Interesting situation

I sent the below email to you on Tuesday, 16 February and still haven't received a reply. I hope there's nothing wrong at your end and it's just because you've been so busy reading VENOM. However, it would be nice to get an answer to my questions.

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As you are considering working with us, you might enjoy learning more about what a publishing company is doing (or should be doing) in today's rapidly changing environment.

The marketing information below will be valuable to you no matter which company you choose to publish with.

The following email is our "end of year" communication with our clients. It will show you all the areas that we are concentrating upon for our authors.

As you consider working with us to publish your book, we think you will be suitably impressed by all of our activities on our authors' behalf.

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Thank you again for your interest in our book publishing and book marketing company. We like what we have seen so far and we would like to try to work something out with you in order to publish your work.

At this point we have published 1000+ authors like you, and we are proud of what they have accomplished. These authors are holding their work and selling nicely. They can be viewed at www.xxxxxxx.com. If you sign up with us, we will deliver! We follow through on our promises.

The beautiful aspects of our agreement as described below are:

1) The fifty percent royalty is industry leading, and shows that we really are partners, and

2) if the sales are what you suggest, then you get your money back. If your net is $4 per book, which is about the average we see, then we only need to sell 250 for you to recoup your investment and that is very doable.

3) We work with each author based on their ability and budget.

4) Once you/we sell 1000 of your books, you receive a bonus/advance and your subsequent works can be published at no cost.

We think our agreement is extremely fair and takes into account the topsy-turvy nature of the publishing business of today with its inherently higher risks. It rewards you when sales occur.

Before you read the information and our offer below, let us offer one caveat. This discussion is NOT about the quality of your work. This discussion IS about our perception of how hard, or easy it will be to SELL your work. Many authors take a publisher's response of anything less than "100% jumping up and down" personally. Please understand that first and foremost, publishing is a SELLING business, not a writing business. We are making our decision from a marketing and sales perspective.

Based upon what we have seen, we may have a publishing option that works for you. Our decision is based mainly on sales and marketing factors and risk and our analysis of how hard, or easy, it will be to get to 1000 sales. Please let me explain more. While we are not confident that we could recoup publishing costs within the first year of publication, we do see a possibility of recouping our costs within the next three years. Because of this, we feel that your work is best suited for publication under our Joint Venture publishing arrangement.

PLEASE NOTE: If you plan on writing multiple books, and if sales from the first book meet or exceed our goal of 1000 books sold, then we will almost certainly publish the new works under the traditional publishing model not the joint venture model. There is no time limit on this goal. Once your book sells 1000 units, however long it takes, then you receive the advance/bonus and your subsequent books can be published at no charge to you.

Here is more information about our Joint Venture program. (An agreement is attached).

Our Joint Venture program gives you a 50% royalty and allows us to split the cost of production with you to produce a printed book. Your one time only fee of $995* includes ISBN, cover design, publishing, distribution, marketing and promotion. The only elements that this cost does not cover are illustrations and editing and editing is NOT mandatory for this offer. So, basically, for $995 you will hold your finished book in your hand, and we can start selling it together.

If sales from the first book meet 1000 units, then you will receive a $1000 bonus and then we will almost certainly publish the new works without asking for your financial support of our marketing efforts. In other words, if the first book does well, it's easy to work together to do subsequent works at no charge to you. You will see a clause in the contract that says that if we reach 1000 sales with your first book that subsequent books that we publish for you there will be no shared fees AND we will pay you a $1,000 advance.

Q) Why should you pay us anything? Clearly you can have the book published in a lot of places.

A) To be blunt, you probably don't know much about book marketing. We are book marketing experts. That is what you are paying us for. www.xxxxxxxxx.com will show you what we know. We believe that "self-publishing" is just that. It means you go it alone, without a team to work with you. The challenge we mutually face is that the book market is flooded with books from new and established authors. There is tremendous risk that the book will not rise above the clutter and break out into the profitable enterprise that we both hope it will be. That is the basic challenge of publishing and marketing a book. Therefore, we have asked for assistance to mitigate the risk, and so that we can publish more books and give more authors a chance to succeed. We also use the fee as a bit of a filter. We want authors that can support their work financially. If we both work together, as a team, then we have a greater chance of success. If you are going it alone, ie. "self" publishing, then you will not have a team such as ours to work with.

========= PAY AS YOU GO FINANCE OPTION =========

* In today's uncertain economy we realize that paying to publish your work may be daunting. We have a program to reduce the risk and allow payment plans. Please see the information at the very bottom if this is of interest to you.

================================================

Your book will be available for bookstores to order as many copies as they wish through our Ingram distribution agreement, and it will also be marketed through the online retailers such as Barnes&Noble.com, Borders.com, Amazon.com, etc. In return for participating in the cost of publishing, you are rewarded with a 50% royalty, as opposed to the standard 6%-12% royalty provided by most traditional contracts.

Ingram is our US and international distributor. Bookstores can order as many or as few books as they like and your book will be listed in Bowker's Books in Print, the order source for bookstores. Your book will never run out of print and there are no limited print runs.

INTERNATIONAL AUTHORS: We service the US, UK, Australia and other countries seamlessly using the phone and email. We provide marketing support in any country as well. We are aggressively growing our presence in each country. We truly are a global publishing company.

We use a professional marketing team that will help you promote your book. We will send out press releases to your local media, as well as help you increase your internet presence with social media. For more information about our marketing and promotion, please visit www.xxxxx.com and http://www.xxxxxxxxx.com/blog/ . This will show you what we've done for our other authors, including book tours, television appearances and interviews.

We take care of building an author website for you (which you can see atwww.xxxxxxx.com by searching for any keyword). We create an author display video (check out our YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/xxxxxx), we take care of getting your book on the retail websites and if desired we will set you up with social media sites such as Myspace and others.

