory]

No, *Robin*. As I said in another post, the company is fair game.

It's a hard distinction to make, sometimes, when a company consists of one person. And that's the case here.

Anyway, I've said my peace.

A fair point IMHO. There is a difference between talking about company functions and discussion of personal failings.

 

[priceless1]

A fair point IMHO. There is a difference between talking about company functions and discussion of personal failings.

I disagree. In this particular case, the lines between personal and professional have been seriously blurred because one has adversely affected the other. It's impossible to discuss one without the other.

 

[veinglory]

If a distinction can't be made it is carte blanche to discuss the failings of a person who is blocked from responding. I for one am not very comfortable with that.

 

[CaoPaux]

Mmm. I also believe they're inseparable, but let's try to keep it on what Ridan as a company does or doesn't do.

 

[James D. Macdonald]

I would prefer to err on the side of caution, tact, and charity.

 

[Sheryl Nantus]

For those who are interested:

Ridan has updated their website with the news about the unfortunate passing of the founder's father and promises to catch up with the rest of the releases.

On Nathan Lowell's site the comments thread has a few readers announcing their intention to walk away due to Ridan's lack of support and movement towards getting the most recent book out in Lowell's series.

Make of it what you will.

 

[kaitie]

On Nathan Lowell's site the comments thread has a few readers announcing their intention to walk away due to Ridan's lack of support and movement towards getting the most recent book out in Lowell's series.

Make of it what you will.

Where did you see that? I thought it was somewhat odd myself, considering I'll wait years for a new book in a series, but when I went and looked I saw a few "I wish your publisher would hurry up" sort of messages. They were all along the lines of "I'm anxiously awaiting" and not "If this doesn't come out soon I won't read your books anymore."

I might have just not found the right comment section, though, but I went through a few.

 

[Sheryl Nantus]

Where did you see that? I thought it was somewhat odd myself, considering I'll wait years for a new book in a series, but when I went and looked I saw a few "I wish your publisher would hurry up" sort of messages. They were all along the lines of "I'm anxiously awaiting" and not "If this doesn't come out soon I won't read your books anymore."

I might have just not found the right comment section, though, but I went through a few.

One from the February comments:

"Sorry Nathan, but I am giving up. These delays are horrible for everybody. Your publisher should not make you lose potential (waiting) customers like me."

and one from the January - dated February:

"Sorry, Nathan. But at this point I’m done. As long as Ridan is the publisher they (and, sadly, you) will not get a dime from me."

Now whether these posters will actually *not* buy books is impossible to tell. And to me, these posts say that they've given up on Ridan and Mr. Lowell to deliver the books they want to read.

YMMV. Again, just an update.

I think this should also remind everyone to look for a publication clause, as mentioned before, in their contracts. I have them with Carina and I have them with Samhain - if your contract doesn't have a set publication date you might want to reconsider your situation.

 

[kaitie]

Alrighty, thanks. I think I was looking in a different area than you were as well. Did you find a blog itself? I was looking at his official site.

 

[eqb]

Alrighty, thanks. I think I was looking in a different area than you were as well. Did you find a blog itself? I was looking at his official site.

The comments are here:

http://solarclipper.com/

which appears to be his blog for that series. He has several such diaries, all linked from his official website.

 

[kaitie]

Thanks.

ETA: I still think it's crazy to abandon a series for waiting too long lol. I understand the frustration, but sometimes the suspense is half the fun!

 

[thothguard51]

I still think it's crazy to abandon a series for waiting too long lol. I understand the frustration, but sometimes the suspense is half the fun!

I agree with you Kaitie. Look how long some fans of GRRM have been waiting for the various books in A Game of Thrones... Or Robert Jordan fans. Jordan lost a lot of fans because of his delays in getting books out, but I suspect some will return. (Not me though).

The average reader has no clue on what is holding books back and they mostly blame the author, not the publisher, because in reality, the average reader does not follow blogs, author or publishers.

In Nathan's case, he has been patient with Ridan and many of the fans who follow his blog are willing to be patient a bit longer. God, you have to love those types of fans.

The problem is, his blog readers are a minority of his potential fan base. Ridan is not helping to increase that base by constantly pushing dates back, and as has been noted elsewhere, including Nathan's blog, this push back goes well before the death of Robin's father. If I remember right, his current book was supposed to come out back in Aug of 2011, so 8 months have gone by and I am sure some his fan base have moved on to other authors.

Ridan is a local publisher in my area, and I really hoped they would meet their goals, and still do. I just wish Ridan would open up a little more and get the editorial help they need to keep their promises to their authors, and readers.

Note to Ridan, Michael is not your only author...

 

[kaitie]

Eight months is a long time, no doubt. Especially when you expected it at a certain time. At the same time, I guess I don't get the logic of moving on to someone else when you can just pick up an author's new book in a year or five years down the line. I don't just read books by authors I like, and in fact I'd say the majority of books I've read lately are by authors I haven't read before. But that doesn't mean I can't pick up my favorite author next time I go to the bookstore.

