SBPRA, and Other New Names for Robert Fletcher and Strategic

[victoriastrauss]

Fletcher's business is now calling itself Strategic Book Publishing & Rights Agency, a.k.a. SBPRA. It has also added an “international” arm called Publish On Demand Global, and its editing service is now called Best Quality Editing Services. The literary agency has been re-christened Best Selling Book Rights Agency.

On web searches, most of the other names/websites the company has used now default to the current ones, though some of the old names still appear to be in use.

Other names currently associated with SBPRA:

• Professional Publishing Press
• ePubCo
• Rapid Illustrations
• Publish On Demand Australia
• Publish on Demand India
• Publish on Demand Korea
• Publish On Demand Taiwan
• Publish on Demand UAE
• Publish on Demand UK and Europe
• Authors and Libraries Program
• AuthorMarketingIdeas.com
• AuthorSuccessStories.com

- Victoria

[C. K. Casner]

FFS ...

[Richard White]

Ah, it appears again that Hydra has awoken from its slumber and shed its skin once more to go out and terrorize the authorial world under a new guise.

However, it was too slow to avoid the gaze from Olympus. It's chimerical attempts to recreate itself were doomed to fail. It will always be known by the stench that accompanies the beast, no matter what shape (or name) it takes.

[DaveKuzminski]

Yep, there's no avoiding the stench of dying books.

[Shrouded]

The name of a man is a numbing blow from which he never recovers. - Marshall McLuhan

[MichaelZWilliamson]

A friend of mine just asked me about them. I did a quick google. Thieving scum. End of story. But she's not convinced. It's so HARD to get published.

To be honest, her work is adequate but not great, and throwing money at scum won't make it better.

Then I found this person who has drunk the Kool Aid and can parrot all the quotes. "There are associated costs with any publishing and of course the author has to pay those."

http://www.kjkeller-author.com/apps/...pra-publishing

Sigh.

[C. K. Casner]

I read that link and it makes me shake my head. She's stuck in the honeymoon stage where everything is hunky-dorey, even though well-meaning people have tried to warn her away.

I had once had that heady feeling of accomplishment before reality came crashing down around my ears. I wish her well.

[weallwanttowrite]

They just came up with another name to add to the list. Their web page link takes you right back to a page at http://sbpra.com

Literary & Rights Agency with a web site address of:
http://www.wlwritersagency.com/

BEWARE ALL Stay Away From This Company.

Originally Posted by victoriastrauss

Fletcher's business is now calling itself Strategic Book Publishing & Rights Agency, a.k.a. SBPRA. It has also added an “international” arm called Publish On Demand Global, and its editing service is now called Best Quality Editing Services. The literary agency has been re-christened Best Selling Book Rights Agency.

On web searches, most of the other names/websites the company has used now default to the current ones, though some of the old names still appear to be in use.

Other names currently associated with SBPRA:

• Professional Publishing Press
• ePubCo
• Rapid Illustrations
• Publish On Demand Australia
• Publish on Demand India
• Publish on Demand Korea
• Publish On Demand Taiwan
• Publish on Demand UAE
• Publish on Demand UK and Europe
• Authors and Libraries Program
• AuthorMarketingIdeas.com
• AuthorSuccessStories.com

- Victoria

[Shrouded]

Unbelievable. One hand is under investigation in Florida the other is busy making International puppet companies. Well,..once the noose tightens.

[Ink-Stained Wretch]

Originally Posted by C. K. Casner

I read that link and it makes me shake my head. She's stuck in the honeymoon stage where everything is hunky-dorey, even though well-meaning people have tried to warn her away.

The "honeymoon" analogy only works if you assume she just married a nasty domestic abuser against the advice of all family and friends, and is now too stubborn to admit (or even consider) that she might, possibly, have made a mistake. "My husband is a WONDERFUL man who only beats me when I deserve it. Why are you trying to rain on my happiness? Look, my first-choice husband didn't want to marry me, so I had no CHOICE but to marry this guy instead. What was I supposed to do, huh? Stay single until Mr. Right came along? How ridiculous. I would prefer in the future that you keep your nasty rants on your own blog; I married safely and wisely and I have no regrets."

[victoriastrauss]

That actually works pretty well as a description of the response of some writers who've hooked up with bad publishers.

- Victoria

[Ink-Stained Wretch]

Originally Posted by victoriastrauss

That actually works pretty well as a description of the response of some writers who've hooked up with bad publishers.

- Victoria

[rant] It's the same stupid aspect of human nature responsible for both; for the majority of people who ever lived, the single hardest thing to do (downright impossible, for many people) is to admit "I screwed up, I made a mistake, my current unpleasant situation is largely MY fault." Why do certain abused women stay with and make excuses for their abusers, even when they're not financially dependent upon them? Better than admitting "My friends were right and I was wrong and I made a mistake in choosing this guy." Why do so many otherwise intelligent and sane scam-publisher victims make all these excuses why PublishAmerica and Strategic Books are legitimate publishers, wonderful career opportunities and the best ten thousand dollars I ever spent? Because otherwise, they have to admit they fell for a con. Why did so many in the GOP spend eight years swearing "Bush/Cheney are great Republicans -- dedicated to principles of fiscal responsibility and small government"? Why do so many of my fellow left-wingers now insist "Obama is all about government transparency, increased civil liberties and sticking up for The Little Guy" even though his record in such matters is measurably worse even than Bush's? Why did Germany a few decades back insist "Our current economic problems have NOTHING to do with us starting a war that trashed half of Europe and now we have to pay for the damage we caused; no no no, our problems are all the Jews' fault?"

