[YADS] Pubslush (formerly PUBSLUSH Press)

Gillhoughly is saying "PUBSLUSH says they'll publish any book that garners 2500 supporters, but they won't; they'll say the flow of money will be towards the author, but it won't; they say submitting a book is free, but it isn't."

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Bolding mine. There's a difference between won't, isn't and unlikely.

Read my posts again. I'm careful about what I write on the Net, knowing it'll be up there forever.

I wrote that it is not likely that 2500 (or 2000, whatever it is today) supporters will underwrite expenses for a book.

I'm not saying it won't be published by a commercial house, but that it is unlikely to happen.

It is unlikely a commercial publisher will accept such a book. They're busy dealing with regular submissions coming through regular channels and agents. Danged few books posted on display sites--and that IS what PubSlush is in essence, a display site--ever get published.

Maybe a couple titles get spotted and picked up: a couple out of 100s of books displayed over the years on other sites. The writer would have the same opportunity by subbing her book directly to a publisher than wasting four months hoping for support.

I know I've said the flow of money should be TOWARD the author, quoting Uncle Jim, but I don't see it happening at all here. Sure, a 5000.00 "bonus" is wonderful--but will the book ever make its quota? Not likely giving the current circumstances.

Submitting a book to PubSlush is free, no argument--but it ties the book up in limbo for 4 months. I see no benefit to the author in that.

Where are those 2000 (or 2500) magical supporters coming from? Facebook? How much traffic comes to the PubSlush site each day? I'm not talking Google hits, but people actually clicking and looking at the first page for 30 seconds.

There's 800+ "Likes" on the PubSlush FB page today, but those numbers have been artificially inflated by the "Win a Kindle" contest. If I wanted to swell the number of "Likes" on my own page I could do the same thing, but I would not expect those people to ever return.

Does PubSlush think those 800+ "Likers" will register with them and think it's a awesome thing to read 10 pages of a book and promise to pledge 5.00 (or 25.00 and up) on an unknown quantity? That's unlikely, too. And if I've not said it's insane before, I'll say so now. That's insane.

If a book does get 800 pledges, might a desperate author find a way of making up the shortfall? At 5.00 a pop that's 6,000.00. She'd only get back 5K of that with the promised "bonus." There's no guarantee commercial publication will follow. PubSlush is not addressing that issue of an eager author pledging her own cash. Are there checks in place to prevent an author from playing financial sockpuppet?

If a book does get its quota and is submitted and rejected, then what? Will PubSlush step in and publish the book? People have been asking and not getting an answer.

If a book makes its quota and by some miracle is accepted by a commercial publisher, then what? Who gets the advance? Who gets the cash left over after the author's 5,000.00 "bonus"? What do the "supporters" get for their support?

Will a commercial publisher tolerate PubSlush sending their own copies to those 2000 (or 2500) supporters. Um, no. I can say with confidence that a commercial publisher would reject that idea outright.

Would the commercial publisher then please send those 2000 (or 2500) supporters a free copy? No. Why should they? That's PubSlush's deal with supporters, not the publisher's. PubSlush has the pledge money for those books. Will they turn it over to the commercial publisher to pay for 2000 copies? (Or 2500.)

Who owns the copyright? A commercial publisher prefers an unentangled copyright. There's a built-in rejection for a book with a confusion over who owns it. PubSlush may have a good title to sell, but there's plenty of other titles available that don't come with attached complications.

On the Writer Beware Blog this troubling issue was raised:

"It's a life-of-copyright agreement with a completely inadequate reversion clause ("out of print" isn't even rudimentarily defined; moreover, authors can't demand reversion until the book has been out of print for at least two years); there are sweeping claims on a wide range of subrights despite the lack of any evidence that PUBSLUSH is capable of exploiting them; there's an onerous competitive works clause; and there's an option clause that amounts to a perpetual option on sequels and related works. Moreover, because submitting to PS constitutes full agreement to all these terms, the author forfeits any possibility of negotiation."

Life of the copyright??? THAT is insane, too. No agent or commercial publisher would go near such a deal and certainly it's a bad one for the author.

I'm at least willing to wait until money changes hands, and nothing is published, the author isn't compensated, and/or the people who paid money don't get what they were promised in return before condemning them. I'll wait until someone is scammed before saying it's a scam.

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But the writers and editors here on AW are not willing to wait. The purpose of this forum is to point out problems and keep writers from making mistakes.

PubSlush--while it may be entirely well-meaning and honest--has serious problems. New doesn't mean bad, but in this case I think "new" means inexperienced, well-meaning but not thought through, and open to abuse.

*I think the lower requirements are intended as a feature rather than a bug. I think the typical requirements are what they are for a reason; I don't think there's a basis for concluding the people who run PUBSLUSH are ignorant of what the typical requirements are.

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"Lower requirements" -- Speaking as a reader, I find this to be idiotic. When I buy a book I expect it to be well-written, properly edited, and provide me with a few hours of satisfying entertainment. I do not lower my requirements, so why should the publisher?

For a publisher to lower its requirements is a cheat to the reader as well as the writer.

It's one thing to nurture a new writer along. An experienced editor can point out ways for a writer to make her book into a gem. It is quite another to try selling a "lower requirement" product just because the author got lots of support and her mother really likes that book.

I don't see the names of any experienced editors on the PubSlush site. Apparently all one needs are 2000 (or 2500) supporters putting up cash when a quota is reached. We're here to point out the flaws in that idea.

And I don't see that happening unless they're either fundamentally dishonest or spectacularly ill-run. At worst I think I'd have wasted four months or gotten a worse deal than I otherwise might have.

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Bingo! My points exactly. They're a waste of a writer's time and possibly a bad deal.

If someone wants to step in the water and see if it's a good place to swim or find out that Bruce the shark is looking for a snack--despite all the warning signs on the beach--then that's their business. I'll keep tacking up the signs. Maybe those fins belong to friendly dolphins. I'm just saying why take chances?

I can see from the Writer Beware blog that PubSlush is polite as all get-out, BUT the people running it are not answering obvious questions, apparently lack actual experience in the publishing industry, don't seem to have experienced editors on board, and are happy to promote and take pledges for slush, thus making it entirely logical for me to conclude that if not dishonest and ill-run, then certainly they are ignorant.

Selling Amway is starting to look a LOT more simple.

I stand corrected on various issues!

You've got the patience to go through the fine print, but my alarms went off on the 2000 supporters stuff and that it's a Yet Another Display Site with a twist.

As a writer I consider those to be a waste of time. As an editor, I simply avoid them. If a writer is serious about getting professionally published she can send her work to me through the regular channels and not futz around for four months hoping that I might drop by for a look. Maybe other editors have the time, but I do not.

I'm off on several points, won't be the first time I grabbed the bit and ran, but there's more wrong with PubSlush than is right; I'm never going to be able to recommend this site to a new writer.

I am REALLY glad Writer Beware took a close and considered look at the details. I'm like a Jackson Pollack, flinging paint every which way, but WB is more careful of the fine stuff, like Jan Vermeer. And for that I am most thankful!