I guess the idea is that people just get pissed at the author for not being as timely as they want and decide "Fine, I won't read anything by you now"?

 

[thothguard51]

Kaitie, let me give you a personal example.

GRRM. I originally stayed away from Martin's Game of Thrones series when it first came out because I heard a lot of negative comments about the long wait between volumes. I was not sure I wanted to invest that amount of time waiting. A stand alone book not in a series, is a different matter thought...

There is also the fact that I only have so much capital to invest in my reading habit and I have to choose the best book that suits my needs at any time. If the author is not on my radar or forgotten about then they don't get my money...

There is an old adage, strike while the iron is hot. Wait too long and the iron goes cold and the consumer goes elsewhere. This is the chance that Ridan is taking by delaying the books. Audience taste change, but if you produce on a regular basis, especially with a series which seems to be the majority of Ridan's titles, then your audience will follow without too much effort on their part...

Or so is my humble experience...

 

[Sheryl Nantus]

If you keep track of authors podcast (some authors have been waiting for edits for 8 months or a year or more) then you would hear that Ridan's CEO/Editor the one woman show is seriously Ill and since its been apparent that their are no contingencys in place its very unlikely that the company will be able to continue to function. Seriously its Time to Jump ship

What "authors podcast" is this?

Please, state your sources.

Thank you.

 

[amergina]

For those interested:

The podcast for March 6, in the first couple of minutes, he talks about hearing through the grape vine about Robin's health.

The podcast for March 5 touches briefly on Ridan starting around 15:10.

I have to say, Nathan sounds like a cool guy. The walking podcasts are kind of a cool idea.

 

[thothguard51]

The average reader does not do pod cast.

 

[Sheryl Nantus]

For those interested:

The podcast for March 6, in the first couple of minutes, he talks about hearing through the grape vine about Robin's health.

The podcast for March 5 touches briefly on Ridan starting around 15:10.

I have to say, Nathan sounds like a cool guy. The walking podcasts are kind of a cool idea.

Hmm.

Yes, the podcasts are nice. A good idea and Nathan is a prince for sharing his thoughts with his audience.

I find it disturbing that he's gotten *no* communication from Ridan about anything and is hearing about this sickness through the grapevine. If RS is ill you'd think she or at least her husband would let the other authors know instead of leaving them hanging and listening to rumors. If there's a problem you should be talking to your people not letting the rumor mill run wild.


It is *very* upsetting that he talks about money being owed to him - considering that Ridan's supposedly been making money hand over fist with the various "big" authors I have to ask where the heck all the money's gone to and how one of their major authors is not getting paid.

This does not bode well.

 

[Sheryl Nantus]

http://www.nathanlowell.org/tommw/

Thank you.

 

[amergina]

Hmm.

Yes, the podcasts are nice. A good idea and Nathan is a prince for sharing his thoughts with his audience.

I find it disturbing that he's gotten *no* communication from Ridan about anything and is hearing about this sickness through the grapevine. If RS is ill you'd think she or at least her husband would let the other authors know instead of leaving them hanging and listening to rumors. If there's a problem you should be talking to your people not letting the rumor mill run wild.


It is *very* upsetting that he talks about money being owed to him - considering that Ridan's supposedly been making money hand over fist with the various "big" authors I have to ask where the heck all the money's gone to and how one of their major authors is not getting paid.

This does not bode well.

Agreed.

 

[eternalised]

Robin did update her blog on February 23rd, which was only about two weeks ago, and the Ridan update was even later. I hope for Robin's sake that she's not ill, but being a professional and running a business, she should've told her authors, or at least given them an update if this news were true. So far, it seems as if the news has only been heard from third sources, and wasn't told to the authors directly. This, along with Nathan saying Ridan still owes him money, makes me wary. This is a bad sign. Payments not happening and release dates being pushed far over the limits are usually the first signs of a company in peril.

 

[shaldna]

Robin did update her blog on February 23rd, which was only about two weeks ago, and the Ridan update was even later. I hope for Robin's sake that she's not ill, but being a professional and running a business, she should've told her authors, or at least given them an update if this news were true. So far, it seems as if the news has only been heard from third sources, and wasn't told to the authors directly. This, along with Nathan saying Ridan still owes him money, makes me wary. This is a bad sign. Payments not happening and release dates being pushed far over the limits are usually the first signs of a company in peril.

The lack of contingency planning is becoming a serious issue now. First it was when Robin's father passed away. But now Robin herself is sick too, and seemingly learnt nothing from the last time she was out of action for a prolonged period.

I agree that the money owing is a serious issue though. Although I'm not sure what way Ridan pays their authors - is it twice yearly like most publishers, or monthly or what?

IMHO i think the average reader is missing out if they don't listnen to podcasts

Most readers are interested in the books, not the authors. So, the number of readers who look at blogs or websites are less than the number of readers who read the books, and the number of readers who do look at blogs and site and then choose to download podcasts or other similar content are smaller still.