If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask.

Sincerely,

xxxxxxxxxxxxx - Acquisitions Team

If you would like to speak with someone, please call xxxx at xxx-xxx-xxxx.

For a current listing and an example of our hundreds of books published please visit www.xxxxxxxx.com.

====================================

What is entailed in bringing your book to market and included in the Joint Venture package?

Royalties:
------------------------------
* You will receive 50% of your book's royalties.

* You can check your royalty status at any time on our web based leading edge royalty management system.

* You can request a royalty check at any time your royalties are greater than $25 using our online royalty management system.

Production:
-------------------------
* We will assign the ISBN and manage all the setup and paperwork associated with bringing your book to market.

* You will have access to numerous book layout professionals for questions and they will help you bring the best book possible to market.

* You will have your choice of hardcover, or paperback cover, color or black and white, and your book can be printed in numerous sizes.

* You will receive two cover designs to start with, and you can work with the designers to create a cover design that you can be proud of.

* The text layout team will choose the best fonts, and paper to properly showcase your book. You can have as much, or as little, input as you desire.

* You will review and approve everything in production before the next step is taken. A physical proof copy will be sent to you for final approval
before the book is released.

Distribution
------------------------
* Your book will be available on a worldwide basis at over 25,000 locations through both bookstores and online book sellers. Our distributor is Ingram books, a world leader.

Marketing:
----------------

* You will receive a professional author and book selling website as well as your book being for sale on Amazon.com.

* We will assist you with writing a compelling and selling back cover blurb.

* We will write and distribute a professional press release through a national/international news release service.

* We will assist you in reaching your local media and local groups.

* We will assign a Marketing Liaison to assist you with your questions and coach you on all the various marketing techniques that you might be interested in.

* You will receive your choice of a Social Media package, an Online Radio Interview, or a online video book trailer at no charge. Examples of each service are located online at www.xxxxxxxxxx.com

* We will market your work at book shows around the world such as the BEA show we recently exhibited at in NY.

We are committed to our authors' success. We hope you will join us. The contract is non-exclusive, you can always fire us! (Smile).... You won't though, we've only had one out of 1000 fire us and we're not quite sure that author had all their marbles).

PAYMENT PLAN PROGRAM
=========================
Let's not let money stand in the way of working together! We completely understand cash flow challenges, so we are willing to work something out with you. We can work with you for as little as a regular payment of $50.

We like you and your work and we are willing to try to figure something out together. This is a slow moving business and we're in it for the long term. We would hate to lose an author that we like because of something as simple to deal with as money.

Consider if you could make small payments of $50 every now and then.
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We are willing to provide a program like this for authors we hope to work with. Here is how it would work. You determine what you are comfortable paying. We will work with you as you pay us. That way we can get started, and we can take our time and publish the work a little bit at a time. Here is a good example of what we have to do to publish your work and where the costs are. The example below shows how we can proceed with someone that can afford to send $50 to us on some regular basis.

Contract Administration and Plan Accounting ($100) - It costs us about $100 to setup your file, assign your ISBN, and to issue a receipt for your payment. This also covers the administration associated with managing the payment plan. As you would expect, there is more overhead with this plan simply in terms of accounting.

Manuscript Review and Preparation ($100) - As you would expect, we have a qualified editor review every manuscript for text quality, image quality, formatting, legal issues, etc. We use the review as a 'roadmap' for identifying any potential problems that can be fixed as we go. You will receive the review and go back and forth with our review team to make sure that the next steps go as smoothly as possible.

Text Blocking ($150) - Creating a "final" text block that is ready for the printer takes our talented designers about 6-10 hours. We also let you proof the Text Block and then you formally sign off on it.

Back Cover Writing ($100) - Typically, the author has a hard time writing about themselves and it is so important that we do it well. Writing a compelling back cover takes us about 3 hours of work and going back and forth with you.

Cover Design ($150) - Like the Text Block, creating a compelling cover, that you approve takes us about 6 hours of work. You will approve the cover and we consistently get high marks from our authors for the quality and impact of our covers.

Galley Proofing ($100) - We hate errors, but they do happen. Galley proofing is the final/final proof step before the work is uploaded to the printer. We need to make sure that we have the correct final files and that all work is done to specifications.

Proof Copy ($50) - A physical proof copy is printed and mailed to you for final approval before printing.

Ingram Catalog and File Upload Fees ($100) - There are a series of one-time fees that we pay the printer when we send your file for processing. The Ingram fees are to make sure that your book is available for purchase around the world by bookstores and other outlets. Also, this fee takes care of the upload to Amazon and other online retailers.

Author Book Selling Website ($100) - The Author Book Selling website is where your clients can buy the book on the web. We provide a customized site that tracks purchases, etc.

We will also be providing you with a Royalty Management system to check on your sales and royalties and we will be providing you with monthly production/accounting statements.

And finally, the next step is Marketing... Marketing ... Marketing..

Conclusion
----------------
The costs above are given to you at 'our cost', we are not making a profit at those numbers. And, these costs don't even include what we will expend on your behalf when it comes to marketing, answering questions, fixing problems, etc.

The total above is about $995. If you provided payments of $50, that's only eighteen payments. So, this truly is a Joint Venture Publishing project. As you can see there are a lot of 'moving parts' and it takes a top notch company to pull them all together.

We have already invested in getting to know each other and we hope that we can work something out to work together. If you can afford to send us $50 every now and then, we are happy to proceed and work for you. If we can cover our costs, we can stay in business, and if your book is out in a year, that's still great! Once your book is out and starts selling then there is every chance in the world that you can recoup your investment!

We hope you will join us. To participate in this program please follow these instructions. $50 is the minimum payment we can accept because of our costs in issuing a receipt and managing the accounting. Of course you can pay more if you choose.

