How NOT to sell your Publish America Book

MMo · Feb 8, 2007

Hire a spammer to send out e-mail notices. Ftc notified, as well as my ISP, which has a zero tolerance against known spammers. Anyone else? Who else?

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From: Books Marketing Group <[email protected]>
To: XXXXX
Subject: "Freedom of Association" by Harvey Havel
Sender: Books Marketing Group <[email protected]>
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Introducing:
Freedom of Association
A Novel
By
Harvey Havel

Set in the suburbs of present-day New Jersey and also New York City, Fr=
eedom of Association traces the demise of three talented poets and their=
determination to continue their work despite overwhelming odds. Each o=
f their lives converge when one of the poets, a middle-aged bard of trad=
itional verse, is sent into the bowels of the turbulent inner city where=
he is ordered by his publishers to mentor a young, radical African-Amer=
ican slam poet and transform his poetry into verse that is more acceptab=
le to mostly white, affluent audiences. To do this, he enlists the help=
of his beautiful ex-wife who reluctantly agrees to let the slam poet au=
dit her poetry workshop at the local university. Their lives are foreve=
r changed when the young African-American slam poet falls for his mentor=
=92s ex-wife. And when the publishers decide to pull the plug on the sl=
am poet=92s career, the three of them must confront the hard realities o=
f living in the turbulent urban ghetto while facing uncertain futures as=
poets.

Part comedy and part interracial romance, Freedom of Association has di=
rect appeal to those who love poetry and the poets who write it, those w=
ho appreciate high quality literary fiction, and those who crave remarka=
ble storytelling about equally fascinating characters.

"Mr. Havel has a powerful command of the language and a wonderful abili=
ty to create environments that move. He lets us into a dynamic universe=
, dealing with subtleties of both emotion and art, while at the same tim=
e revealing powerful interactions between characters in a common vernacu=
lar."

Ken Van Rensselaer,
Poet and Author of Sometime=
s Ever Was

"Havel is ambitious enough to directly engage the number one contradict=
ion in American history: race, and he does it by daring to make one of h=
is central figures Black and one white and presenting successive episode=
s in which the third person narration alternates between their contrasti=
ng perspectives. Havel is no less ready to engage the contrasts between=
men and women, old and young, upper and lower classes in this richly-te=
xtured novel. His plot is played out against a background of literary co=
nflict: academic traditional verse as opposed to spoken word performance=
poetry. He set himself the task of producing convincing dialogue from =
a broad variety of characters: the upright aging black mother, the unive=
rsity feminist, the street hustler, several varieties of artists in word=
s. And he includes as well convincing passages of description and of so=
cial analysis. A nicely plotted narrative, in which the myriad issues t=
hat bear on the characters' identity and motives never assume primacy ov=
er fundamental human psychology. None of the people in the book are mor=
ally exemplary; none are altogether wicked. Rather like life."

William Seaton
Writer and Teacher,
Author of Tourist Snapshots=

Harvey Havel is a freelance writer, novelist, and teacher. His first no=
vel, Noble McCloud, A Novel, was published in November of 1999. His seco=
nd novel, The Imam, A Novel, was published in 2000. Both of his novels =
were published by the First Amendment Press International Company, which=
is now defunct. Previously a journalist, Havel is a former staff membe=
r of the CBS Evening News with Dan Rather and CBS News Radio. He also wr=
ites a blog, which can be found at www.harveyhavel.blogspot.com.

Copies of his books, both new and used, may be purchased at Barnes and =
Noble.com, Amazon.com, and at other fine bookstores through special orde=
r.

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From: Books Marketing Group <[email protected]>
To: XXXXX
Subject: "Freedom of Association" by Harvey Havel
Sender: Books Marketing Group <[email protected]>
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Introducing:
Freedom of Association
A Novel
By
Harvey Havel

Set in the suburbs of present-day New Jersey and also New York City, Fr=
eedom of Association traces the demise of three talented poets and their=
determination to continue their work despite overwhelming odds. Each o=
f their lives converge when one of the poets, a middle-aged bard of trad=
itional verse, is sent into the bowels of the turbulent inner city where=
he is ordered by his publishers to mentor a young, radical African-Amer=
ican slam poet and transform his poetry into verse that is more acceptab=
le to mostly white, affluent audiences. To do this, he enlists the help=
of his beautiful ex-wife who reluctantly agrees to let the slam poet au=
dit her poetry workshop at the local university. Their lives are foreve=
r changed when the young African-American slam poet falls for his mentor=
=92s ex-wife. And when the publishers decide to pull the plug on the sl=
am poet=92s career, the three of them must confront the hard realities o=
f living in the turbulent urban ghetto while facing uncertain futures as=
poets.

