To answer some questions...
This is all one person: the boss, the employee, the author, the book promotion people, the in-house media department, the book cover designer, the sockpuppets, and for all I know the sisters as well. If there is a separate sister, she must be a silent partner.
The employee talks like the head of the company, and says she's been there "since its conception." Her remarks betray no hesitancy about speaking for her employer, no suggestion that her boss's opinions, his priorities, or his strategies for dealing with the public might be different from her own. This is someone who's certain that she and the company are as one.
She also sounds that way when she's speaking as the author, the book designer, and so forth. None of the XOXO personae we've seen here have out-of-synch understandings of what XOXO does, or what their own place is in it. Neither do they have differentiated vocabularies, tone, attitudes, or styles of argument. They mistakenly believe themselves to be well-educated, and aren't afraid to say so at irrelevant moments. They all have exactly the same bad grammar, which is impossible. And they're all certain that our failure to admire and respect them can only mean that we don't understand them.
Moving on --
Miss XOXO's writing advice and her grasp of how publishing works are both deeply flawed.
Excuse me while I roll on the floor laughing. This universal custom of publishing companies is the reason all authors (especially the bestselling ones) are always meek, reasonable, and well-behaved, right?
Here's a prize quote:
The reason I dislike the annual Bulwer-Lytton competition is that people who are trying to write bad sentences never come up with the kind of masterpieces bad writers can toss off without a moment's thought.
There are a lot of things wrong with it. I'll go with the two biggest. First: someone who doesn't know how often books fall apart past the halfway point is not an acquiring editor, and probably don't qualify as a slush reader.
Second: like most sockpuppeteers, Miss XOXO can't keep her characters straight. The cover designer ought not be the one defending XOXO's editorial practices.
This is a deservedly frustrated writer.
A startup e-publisher has hired a PR Director? Furthermore, someone with a name this distinctive, who works in public relations, has no footprint on Google except for hits that are directly tied to XOXO publishing? Do they think we were born yesterday?
Well now, I often find it quite funny, that you (HapiSofi) sit here on a forum bashing me. Is this all you do, or do you actually get off your ass and work?
Firstly, I am who I say I am, I am the Cover Designer for XoXo, big deal, do you have a problem with that? I am not a frustrated writer, nor a sock-puppeteer (you could not even spell that correctly), or any other derogatory name you have called me. You may want to call yourself that instead.
If I speak on behalf of the company, I have the right to do so, I WORK there, do you? NO. Who are you to judge who I am? If I sound pissed off, I am, because I am tired of reading useless dribble, like what you wrote above. You obviously are the depressed and frustrated writer, possible rejected as well?
We stopped responding to certain people long time ago, as we do not feel we have to defend ourselves when the hate game was already on. If you have intelligent, and sincere questions, they would have been answered (some of you have asked credible questions, however we did not bother coming back on as we felt no matter what he answered, it would have been misconstrued anyways). We do not have the time to sit around on a forum all day responding. We are working very hard, and will continue to do so.
**To answer the persons question about the company called "The Book Promotion People," - we no longer use them, though it was not run by Gina, but by someone else who is no longer working with XoXo.
For any promotional products or marketing help (for which I can help them with when possible), is now offered by me, through my own small company. I do not claim to be a know-it-all, not at all. I am simply someone who is trying to make a living to support my family and me, that is all.
**To answer the question about whether or not we would ever accept a story based on a portion of what is submitted - When someone submits a portion of their book to us, and we like what we have read up to that point, we only ask that they submit the whole manuscript so that we could read the whole book, then decide whether it is a fit for the company or not. If we do not like it, or it needs too much work, or its not what we are currently looking for, we will decline it.
**As for the response about having a PR Director - For whomever stated why do we have one? Simple answer...Because we feel that being prepared is better then starting off completely blind. Do you think for an instant that a company would bring out a product without first testing the market through guinea pigs or "testers", no, they don't. Would anyone go to a marketing meeting without having some kind of display to show prospective clients? No, they don't. If XoXo, as a company, chooses to have a PR Director, who is anyone to judge that? We believe in being prepared, having thought out a business plan of some sort, so that we are prepared to move forward.
I sincerely hope that this answers some of the questions that some of you decent folk here have put forth.
**As for you HapiSofi, i'm not sure what to tell you, but you may want to grow a heart and stop bashing people you do not know. If you want to hate on someone, stick to yourself, the world could be a better place if actually let it. Be kind, not blind.