To Begin, please reply to this email and fill in your desired amount and frequency:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yes. I would like to participate in the Joint Venture Publishing Program with a Financing Option. I am able to pay $______ approximately every ________ (weeks) and I understand that the total is $995. I understand that this is not a formal financing commitment and that if I am late or skip a payment that it will not be held against me. I understand that you will be doing the work described above as I pay you and that if the work is done, that there are no refunds. If the work is not done, then you may receive a refund of that portion only. I understand that there is no time limit and that I may take my time in making payments. I understand that I will receive copies of the items described above and that I may quit at any time.

Type Your Name: _______________________________

Filling out this request is not a commitment by you in any way. This determines if we can work together. If we can work together we will send you the revised contract for your final signature.

=================================================

Ok, that's it.. If you will send in this information, we will make sure that it fits for us, and we will finalize the contract with you.
And one final success story...

Here is a success story that might be illustrative.

(CNN) -- "Still Alice," written by Lisa Genova, is a novel about a 50-year-old Harvard professor's struggle with Alzheimer's disease. It's also a book, Genova was told, that nobody would want to read.

Lisa Genova, author of "Still Alice," found success after self-publishing her novel.

After spending 1½ years writing "Still Alice," Genova spent just as much time trying to find a literary agent. "I never heard a response from most of the query letters I sent," Genova said. "Four literary agents asked to see the book. One of them said she just didn't think there was a general audience that would want to read about Alzheimer's."

When she was turned down by several traditional publishing houses, Genova decided to follow a different route: self-publishing via Web-based companies. When she informed one of the literary agents of her decision, his response was daunting.

"He said, 'Don't do that, you'll kill your writing career before it starts,' " said Genova.

Months later, after receiving positive reviews on Amazon.com and a favorable review in the Boston Globe, Genova's book was picked up by Simon & Schuster and is in its 12th week on The New York Times Bestsellers List.

"If you believe in your book, I think you should give it a chance," Genova said. "Still Alice" "was a book that people already identified with and [Simon & Schuster] saw the book's potential in a very real way."

Genova is not alone. As the economy takes its toll on traditional publishing houses -- HarperCollins dropped its Collins division in February, losing major executives and editors, and Random House continues with cutbacks --more authors are looking to online self-publishing companies.

===========

We look forward to answering any questions you may have. Please give us the courtesy of a reply whether your answer is yes, no, or maybe. We would hate for a misunderstanding to slow down your writing career.

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XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX & PUBLISHING AGREEMENT

50% Royalty To Author; $1000 Advance and No Fees on Subsequent Works​

Payment Plan Option​

[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]This Publishing Agreement is between __________________________________ (AUTHOR) hereinafter referred to as AUTHOR and xxxxxxxxxxxx, LLC., (“PUBLISHER”). [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]This agreement covers the parties’ respective obligations regarding the publishing of AUTHOR’S book, entitled [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]
______________________________________________________
TITLE (the “BOOK”).[/FONT]​