Part comedy and part interracial romance, Freedom of Association has di=
rect appeal to those who love poetry and the poets who write it, those w=
ho appreciate high quality literary fiction, and those who crave remarka=
ble storytelling about equally fascinating characters.

"Mr. Havel has a powerful command of the language and a wonderful abili=
ty to create environments that move. He lets us into a dynamic universe=
, dealing with subtleties of both emotion and art, while at the same tim=
e revealing powerful interactions between characters in a common vernacu=
lar."

Ken Van Rensselaer,
Poet and Author of Sometime=
s Ever Was

"Havel is ambitious enough to directly engage the number one contradict=
ion in American history: race, and he does it by daring to make one of h=
is central figures Black and one white and presenting successive episode=
s in which the third person narration alternates between their contrasti=
ng perspectives. Havel is no less ready to engage the contrasts between=
men and women, old and young, upper and lower classes in this richly-te=
xtured novel. His plot is played out against a background of literary co=
nflict: academic traditional verse as opposed to spoken word performance=
poetry. He set himself the task of producing convincing dialogue from =
a broad variety of characters: the upright aging black mother, the unive=
rsity feminist, the street hustler, several varieties of artists in word=
s. And he includes as well convincing passages of description and of so=
cial analysis. A nicely plotted narrative, in which the myriad issues t=
hat bear on the characters' identity and motives never assume primacy ov=
er fundamental human psychology. None of the people in the book are mor=
ally exemplary; none are altogether wicked. Rather like life."

William Seaton
Writer and Teacher,
Author of Tourist Snapshots=

Harvey Havel is a freelance writer, novelist, and teacher. His first no=
vel, Noble McCloud, A Novel, was published in November of 1999. His seco=
nd novel, The Imam, A Novel, was published in 2000. Both of his novels =
were published by the First Amendment Press International Company, which=
is now defunct. Previously a journalist, Havel is a former staff membe=
r of the CBS Evening News with Dan Rather and CBS News Radio. He also wr=
ites a blog, which can be found at www.harveyhavel.blogspot.com.

Copies of his books, both new and used, may be purchased at Barnes and =
Noble.com, Amazon.com, and at other fine bookstores through special orde=
r.

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<A
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y&EAN=3D9781424138043&itm=3D2">Freedom
of Association</A>=

<A
href=3D"http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=3D=
y&EAN=3D9781424138043&itm=3D2">A
Novel</A>
<A
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y&EAN=3D9781424138043&itm=3D2">By</A>
<A
href=3D"http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=3D=
y&EAN=3D9781424138043&itm=3D2">Harvey
Havel</A>
 
Set in the subur=
bs of
present-day New Jersey and also New York City, <A
href=3D"http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=3D=
y&EAN=3D9781424138043&itm=3D2">Freedom
of Association</A> traces the demise of three talented poets an=
d their
determination to continue their work despite overwhelming odds. Each of their lives converge =
when one of
the poets, a middle-aged bard of traditional verse, is sent into the bo=
wels of
the turbulent inner city where he is ordered by his publishers to mento=
r a
young, radical African-American slam poet and transform his poetry into=
verse
that is more acceptable to mostly white, affluent audiences. To do this, he enlists the he=
lp of his
beautiful ex-wife who reluctantly agrees to let the slam poet audit her=
poetry
workshop at the local university.&nbs=
p;
Their lives are forever changed when the young African-American =
slam poet
falls for his mentor=92s ex-wife.&nbs=
p; And
when the publishers decide to pull the plug on the slam poet=92s career=
, the three
of them must confront the hard realities of living in the turbulent urb=
an ghetto
while facing uncertain futures as poets.
 
Part comedy and pa=
rt
interracial romance, <A
href=3D"http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=3D=
y&EAN=3D9781424138043&itm=3D2">Freedom
of Association</A> has direct appeal to those who love poetry a=
nd the
poets who write it, those who appreciate high quality literary fiction,=
and
those who crave remarkable storytelling about equally fascinating
characters.
 
"Mr. Havel has a p=
owerful
command of the language and a wonderful ability to create environments =
that
move. He lets us into a =
dynamic
universe, dealing with subtleties of both emotion and art, while at the=
same
time revealing powerful interactions between characters in a common
vernacular."
 