Because clinging to ludicrous fantasies is psychologically easier than admitting "I screwed up. I was conned. That politico I voted for sold me a pig in a poke. That war we started turned out fantastically bad for us. And if you, Victoria, with all your legitimate publishing credits that actually make you money rather than cost you, are trying to talk me out of signing a contract with these vanity publishers -- well, that must mean you're trying to squash the competition. Pulling the ladder up behind you now that you've climbed it. Perhaps intimidated by a new writer both younger and more talented than yourself? Did you used to date Bobby Fletcher and you're still mad that he dumped you? Or are you a mean, sadistic misanthrope ranting on aspiring authors' blogs because you get off on spite? It has to be one of those things, because the only other option is to admit that I was wrong." [/rant]

Sorry, drifted a bit off topic there; bits of a real-life disagreement with a friend are falling into my comment. DTMFA, and that goes for authors with Strategic, too.

[JulieB]

Yes, and some who were blinded in the honeymoon phase of either a bad personal or business relationship WILL come out and admit their mistake. It takes some guts to do that.

Happened to me. Not with a publisher, but with a job. This isn't the place to share those details, but I will say that I do get the whole "honeymooner" aspect. And yes, I chalked it up as a learning experience and moved on.

[Ink-Stained Wretch]

Originally Posted by JulieB

Yes, and some who were blinded in the honeymoon phase of either a bad personal or business relationship WILL come out and admit their mistake. It takes some guts to do that.

Happened to me. Not with a publisher, but with a job. This isn't the place to share those details, but I will say that I do get the whole "honeymooner" aspect. And yes, I chalked it up as a learning experience and moved on.

As did I -- though like you I don't want to share the specific details here -- but the hell of it is, that makes us unusual. And it shouldn't, because these are not cases wherein virtue (or wisdom) is its own reward. We personally derived measurable, objective long-term benefits from admitting we made a mistake -- shouldn't have taken that job, hooked up with that guy, signed on with that publisher, WHATEVER stupid thing we did -- and it hurt to admit we were fooled, and it was embarrassing, but at least now we're not STILL stuck with that horrible job, abusive partner or shitty vanity publisher.

It's like you have a terrible illness, you can easily cure it with an antibiotic, but the medicine tastes really, really nasty ... and too many people would rather suffer through that terrible illness forever, rather than deal with the temporary discomfort of swallowing that icky, nasty medicine. Or live with eternal toothache to avoid spending an unpleasant half-hour in the dentist's chair. I know this is true, I recognize it exists, intellectually I can explain why it's so, but deep in my gut I just don't get it.

[Ink-Stained Wretch]

Deleted double post.

[Maddie]

I just received one of those scam-spam emails from Tom Wallace, VP of Acquisitions for Strategic Book Publishing. Very rambling body of garbage. I don't know where he acquired my email address, but I kindly asked him to cease and desist sending me emails (and I also reported him as spam to Earthlink).

[Ink-Stained Wretch]

Originally Posted by Maddie

I just received one of those scam-spam emails from Tom Wallace, VP of Acquisitions for Strategic Book Publishing. Very rambling body of garbage. I don't know where he acquired my email address, but I kindly asked him to cease and desist sending me emails (and I also reported him as spam to Earthlink).

What did the email say?

[James D. Macdonald]

"Tom Wallace" very likely doesn't exist either.

[Maddie]

Originally Posted by Ink-Stained Wretch

What did the email say?

The email is incredibly long, with embedded photos that make no sense at all when it comes to book marketing. The first shows a woman standing outside of a clothing store speaking through a megaphone. The second, shows animal products, possibly seafood, inside of a glass display cabinet in an Asian-type store. The third depicts three men and one woman seated at a table at a Chinese restaurant, hoisting their glasses--tea or wine--in a toast as they smile at the camera. The content mentions "cracking the code" for Amazon in China, and self-publishing in Asia as a whole. At any rate, I reported it to my ISP as spam.

[victoriastrauss]

Maddie, if you still have it, could you forward it to me? beware [at] sfwa.org. Thanks.

- Victoria

[Maddie]

Originally Posted by victoriastrauss

Maddie, if you still have it, could you forward it to me? beware [at] sfwa.org. Thanks.

- Victoria

The email will be coming your way shortly, Victoria.

[FSAG052]

This Tom Wallace seems to live somewhere in the USA...Can't one of you find him and HANG him so that he doesn't try to con another unsuspecting, desperate writer like myself??? I am so glad I spent all those long hours on the internet, browsing and getting as much information as I could about the publishing world. I received many threads warnings me to run away like crazy from this BLOOD SUCKING PARASITE! Thanks again!

[James D. Macdonald]

Originally Posted by FSAG052

This Tom Wallace seems to live somewhere in the USA...Can't one of you find him and HANG him so that he doesn't try to con another unsuspecting, desperate writer like myself???

My guess is that "Tom Wallace" lives in Boca Raton, Florida, and turns around to look at you when you say "Bobby!"

[MickRooney]

For what it is worth, I came across this video of Fletcher speaking at a conference in Australia with a rep from LSI Australia.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hL2mqvM-w4M

[James D. Macdonald]

The rest of that channel seems to be the book trailers that Strategic's authors pay for.

The numbers of views are dire. You could post a video of your cat walking across the floor and get more hits in a day than any of those poor souls have gotten in a year.

Not that anyone is going to buy their books anyway.