[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]1. OWNERSHIP OF BOOK [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The AUTHOR at all times retains 100% of all right, title and interest in and to the BOOK and its content, including all copyrights, trademarks, or other intellectual property associated with the BOOK.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]ADVANCE: The AUTHOR will receive a $1000 bonus when one thousand books are sold. If sales of the first book published by PUBLISHER for AUTHOR reach 1000 units then the PUBLISHER’s contract for Subsequent Works will be issued with no marketing or other fees to author.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]2. LIMITED LICENSE TO PUBLISH [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]a. For Print and EBOOK formats [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]AUTHOR hereby grants to the PUBLISHER the non*exclusive[/FONT][FONT=&quot], worldwide license to print, publish, distribute and sell the BOOK in print form in the English or any language on behalf of the AUTHOR. The AUTHOR also grants to the PUBLISHER the right to make excerpts from the BOOK viewable on the PUBLISHER’S Web site, or partner Web sites that have entered into agreements with PUBLISHER, in order to facilitate sales of and publicize the BOOK. (Non-exclusive means that if we don’t perform, you don’t even have to fire us, you can just go to another publisher. We are not trying to tie you down in any way. We will succeed together). [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]b. Storage and Handling of the BOOK [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]AUTHOR grants PUBLISHER the right to store, use, transmit and distribute electronic copies of the BOOK as required to facilitate the printing and distribution process. This grant includes the PUBLISHER’s vendors and affiliates. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]c. AUTHOR maintains all other rights [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]All rights associated with the BOOK (except PUBLISHER’s limited right to publish the BOOK on the AUTHOR’s behalf), including movie, television, radio, foreign, and all other derivative rights belong to the AUTHOR only. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]3. TERM OF THE AGREEMENT & TERMINATION [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The Agreement shall continue for the term of the copyright or 7 years unless either party terminates pursuant to the terms set forth herein. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]a. Termination by AUTHOR [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]AUTHOR may terminate this Agreement at any time and for any reason without refund of any monies paid if PUBLISHER has begun work. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]b. Termination by PUBLISHER [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]PUBLISHER may terminate this Agreement and publication of the BOOK without cause, upon written notice to AUTHOR if, in PUBLISHER’s judgment, the BOOK may subject PUBLISHER to the risk of litigation. In no event will the PUBLISHER be obligated to publish a work, which in its opinion violates the common law or statutory copyright, or the right of privacy of any person, or contains libelous or obscene material. Further, if PUBLISHER reasonably deems the content of the BOOK to promote hate, violence, illegal activities, PUBLISHER can terminate the Agreement. If termination by PUBLISHER occurs before publishing the book the Publisher will refund Author’s monies.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]4. SERVICES PROVIDED BY PUBLISHER [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]a. Cover Design [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The PUBLISHER shall assign a BOOK cover designer to create up to two (2) original BOOK cover concepts. The Author should provide direction and input. Once the BOOK cover concepts are completed, they will be provided to the AUTHOR for the AUTHOR’s acceptance of one of them. The AUTHOR acknowledges that the publishing process cannot proceed until such time as the AUTHOR approves one concept and the final BOOK cover. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The cover designer will also layout the rest of the cover, including the spine and the back cover (the content and any photos of AUTHOR or those the AUTHOR wishes to be used on the back cover will be provided by the AUTHOR). [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]If the AUTHOR has any photos or other artwork to be used on the cover, the AUTHOR warrants that the AUTHOR has the unequivocal right, title, and interest in said photos or artwork to place said photos / artwork on the BOOK cover. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]If the AUTHOR does not like either cover concept, the AUTHOR, at the AUTHOR's expense may hire an outside cover designer. AUTHOR acknowledges that the PUBLISHER uses its best efforts to produce a cover acceptable to the AUTHOR, but the PUBLISHER can make no guarantees that the AUTHOR will like the cover. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]B. Book Layout [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The PUBLISHER shall provide for the design and layout of the text of the BOOK and will provide AUTHOR with an electronic file for review and comments. The AUTHOR is responsible for providing all the elements of the book, including but not limited to the text, illustrations, and any other materials necessary to produce the book. The AUTHOR shall review the layout prior to the BOOK being sent to the printer to have the proof copy and/or any other copies of the BOOK printed. Publisher highly recommends that the AUTHOR’s manuscript be professionally edited BEFORE being submitted for pre-press production. Revisions to the book layout should pertain mostly to formatting and layout changes. Revisions do not include more than 20 editorial changes (i.e. punctuation, spelling, grammar) and additional spaces in between characters or words that were in the original manuscript document. Any additional rounds of revisions will be at the prevailing change rate, currently $50/hour. Author is completely responsible for all the content within the book unless noted herein.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]AUTHOR acknowledges that layouts for books (e.g. coffee table, novels, cookbooks etc.), with the exception of the genre children’s books, will require an additional placement and printing fee of $6.00 per each image not created by the publisher exceeding six (6). Such fee shall be paid by Author. Any such fees will be presented to the author in writing. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Please note that unless specified, all non-children's books will be in black and white. If the author desires color pictures inside the book, it will affect the ultimate sales price of the book and the book may require special handling. Please alert the Contract Manager if the work contains color images. This does not apply to children’s picture books in which color is standard.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]c. Copyright Registration [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The publisher shall provide the copyright information in the name of the AUTHOR or the author’s designee based on the information provided by the AUTHOR. The Publisher shall provide the AUTHOR with one copy of the work at no charge for copyright registration along with the proper forms for copyright registration. The AUTHOR shall provide the copyright registration services (currently around $40). All copies of the BOOK that are distributed to the public will bear a copyright notice in the name of the AUTHOR as prescribed by the applicable copyright laws of the United States of America. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]d. ISBN and Bar Code [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]PUBLISHER shall provide an ISBN and Bar Code and shall affix both on the appropriate places on the BOOK. However, for an ebook, if the Bar Code is not needed, the Bar Code will not be provided. The ISBN only identifies the name and contact information of the PUBLISHER. Should AUTHOR terminate this Agreement, AUTHOR must remove PUBLISHER’S ISBN from any future copies of the BOOK AUTHOR publishes. The Publisher retains ownership of the publisher’s printing files.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]e. Proof Copy and Printing of BOOK [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The PUBLISHER shall provide a printed proof copy of the BOOK for AUTHOR’s review. Once AUTHOR acknowledges receipt of and approves the proof, the BOOK is finalized and any other changes requested by AUTHOR shall require AUTHOR to pay additional fees depending on the number and scope of changes requested. AUTHOR acknowledges that other than the proof copy of the BOOK, and the copy provided by the publisher for the copyright registration, no other printed copies of the BOOK are promised by the Publisher to be included pursuant to this Agreement. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]f. MARKETING[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The PUBLISHER shall provide these services for a one time only fee of $___995____ to be paid upon contract signing by the AUTHOR unless AUTHOR chooses the Edit Discount Option. The Author may pay this amount over time and upon a frequency decided by author. PUBLISHER agrees to perform services as monies are received.[/FONT]
Marketing will include but not be limited to:

A professional press release will be written and released to media in the US or internationally or both.

The Publisher will create a unique webpage for the Author where the book can be purchased online.

The Publisher will make the book available to all bookstores and online and traditional channels through their distributors, Ingram Books and Baker & Taylor which are, at the time of this contract, supplied by Lightning Source. This includes Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.com. The publisher makes no guarantee or assurances that bookstores will order the books. The publisher makes no guarantee or assurances that bookstores will order the books or that Ingram, B&T, Amazon, B&N or any other entity in the publishing business will not change at any time.

The publisher will conduct other marketing programs as mutually agreed upon with author. Please visit www.xxxxxxxxxxx.com for examples of the various book marketing programs that we offer.

[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]5. LISTING OF BOOK FOR SALE AND FOR PUBLICITY [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]a.[FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]Listing BOOK for Sale Through Online Retailers [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]PUBLISHER shall ensure that AUTHOR’s BOOK is presented to Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com, and other online retailers. PUBLISHER makes no guarantee as to how long it will take the BOOK to appear on any third party retail or other website, but will make its best effort to provide these sites with title information in a timely manner. PUBLISHER makes no warranties or guarantees that sales of the book will be made through these sites or any other methodology employed by PUBLISHER.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]b. Listing The BOOK on Amazon Search Inside and Google Books[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]As part of listing the BOOK for sale on Amazon, etc., AUTHOR authorizes PUBLISHER to list his/her BOOK on “Search Inside” services from Google, Amazon, or other publishers. If AUTHOR chooses not to be listed in either of the above, the AUTHOR must send PUBLISHER an email stating so. PUBLISHER makes no guarantee as to how long it will take the BOOK to appear on any third party website or that it will appear there.

