Uncommon Universes Press

[stout]

This publisher liked one of my #PitMad tweets earlier, and I wanted to do my research on them. Absolute Write doesn't have anything on them thus far, and there's a dearth of info, positive or negative, on them online. They have published authors, and a few books of theirs ranked well on Amazon, so I'm getting a 'no bad press is a good thing' vibe from them, but I wanted to check. Has anyone had dealings with this publisher?

 

[SaraC]

I also got a like from them and am wondering the same thing as you!

 

[SaraC]

I was just taking a closer look at their website, and they don't have a lot of the usual redflags people point out. The home page is geared towards readers. They say they offer a "modest" advance, which is more advance than a lot of small presses offer, they say they do marketing and online distribution stuff. However, they appear to only have been around for a year, and have very few books out. The people running it don't seem to have a ton of publishing experience, at least not that they mention in their bios. I'd love to hear what some of the more experienced people in this forum think.

I am leaning towards submitting since the pitch they liked is for a book that has gotten at least 80 or 90 agent rejections...maybe closer to 100...I'll see if they even make an offer.

 

[Thedrellum]

Link: Uncommon Universes Press

 

[lizhollar]

Same for me. Would just like to know a bit more about them.

 

[cornflake]

I'd never heard of them, and though the plural is deeply offputting, I clicked.

Run.

There are three people listed as members of their 'team.' Two have exactly NO experience whatsoever in anything relating to publishing, editing, marketing, or any fucking relevant thing. The other seems to be training, possibly, as an illustrator.

Most of their books are by them.

There are a thousand of these "publishers," -- a person decides they'll publish their own books, and it is SO fun, they'll start their own company, and revolutionize the publishing world by whatever, being true, or really supporting authors, or finding unique voices other publishers won't "take a risk on," or whatever nonsense.

Then, kind of inevitably, some unsuspecting writers sign on, the whole thing collapses because the original people lose interest, don't make money, lose money, whatever, and the writers who signed contracts are left holding the proverbial bag with published works that went noplace, rights that are hard to pin down, and a bad experience.

Run. They've spent a year playing publisher; I'd wager the clock is ticking.

 

[greendragon]

I met three of them this weekend at a small convention. They are very nice, very young, and while they have a professional-looking setup and talk a good game, they are very new at this, from what I can say. They do have specific guidelines and know them well (i.e., genre, level of heat/violence, etc.) and could talk intelligently about marketing, distributing, cover art, editing, etc.

I think they have potential but need some time/seasoning.

 

[Turtle2023]

So, five years later, this press is still around, still publishing fantasy, and open to submissions. I write fantasy romance, which they list as one of their genres, though mine may have too high a heat level for them.

Does anyone have more recent info on these folks? Has anyone here worked with them in some capacity?

 

[Brigid Barry]

Hi @Turtle2023 . While you wait for someone to pop by and maybe give you some answers, hie yourself off to the New Members board and introduce yourself so the community can get to know you!

That they didn't fold in the first five years isn't a good thing or a bad thing, it just means they managed to keep themselves afloat. You've got someone who isn't an attorney writing contracts, and then you have an editor who is working for three different companies. That sounds like a bad idea to me. How do you possibly work for three different companies and do a good job for more than one of them?

This is code for "we aren't going to do marketing for you":

We also look at the author’s social media presence, brand, and ability to promote themselves (because no one can sell your book better than you). We’re fans of authors who are cooperative, have a good online reputation, a passion for our themes, and a vision for making their book a success.

They also apparently merged with Crosshair Press at some point in time.

I think their paperbacks are pretty pricey and I'm not a huge fan of the covers. I picked on a couple of books. The first was published September of 2021. Only 20 reviews on Amazon and 33 on Goodreads (not sure how much crossover these two platforms have). A second randomly chosen book was published in 2020 and have 51 and 93 reviews respectively. Book number three was published in December 2020 and has 65 and 84 reviews respectively. Reviews don't always equal sales because sometimes authors can give away copies to get reviews, but having less than 100 reviews on three books published within the last three years tells me that the marketing is no good.

My entire goal of traditionally publishing is because I hate social media and I am so bad at selling things that I couldn't sell water in the desert on credit. Marketing is time consuming and expensive, and if they aren't going to do it for you, what are they really offering that you can't do yourself?