 &nb=
sp; &nb=
sp; &nb=
sp;
Ken Van Rensselaer,
 &nb=
sp; &nb=
sp; &nb=
sp;
Poet and Author of Sometimes Ever Was
 
"Havel is ambitiou=
s enough to
directly engage the number one contradiction in American history: <SPAN=

class=3DGramE>race, and he does it by daring to make one of his =
central
figures Black and one white and presenting successive episodes in which=
the
third person narration alternates between their contrasting perspective=
s.
Havel is no less ready to engage the contrasts between men and women, o=
ld and
young, upper and lower classes in this richly-textured novel. His plot =
is played
out against a background of literary conflict: academic traditional ver=
se as
opposed to spoken word performance poetry. He set himself the tas=
k of
producing convincing dialogue from a broad variety of characters: the u=
pright
aging black mother, the university feminist, the street hustler, severa=
l
varieties of artists in words. And he includes as well convincing=
passages
of description and of social analysis.
A nicely plotted narrative, in which the myr=
iad issues
that bear on the characters' identity and motives never assume primacy =
over
fundamental human psychology. None of the people in the bo=
ok are
morally exemplary; none are altogether wicked. Rather like
life."
 
 &nb=
sp; &nb=
sp; &nb=
sp;
William Seaton
 &nb=
sp; &nb=
sp; &nb=
sp;
Writer and Teacher,
 &nb=
sp; &nb=
sp; &nb=
sp;
Author of Tourist Snapshots
 
Harvey Havel<=
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a freelance writer, novelist, and teacher. His first novel, Noble McCloud=
, A Novel,
was published in November of 1999. His second novel, The Imam, <SP=
AN
class=3DGramE>A Novel,
was
published in 2000. Both =
of his
novels were published by the F=
irst
Amendment Press International Company, which is now defunct. Previously a journalist, Have=
l is a
former staff member of the CBS=
Evening
News with Dan Rather and C=
BS News
Radio. He also writes a blog, which can be found at <A
href=3D"http://www.harveyhavel.blogspot.com/">www.harveyhavel.blogspot.com</A><![if !supportN=
estedAnchors]><A
name=3D_Hlt102641296></A><![endif]>. 
 
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y&EAN=3D9781424138043&itm=3D2">Barnes and Noble.com</A>, </=
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James D. Macdonald · Feb 8, 2007

Wow! I got one of those too!

Interesting things:

This guy teaches writing (according to his blog, advertised in his spam: "He teaches writing at Bergen Community College in Paramus, New Jersey..."). His two previous novels were published by a publisher that's now out of business, and which, while it was in business, only published books by Harvey. That makes me suspect they were self-published. I don't think that his experiences with PA will be any better.

Next, "Books Marketing Group," the address that apparently sent the spam, doesn't appear to actually exist. I suspect that it's Harvey himself.

Third, the blurb itself is badly written. "Set in the suburbs of present-day New Jersey and also New York City...." Goodness. Rereading your work before you send it should be basic.

That was sent with spamming software through Optonline.net, located in Pakistan. I don't think the ISP will be impressed with abuse reports. (I certainly didn't opt in to be spammed by PA authors.)

Robin Bayne · Feb 8, 2007

got it too, but didn't read far enough to see a publisher name. Hate spam.

veinglory · Feb 8, 2007

Yes, Harvey spammed me too, twice. I was bemused because he spammed an old email address which I use only for this forum. Coincidence?

JulieB · Feb 8, 2007

Is it any surprise that Books Marketing Group has left a single review on Amazon? Three guesses as to which book they reviewed.

Christine N. · Feb 8, 2007

Awww, now I feel left out.

Trade ya my C&D letter for your spam

WildScribe · Feb 8, 2007

No spam for me either! Wait... yea, I double-checked.

spike · Feb 8, 2007

I feel left out too. I didn't get any spam or nasty notes.

I guess I don't post enough. D*mn WIP is taking all my time. I miss all the good stuff!

FergieC · Feb 8, 2007

I didn't get this one yet, but I did just get a spam from something puporting to be a writers digest competition trying to sell me viagra. If they're smart enough to have worked out I use writing sites and tailored the spam, you'd think they could have gone the extra step and figured I was female.

James D. Macdonald · Feb 8, 2007

Maybe they think you'd want to get some Viagra for your nearest-and-dearest?

Robin Bayne · Feb 8, 2007

Christine N. said:
Awww, now I feel left out.

Trade ya my C&D letter for your spam

benbradley · Feb 8, 2007

MMo said:
Hire a spammer to send out e-mail notices. Ftc notified, as well as my ISP, which has a zero tolerance against known spammers. Anyone else? Who else?

You're asking who else got it, but you should also be asking who else to send it to. It appears to be sent by an optonline.net subscriber, so you should also send it to [email protected] (REAL high-volume spammers know how to hide and fake Received: headers, but this surely the real source). I also looked at the whois for books.net, but not sure if that's the spammer or what:
http://who.godaddy.com/WhoIs.aspx?domain=books.net&prog_id=godaddy

I've yet to get "targeted" book-promotion spams like this, but it's surely only a matter of time.