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]6. MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSION [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The AUTHOR will submit all Required Materials relating to the BOOK. Required Materials are: [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]A signed copy of this Agreement (either via electronic signature, fax or mail) [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]The manuscript in Microsoft Word, Rich Text Format or Microsoft Works or any editable format, including Mac.. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]All image files. Publisher does not scan images unless agreed upon. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]Any and all other materials supplied by, or agreed to be supplied by, the AUTHOR for inclusion in the BOOK. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]7. BOOK EDITING SERVICES [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]If the AUTHOR has paid for book editing services, the parties acknowledge that the PUBLISHER has no control of the content within the book. Author is solely responsible for any errors other than formatting or design which, upon approval by AUTHOR, become AUTHOR’S responsibility.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]EDIT DISCOUNT: Editing is optional but strongly suggested. Should AUTHOR request that PUBLISHER edit their work, the PUBLISHER will discount this contract by 25% and reduce the PUBLISHER’S normal edit rate of two cents per word by 25% as well to 1.5 cents per word. This discount is only available if the edit is accepted and paid at the time of contract and if the number of words is greater than 50,000. (Details are presented on the payment page). Edit costs can be financed as well. Please inquire if that is of interest.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]8. DATE OF PUBLICATION [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The date of publication shall be within 60 days of the Final Approval Date. The Final Approval Date is the day on which the AUTHOR approves the paperback proof copy. In no event will the PUBLISHER be responsible for delays in publication caused by circumstances beyond its control. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]9. NO GUARANTEE OF MINIMUM SALES [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The PUBLISHER makes no promises that any of its products or services will result in the sales of a minimum number of copies of the BOOK. The AUTHOR acknowledges that the PUBLISHER has no control over the purchasing decisions of book buyers and is not liable to any party if sales of the BOOK do not meet the AUTHOR's expectations. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Author Must Initial Here ___________ [/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]10. PAYMENTS FOR BOOKS SOLD ON ONLINE RETAILERS, THROUGH AUTHOR'S WEBSITE & ROYALTIES [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]a. Payments for BOOKs Sold on Amazon.com and other online retailers procured through publisher are paid quarterly to the AUTHOR, from the day PUBLISHER receives payments from Amazon.com or any other third *party retailer. PUBLISHER shall pay all amounts to AUTHOR via check, Paypal, or other mutually agreeable mechanism. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]b. Payments for BOOKs Sold Through PUBLISHER – PUBLISHER shall pay all amounts quarterly, or upon demand by the author, to AUTHOR via check or other mutually acceptable means. [/FONT]
The Publisher further agrees to allow the Author or his/her agent, at the Author’s expense to review all books and records kept by Publisher relating to the sales of the Work for the prior two years, during normal business hours during the term of this agreement provided two (2) weeks prior written notice is received. The Publisher will keep such books and records in accordance with accepted standard accounting practices. There shall not be more than one (1) audit in any calendar year not more than one (1) audit with respect to any calendar year. All expenses of the audit shall be the responsibility of the author.
[FONT=&quot]Royalties are calculated on a calendar quarterly basis, ending on the last day of March, June, September and December. Quarter*ly statements of sales and returns will be forwarded to the Author with payment no later than 30 days after the end of each quarterly calendar period. Any and all royalties payable hereun*der shall be subject to adjustment due to returns and shall be subject to a reason*able reserve for returns. Publisher reserves the right not to issue a royalty payment for less than a minimum threshold (currently $25) and will accrue such monies until such time as the minimum threshold is reached.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]c. Royalties [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The AUTHOR shall receive 50% of all royalties on BOOK sales. Royalties are calculated as a percentage of Sales Price less Cost of Printing. Shipping is paid by the buyer of the book. AUTHOR will approve the suggested retail cost of the book and the printing cost.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The author shall have the right to purchase their books at the following Author’s Purchase Price (APP). The APP is calculated as follows. This is an example only, the actual numbers will vary.[/FONT]

• • Assume a Suggested Retail Price = $16
  • Assume Print Cost = $4
  • Therefore, Net Sales Revenue = $12;
  • Author Royalty to is $6 (50% of net sales receipts)

[FONT=&quot]Author Purchase Price is the print cost plus the publisher’s percentage ( $6 + $4 = $10). Royalties are not payable on Author Purchases.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]11. AUTHOR'S Warranties and Indemnities [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The AUTHOR represents and warrants to the PUBLISHER: [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]That AUTHOR is the sole owner of the BOOK and of all the rights granted to the PUBLISHER. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]That AUTHOR has not assigned, pledged, or otherwise encumbered the rights to the BOOK. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]That AUTHOR has full power to enter into this Agreement. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]That the BOOK and all rights therein are free of liens, claims, or interests of any kind. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]That the BOOK is entirely original except for portions thereof for which legally effective written licenses or permissions have been secured. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]That the BOOK does not violate or infringe upon any personal or proprietary rights including without limitation privacy rights, contract rights, or publicity rights of any other persons or entities. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]That the BOOK is not libelous or obscene. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]That the BOOK does not infringe upon any statutory or common law copyright. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][/FONT][FONT=&quot]That any information contained in the BOOK is accurate, and any recipe, formula, or instruction contained in the BOOK is not injurious to the reader or to any other party If any claim, action, or proceeding based upon an alleged violation of any of these warranties is made (i) the PUBLISHER will have the right to defend the same through counsel of its own choosing, [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot](ii) no settlement will be effected without the prior written consent of the AUTHOR, which consent will not unreasonably be withheld, and (iii) the AUTHOR will hold harmless the PUBLISHER, any seller of the BOOK, and any licensee of a subsidiary right to the BOOK, against any damages finally sustained. If such claim, action, or proceeding is successfully defended or settled, the AUTHOR will indemnify the PUBLISHER against the entire expense (including reasonable counsel fees) attributable to such defense or settlement. If any such claim, action, or proceeding is instituted, the PUBLISHER will promptly notify the AUTHOR, who will fully cooperate in the defense thereof, and the PUBLISHER may withhold payments of reasonable amounts due the AUTHOR under this or any other agreement between the parties. These warranties and indemnities will survive the termination of this Agreement. [/FONT]
Publishers Liability Insurance Rider: Publisher offers the Author the ability to be included on the Publisher’s insurance policy as a named insured. Please inquire to the Contract Manager if that is of interest. There is a one time administrative fee of $495 for this service for the paperwork and time to set the process in place. (We are not selling insurance. This is a paperwork handling fee). Note: Insurance should be considered if you use real names and typically in what someone might consider a derogatory fashion. Otherwise, insurance is not warranted.