 

[Unimportant]

So, five years later, this press is still around, still publishing fantasy, and open to submissions. I write fantasy romance, which they list as one of their genres, though mine may have too high a heat level for them.

Does anyone have more recent info on these folks? Has anyone here worked with them in some capacity?

Sorry, no, I've got nothing. Have you read any of their books?

As Brigid said, you're very welcome to start your own thread in the New Members section and tell us anything about yourself you'd like us to know. Also, congratulations on completing your novel!

 

[Woollybear]

Their newest release is by a member of their team, Janeen Ippolito. Brianna Tibbets is likewise one of the team with a book on the shelf. Those would be deal breakers for me.

Also, scanning the amazon pages, I don't see editorial reviews and there aren't many ratings/reviews on their books. Those pages are more similar to self-publishing pages than press-published pages. I have nothing against self publishing, being one myself.

 

[Brigid Barry]

They have an answer for that on their FAQ page!

I see some of your books are written by UUP staff. Why?​

UUP takes the books that are the best fit for us, and we do not discriminate against submissions simply because they’re made by one of our brilliant staff members.

This tells me that they know it looks bad or they've been called out on it before. This comes across as a little defensive to me.

(Edited because the software doesn't like how I format links when I'm using my phone)

ETA: According to the FAQ page they only publish 2-4 books a year. And if those slots are being given away in house I think that says a lot.

 

[mrsmig]

Ultimately, @Turtle2023, you should ask yourself what you want from a publisher.

If what you want it is simply to have someone handle publishing your book for you, including choosing the cover, doing the formatting and getting it onto the usual online sites (Amazon, B&N, etc.), and you're willing to shoulder much of the marketing yourself, and you don't care if your book isn't available in bookstores or if you don't make more than a couple hundred dollars over the life of the book - then yeah, you could publish with this small press.

You could also accomplish the same thing via self-publishing, and while you'd have the same initial expenses that a small press would incur, you'd keep all the profits for yourself and have 100% control over your book.

What this press has done right is keep their yearly output small, so they don't get overwhelmed. What this press is doing wrong is devoting most of their output to their own staff members' books. When push comes to shove, where do you think the lion's share of marketing and advertising money goes? To books written by outsiders like you, or to the books written by the people who control the purse strings?

 

[Turtle2023]

These are great points, everyone! I hadn't thought about the fact that they would probably put most of their marketing energy into their own books.

I just posted a brief intro, since this account is new. I'm not actually new to the water cooler, just lurking under a different ID these days!

 

[Unimportant]

I just posted a brief intro, since this account is new. I'm not actually new to the water cooler, just lurking under a different ID these days!

Turtle2023, could you please contact MacAllister and let her know what your previous ID is, so she can merge your accounts? AW doesn't allow anyone to have more than one account.

 

[Turtle2023]

Done! I forgot about that rule.

 

[Maryn]

Thanks for taking care of it once you were reminded. Mac's plate is often full, but she'll get to it.

 

[Donnettetxgirl]

Ultimately, @Turtle2023, you should ask yourself what you want from a publisher.

If what you want it is simply to have someone handle publishing your book for you, including choosing the cover, doing the formatting and getting it onto the usual online sites (Amazon, B&N, etc.), and you're willing to shoulder much of the marketing yourself, and you don't care if your book isn't available in bookstores or if you don't make more than a couple hundred dollars over the life of the book - then yeah, you could publish with this small press.

You could also accomplish the same thing via self-publishing, and while you'd have the same initial expenses that a small press would incur, you'd keep all the profits for yourself and have 100% control over your book.

What this press has done right is keep their yearly output small, so they don't get overwhelmed. What this press is doing wrong is devoting most of their output to their own staff members' books. When push comes to shove, where do you think the lion's share of marketing and advertising money goes? To books written by outsiders like you, or to the books written by the people who control the purse strings?

Solid advice.

 

[Turtle2023]

And I heard on Twitter today that Uncommon Universes Press is closing down.

https://uncommonuniverses.com/a-special-announcement-from-the-uup-staff/

 

[mrsmig]

I'm sorry to hear that. It's a sad fact that most small presses are chronically understaffed and under-capitalized. Consequently, when personal problems or financial setbacks occur, there's no extra staff or surplus cash to get the company through those hard times.