I responded in the "scary out there in cyberspace" thread last month, the guy had been posting about his book to Usenet for months. I looked up some of his Usenet posts and then responded in the thread, basically tearing him a new one (in the nicest way I could).

But THEN I read through a lot more of his Usenet responses within the last year, and apparently he had been spamming email address at sfwa.org (!), and he didn't respond well to the responses other Usenet posters were giving him, that doing that, even just once, is just plain inappropriate and wrong.

Ben, fighting spam since 1997.

James D. Macdonald · Feb 8, 2007

It's possible that optonline.net is a commercial spamhaus. When this guy figures out how much he paid to get published, he should add in the cost of hiring a spammer to advertise his book.

JulieB · Feb 8, 2007

Optonline.net is part of Optimumonline, which is part of CSC Holdings, the owner of Cablevision.

The originator appears to be UK-based Heart Internet. The IP address resolves correctly.

The_Grand_Duchess · Feb 8, 2007

FergieC said:
I didn't get this one yet, but I did just get a spam from something puporting to be a writers digest competition trying to sell me viagra. If they're smart enough to have worked out I use writing sites and tailored the spam, you'd think they could have gone the extra step and figured I was female.

I only get viagra spam too! Although to be fair, in the countries the spam is orginating from, my name looks very masciline. And actully if you were to google my name you would get a load of guys anyway. I think I may have a boy name. Damnit mom. . .

CatSlave · Feb 8, 2007

James D. Macdonald said:
It's possible that optonline.net is a commercial spamhaus. When this guy figures out how much he paid to get published, he should add in the cost of hiring a spammer to advertise his book.

What kind of an idiot would buy a book from a spam ad?
What kind of an idiot would think he could sell a book through spam ads?
*sigh*

spike · Feb 8, 2007

CatSlave said:
What kind of an idiot would buy a book from a spam ad?
What kind of an idiot would think he could sell a book through spam ads?
*sigh*

If I answer that, I'll be, once again, accused of displaying disrespect to the PA authors.

JulieB · Feb 8, 2007

CatSlave said:
What kind of an idiot would buy a book from a spam ad?
What kind of an idiot would think he could sell a book through spam ads?
*sigh*

See this Motley Fool article titled, interestingly enough, "Spam Works."
http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2006/12/26/spam-works.aspx

There are indeed suckers born every minute.

MMcC · Feb 8, 2007

I am very encouraged to see others reporting spam. It's not just illegal. It's a federal violation, and everyone seems to be under the ignorant impression that it's no big deal.

I always report it.

CatSlave · Feb 8, 2007

What kind of an idiot would think he could sell a book through spam ads?

spike said:
If I answer that, I'll be, once again, accused of displaying disrespect to the PA authors.

Let me rephrase that:
What kind of a desperate, neophyte author with no marketing whatsoever from his publisher would think...

James D. Macdonald · Feb 8, 2007

PublishAmerica authors, on the PAMB, have actually advised each other to send spam.

arrowqueen · Feb 8, 2007

'Freedom of Association traces the demise of three talented poets and their determination to continue their work despite overwhelming odds.'

Yes. I'd say being dead was a pretty overwhelming obstacle to overcome.

JulieB · Feb 8, 2007

Beverage, meet keyboard.

WWWWolf · Feb 8, 2007

CatSlave said:
What kind of an idiot would buy a book from a spam ad?
What kind of an idiot would think he could sell a book through spam ads?
*sigh*

Well, people regrettably actually buy stuff from spam. It can, ahem, get them a lot of stuff that, ahem, they wouldn't otherwise admit they've bought. Like sugar pills, passwords to sites full of certain kinds of advertising, and books without any sensible form of a form of quality control.

Sean D. Schaffer · Feb 9, 2007

I probably deleted it along with the eBay, PayPal, and Bank of America notices to update my account. Since I have no account with any of these people...

Ah, but I digress. The fact is, if I see a strange email from an address I don't know or even from one that I do, I delete it. Call me paranoid if you want, but the truth be known, I cannot stand spam... not even the canned kind.

How NOT to sell your Publish America Book

Your Genial Uncle

~writes for Him~

volitare nequeo

I grow my own catnip

haz a shiny new book cover

Slave to the Wordcount

Mostly Ignored

Bored at work fanatic

Your Genial Uncle

~writes for Him~

It's a doggy dog world

Your Genial Uncle

I grow my own catnip

I record everything.

Mah tale iz draggin.

Mostly Ignored

I grow my own catnip

Mah tale iz draggin.

Your Genial Uncle

RIP, our sarky besom

I grow my own catnip

Look! A carnival wolf!