[FONT=&quot]12. PERMISSION FOR COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]If the AUTHOR incorporates in the BOOK any copyrighted material, AUTHOR will procure, at AUTHOR's expense, written permission to reprint it. The AUTHOR agrees to retain all such written permissions. The AUTHOR agrees to deliver all such written permissions to the PUBLISHER at the PUBLISHER's request. PUBLISHER will provide a copyright request form at author’s request to help facilitate this process. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]13. SUITS FOR INFRINGEMENT OF COPYRIGHT [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]If the copyright of the BOOK is infringed, the AUTHOR is responsible for commencing any legal action the AUTHOR deems necessary. However, the AUTHOR and PUBLISHER may jointly pursue a copyright infringement action, but the parties must agree in writing prior to any joint commencement of any legal action. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]14. ADDITIONAL SERVICES BY PUBLISHER [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Any additional services provided by the PUBLISHER have their own specific terms and conditions and must be agreed to separately by the AUTHOR in writing, which may include mail, fax, email or electronic signature. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]15. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]a. Notices [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]All notices required or permitted under this Agreement shall be addressed to the addresses listed below and/or may be sent via email. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]b. Entire Agreement [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]This Agreement contains the entire agreement of the parties and there are no other promises or conditions in any other agreement whether oral or written. This Agreement supersedes any prior written or oral agreements between the parties. The parties agree that both contributed to the drafting of this agreement and both have had the opportunity have this agreement reviewed by legal counsel. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]c. Severability [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]If any provision(s) of this Agreement shall be held to be invalid or unenforceable for any reason, the remaining provisions shall continue to be valid and enforceable. If a court finds that any provision(s) of this Agreement is invalid or unenforceable, but that by limiting such provision would become valid or enforceable, then such provision shall be deemed to be written, construed, and enforced as so limited. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]d. Modification [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]This Agreement may not be modified or amended except by written instrument signed by the undersigned parties hereto. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]e. Waiver [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The failure of either party to enforce any provision of this Agreement shall not be construed as a waiver or limitation of that party's right to subsequently enforce and compel strict compliance with every provision of this Agreement. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]f. Applicable Law and Prevailing Parties [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The validity, interpretation, construction, performance, enforcement and remedies of or relating to this Agreement, and the rights and obligations of the parties hereunder, shall be governed by the laws of the State of North Dakota (without regard to the conflict of laws rules or statutes of any jurisdiction), and every legal proceeding arising out of or in connection with this Agreement shall be brought in Bismarck, ND. Each of the undersigned parties hereby consenting to the exclusive jurisdiction of said courts for this purpose. The prevailing party in any suit brought by either party hereto to enforce the terms hereof shall be entitled to recover from the non prevailing party all of said party's reasonable costs, distributions and attorney's fees, including all costs and attorneys fees incurred in attempting to collect any judgment hereunder. (Note: We chose Bismarck because it is the furthest, coldest place we can think of. And it is neutral territory so to speak so Bismarck will keep us from arguing about what the venue is).[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]g. Assignment [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Any person or entity to whom any right, title, or interest in this Agreement be assigned shall be subject to and bound by all of the terms and conditions herein as if they were the original party hereto. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]h. Currency [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]All dollar amounts set forth in this Agreement and in those incorporated as part of this Agreement (book editing and copyright registration services) as in U.S. dollars. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Publisher can accept Sterling and Australian and other currencies at the conversion rate of the moment. inquire if that is of interest.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]i. Counterparts, Fax Signature and Electronic signature [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]This Agreement may be executed in one (1) or more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original but all of which together will constitute one (1) and the same instrument. Further, one or both parties may execute this Agreement via electronic signature or fax and such signature will be deemed to be original. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]By: ______________________________ By: ______________________________ Date: ______[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Vice President Signature of Author[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] Email address: ______________________[/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]


Electronic Signature Option: We are happy to use an electronic signature option should you desire it. This saves each of us time and money and decreases our time to market. To use the Electronic Signature Option, simply type your Name and Date above and then type your birthday or your middle name in the space below. By typing your birthday or middle name you agree to honor the terms of the contract and signify that you accept the electronic signature by both parties.

We will type our signature and return it to you via email. Either option is fine with us.










[FONT=&quot]Author’s Birthday or Middle Name to accept the Electronic Signature Provision[/FONT].

____________________________________________________________



BOOK MARKETING INVOICE:
==============================
Joint Venture: Standard Contract $995 US Dollars
(We do accept pounds Sterling at current conversion rate).

or

JV with Editing Option: $745 US Dollars
Number of Words: _________ x $0.015 = $_______

Total: $______

Example: if your work was 50,000 words. You would multiply it by 1.5 cents which would equal $750 so the total would be $1495.


Check:

Please remit payment to:




Paypal: Please use the email address of [email protected]



Credit Card: See next page.


Credit Card:

You may use our secure site: http://www.xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.com/payments.html *Please note that you must change the quantity to the dollar amount you are paying. 995 items will come out to $995.

Or, you can fill in the information below and fax it our secure fax: xxx-xxx-xxxx or email it to [email protected]

I hereby authorize xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx - Marketing or their credit card processor, to charge my credit card a one time fee of $_____USD only.

Signature(typing your name here is acceptable as a signature):_______________________________

Card Number: _________________________

Exp. Date: __________

Name on Card:__________________________________

Exact billing address of cardholder:_______________________________________

______________________________________________


Wire Information or Western Union: Please inquire for more information.

​

ROYALTY PAYMENT INFORMATION FORM​

For all non-US residents: We prefer to use Paypal for your payments. If you do not have a Paypal account, please go here to set one up: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_registration-run and then fill in the information below.

Paypal email address for receiving royalty payments: _______________

Phone number: ___________________

Mailing address:

​

For all US residents: Please fill in the information below:
Social Security No.: ____ __ - ____ - _______
Or Corporate Name/EIN: _________________________________________
Name: _______________________________________________________
Checks Payable to: ____________________________________________________
Address: _____________________________________________________________
City/State: ____________________________________________________________
Zip: ______
Phone: ( ) __ - ___
Fax: ( ) ___-____
Income Tax Withholding Notice: This form represents W-9 information collected from individuals/companies receiving payment. The publisher is required by law to obtain this information. If you or your company refuses to provide this information your payments may be subject to 28% Federal Income Tax withholding, as well as a penalty imposed by the Internal Revenue Service under section 6723 of the Federal Tax Code.

I certify under penalty of perjury that the above information is true and correct.

Print name:____________________________________________________________
Signature: ____________________________________________________________
Date: _________________________

[FONT=&quot]* We will only issue royalty checks to one author. If there are multiple authors, please choose the one that will receive the royalty checks. That person should fill out this form.

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Sorry, I did not mean to confuse you. If you don't like the contract they offer you, you can refuse it and then come back and work with us. They are our sister company that is why we will only let you submit 1 book at a time. If you do decide to work with us as your agent then you would wind up with 2 books going through.​

So, you can wait until you hear from the publisher and submit your work to them for review or you can decide you would rather stay with us and we can contine from there.
​

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HORSE PROBLEMS isn't a finished book, so I thought the publisher would not be interested in it. And I'm not coming up with a way of finishing it. And I believe you have a critique service.

One of my considerations, which isn't your problem but mine, is the fact that I've received a large profit in January that needs some business expenses to offset it. Investing in myself and my writing seems like a good way to reduce the taxes I'm going to be paying in 2010. So I'm trying to find out how much this venture is going to be costing so I know whether I need to find some other business expenses.

I received the contract yesterday and like it, although I'm in the process of reviewing it. One question I have is that as an agent, it is normal for you to negotiate the contract on my behalf, but I'm not sure that's how you do business. Could you please clarify?

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J.Reid said:

c'mon guys, this is hilarious! It's a joke! Hint: corrupted disk. Betcha the next post shows us a page of the "novel" (probably a fiction novel!) and the publisher's heartwarming response to it.

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[FONT=&quot]Country folks love nicknames, so it's no wonder Jake was called the "Scorcher" and the "Wit[FONT=&quot].[/FONT][FONT=&quot]" "Pudge's" real name was Elroy. There was also a fellow in town, called "Pud." Fire department guys were all "Sparkies", as was the local electrician; the cigar-smoking supervisor of the town dump was "Smokey." Of course, Thunder had his own handle, which was uniquely his. Carol told Frank that afternoon that several locals had referred to him as the "Whiz". "Gee, 'Whiz’” Frank had joked, thinking he must have achieved a certain status in town to have his own nickname. [/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"Hi, Whiz," Frank turned to face his son and daughter, just returning from their mission to Concord. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]"Did you get the info?" [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"No problem-o," Mary and Frank's daughter was just saucy enough to be cute. She had the refreshing natural look of country girls with her short black hair, rosy cheeks and pertly tilted nose. She had no trouble getting dates; the boys really liked her.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"You were right, Dad, HSM is a New Hampshire Corporation, on file with the Secretary of State, mailing address is a post office box in Concord."[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"And you were right, Amos Endicott Jones, alias Thunder, is the president and chairman of the board -- also shows him as the principal shareowner[FONT=&quot]. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]Ruth Jones is listed as secretary and clerk. The par value is $1[/FONT][FONT=&quot].[/FONT][FONT=&quot]" The sister and brother could have been twins, the resemblance was so striking. David and Eileen were their names. [/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"Now, Pops, here's the zinger -- guess what HSM stands for -- huh?" [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Frank shook his head. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"Heaven Sent Me, can you believe it?" it could have been Mary speaking, the sound of their voices was similar. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"They pay a business profits tax, so they must be making money. It doesn't show how much more land they have," David was tall, six one at least[FONT=&quot]. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]"Their business is logging and wood products." [/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"HSM, I wonder if Thunder is talking about himself, somebody must have sent him, wouldn't surprise me if he thought it was God -- Mary, the kids are here, anything you want 'em for?" [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"No, tell them we'll see them at dinner-time." [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"You heard your mother, shove off." Frank went back to laying the paper out, page by page with Lenny. It looked like twenty-four big ones. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"Wow," Lenny was in seventh heaven. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]The first chance Mary had, she dragged Frank off to one side. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"I wish you had told me -- I would have understood. That was a horrible experience for a young boy," Mary's voice was low, no sense broadcasting Frank's secret[FONT=&quot]. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]"I would have understood, honest -- but I also understand why you never mentioned it[/FONT][FONT=&quot]. [/FONT][FONT=&quot]Charlie, MTA Charlie's father -- and he was the school janitor, custodian, whatever. No wonder Charlie left town. God knows how many other boys he molested. Son of a bitch, I hope he's rotting in hell," it was seldom that Mary swore. She was mad, thinking this horrible incident had been lurking in Frank's mind all these years. [/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"I can't get over the photo, fooled Al, he thought it was Charlie -- did you notice the patches on the father's elbows?" [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"Yuh, and Al thought Charlie Elton ran away and lived on the MTA when he got to Boston. Well, oh, mighty Whiz, that clears up one mystery, but we still don't know why or how Charlie got into your bedroom." [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]"Hey," Frank laughed, and the cast shook, "cut that Whiz crap out!"[/FONT]

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Can you send that email again as I don't think we received it

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And for a third try at getting this answered:

You already sent this to me and I answered it already.

You haven't answered me yet as to whether we can make a deal where we drop the agent out of the equation.

Nor have you told me whether it's possible to get this published in time for the Beijing show this year. If it is, I want to start making plans.

I'm also wondering exactly what you do for me. You're telling me the editing is my responsibility, but I can find plenty of editors out there. They sure aren't shy about advertising. Then you send me another email explaining what I need to do about marketing my book. That doesn't bother me a lot, as my businesses have had to advertise and market for years. But what does that leave for you? If it's just printing the book, then I can go to Kinko's.

It doesn't even sound like you have a distribution system into libraries and bookstores, which I'd expect from any publisher.

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I have a couple of questions about the contract, although overall I'm fine with it.

First off, I don't need the finance offer. I'll pay the whole thing, once we figure out what the price should be. But I appreciate your willingness to finance my book.

Second I'm confused about the editing situation. In your opinion, does my book need editing? Having read it, you should have some idea whether there's a need for editing, and how intensive editing it needs. You company is the professionals, not me, and part of what I figure I'm paying you for is your professional experience. I understand that editing would be $1,500, but that's worth it to me if it is needed.

But as part of the editing question, if it needs editing, does the entire book need editing, or just certain chapters. And in that case, does that reduce how much I need to pay for editing? And I'm wondering how do you define as editing. Is this cost just for one pass through, or is the cost for going through it as many times as we need to so that we can make this perfect?

Third is I'm a bit confused as to why you want any lawsuits in North Dakota when you're located in Connecticut. That doesn't make sense to me. It's not an issue to me, as I always enjoy going to Bismark, but it just strikes me as unusual. It would be nice to see your offices in Bismark the next time I'm there.

Fourth is the royalties. Now books sold through the website you're going to set up for me are easy, as the royalties would be 50% of the net price. However, books sold through Amazon would presumably be sold by us at a wholesale price to Amazon. Now normally, wholesale is about 60% of retail, although I'm not sure that's correct for the publishing industry. But my question is that in sales to places like Amazon, is the 50% royalty based on the wholesale or retail price?

Fifth, although I doubt that I'd ever need it, the idea of insurance seems like a good idea.

Sixth is what do you anticipate the cover price of the book being. Again, you being the professionals, I expect you to set the price.

Seventh, I'm a bit confused by the joint venture designation of this. I'll be putting up the cash for both production and editing. What exactly are you putting up, and what is its value?

Eighth is how many books are you planning on printing for the first print run? Is that included in the prices so far? If not, how many books am I getting before paying for an additional printing.

Right at the moment, I figure I'm looking at just south of $2500, but obviously I don't want to send you the check until we get this nailed down. But I want to get working on this as fast as possible.

Click to expand...

---------------------
This is a duplicate email with our Joint Venture offer in case you missed
the first email. About 10% are missed we think.
----------------------

Click to expand...

We are sending you this email because we want you to see our commitment to the authors we have published. We do everything we can to market our authors and their books!

We sincerely want to publish your book and market it in the US and around the world.




We hope that your writing career is proceeding successfully, and that you will choose us for any of your publishing needs.

*******
We offer finance plans and allow you to 'pay as you go'. See below. We know that you want to get your book published so you can start making money with it. We are happy to take a long term view with you. This also allows us to prove ourselves to you, one step at a time.

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[FONT=&quot]The marketing of the book is the most important thing we offer with this contract. XXX provides global marketing, exhibits at book shows, a press release, set up pages on Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Youtube and a page on our site. In addition, your book would be available on Amazon and Barnes and Nobles.com. The company spends an unbelievable amount of money with Google to drive people to our site. Lastly, we will send out an e-mail broadcast to all of your contacts announcing the release of your book. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Our company takes marketing very seriously. We have a new age way of thinking and way of doing business. The number of books we listed on the contract that we like to see sell is what our efforts can bring in. This only works if the author is doing the right things to promote the book and the author as well. I can not tell you how important it is for authors to get out to book shows, book signings and community events. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Lastly, we will give a $1000.00 sign on bonus for a second manuscript once we reach 1000 units sales for the first book. We take six to nine months to publish a book. I am not sure if you would make it to the show in China. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Please let me know if I can offer further assistance.[/FONT]

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I'm confused about the bonus provision. According to the contract I receive a bonus when a thousand books are sold. Here, you describe the bonus as applying to my second book. Which is it?

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First, who did you receive a contract from?​

If you stay with us, The Literary Agency, we try to find a publisher for your book.​

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I received the contract from Xxxxx at XXX. Why did she notify you that she was sending me the contract, as you're the agent who sent me to them?

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victoriastrauss said:

They are being sued by the Florida Attorney General. They are not under an injunction at this time. If any sort of prohibition does result, it will apply only to Florida and/or residents of Florida. Hence, possibly, the (virtual) move to North Dakota.

- Victoria

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