The Old Neverending PublishAmerica Thread (Publish America)

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Sher2

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BeeBomb

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WhisperingBard said:
I'm not even going to ask. Nope. Not me. Not going to go there.

Nothing sinister, immoral, illegal, fattening (pun), or anything else!
 

Sher2

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WhisperingBard said:
I'm not even going to ask. Nope. Not me. Not going to go there.
Nuh-uh, Bard, I wouldn't. Sounds like one of those private moments to me.;)
 

Galoot

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Golly. I completely missed your entrance, BeeBomb. Welcome. I hope you decide to stick around.


In other news:
What's up with people on this place that just can't help but do any of the following: Trashing slandering name calling talk down to or in other ways trying to be a major pain in the a##!
And that's just your publisher. +rimshot+
 

CaoPaux

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BeeBomb said:
How in the hinkydink does a body refresh this thing without shooting bb's at the screen? Don't tell me to go to the of of my screen and hit the refresh button...my eyeballs do flips!
A right-click of your mouse should bring up a menu that will let you do all sorts of fun things to the screen you are viewing, including Refresh.
 

Patricia

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Sher2 said:
Those titles are maybe a bit long. Let's just call it "Kill Will" and be done with it. LOL. I'm in. You know we're going to have to do some practice hits -- research. :D
I knew you were a good writer/editor and would call me on those long titles!:Thumbs:

"Kill Will" sounds good to me, along with the practice hit. Got a practice range in mind? :)
 

Sher2

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Ann said:
I knew you were a good writer/editor and would call me on those long titles!:Thumbs:

"Kill Will" sounds good to me, along with the practice hit. Got a practice range in mind? :)
Yup. The middle of Church Street in Frederick, Maryland. I'll meet you there at high noon.;)
 

Patricia

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Sher2 said:
Yup. The middle of Church Street in Frederick, Maryland. I'll meet you there at high noon.;)

You got a date! :guns:


I'm off for a dinner date -- catch you all later, crew. Wait for me to return before posting anything exciting and no staging a death!
 

Aconite

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KellyS. said:
RE: the posters vs. bookstore placement.

When I want a new book, I want it now. I expect to go into the store and come out with a book. Is it bad to want instant gratification? I don't think so. I love to read. There is rarely a time that I don't have anything to read. When that happens, I freak and want something now.

I buy a lot of books. That said, if I have to wait for a book to come in--if I can't leave a store with it in my hands--odds are very, very good that I'll order it from my library rather than buying it. If I can't get it through my library (or on interlibrary loan), odds are good that I'll simply forget about it.

Want to sell me a book? Get it on the shelves for me to browse. Telling me it's available for order won't do it.
 

Ed Williams

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I always love to catch liars...

...using their own words, so here's some verbiage from our dearly departed Shemp, a fellow who's died twice in the past couple of years. Here's a quote from our two-time departed Shemp on the subject of "Why Do You Read What You Read":

"The very definition of insanity is the inability to learn from mistakes."
Folks, there you have it. Apparently Shemp didn't learn from his first death, so y'all can deduce out the rest of it...

The link the above was derived from:

http://www.myshelf.com/beforethetitle/02/whydoyoureadwhatyouread.htm
 
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Ed Williams

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A thousand pardons....

...I had trouble copying that info into quotes, so please forgive me, just don't make me go into a room and listen to Perry Como records as punishment...

"Shemp = Scams"
 

NicoleJLeBoeuf

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Welcome to all the new arrivals! Please take the advice that Mac and others have given, and check out the rest of the Forum! Absolute Write is more than just one big thread dedicated to PA. It's a treasurehouse of information about the entire writing/publishing industry. Look up at the top of the page and click on Absolute Write Water Cooler to see all the different topics of discussion!

Additionally, there are some giants walking among us here who actually make a living with their writing. I look to them as heroes and role models. They are proof that you don't have be Stephen King or J. K. Rowling to pin your career on your pen. They offer good, trustworthy advice as to how you can do it. When they talk about the realities of the publishing industry, listen! They know whereof they speak!

I appreciate that some of you just joining us this week are still quite happy with PA. Fair warning, though: The more information about the publishing industry a writer gathers, the less of a good deal PA looks like.

Lastly, I want to second something Diana said earlier. Again, I realize some of you are still happy with them, but know this: PA is not "taking a chance" on anyone. PA's profits simply don't depend on the quality of the books they publish. PA's business model is to simply...

1) Acquire as many manuscripts as feasible...
2) ...from writers who know very little about the industry...
3) ...so PA can get away with as little time/effort/money spent on each title as possible...
4) ...and convince the author to be his/her own distributor (i.e. buy his/her own books for resale).

There is no "taking chances" involved in PA's business model. They view the books they acquire as cheap product to sell back to the author him/herself. The business model is guaranteed no-risk, and has nothing to do with the contents of the book itself.

Now, if you want to see actual publishers actually taking an actual chance on an actual new author... look at Tor. Look at Random House. Look at Baen. Look, in short, at any commercial publisher, mainstream or small press. Their business model is to acquire stories they think the reading public will enjoy enough to buy and buy again. That's a risky decision to have to make: Will this title sell? Will this?

A legitimate publisher's profits depend on selling stories to people who want to read them. PA's profits depends on selling bound pages back to authors who think they have to be their own distributors.

This is why the PA Forums quickly delete any post that talks too knowledgeably about how marketing and distribution is supposed to work. If their authors knew that legit publishers don't expect their authors to sell copies themselves, well, that might cut into PA's profits.

I would love to see some discussion of these points by those of you reading now who are content with PA. Many of us would love to discuss them on PA's own forums, except folks like me who've never signed on with PA aren't allowed, and folks who have signed but have come to regret it got banned. So, please, please, if you're happy with PA, tell us why! If you think we're wrong about PA, tell us why!

Let's talk. Virtual coffee, tea, and biscuits all around.
 
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NicoleJLeBoeuf

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ZaZ said:
Today I finally began givin' it up.
With my cigarette money in hand and my part-time freelancing gig off between sports seasons, I began pondering becoming, gag! spit! employed again. Like W2, might have to wear pants and stuff employed.
Good luck, Zaz!
 

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Crystal Rivers said:
Whoops! I told you I was new.
emoticonsleepy.gif

I just read in another topic that the $5,000 comes into play when a person signs something to get out of their contract. I'm in the process of doing that now, but it's a slow one. Does anybody have any idea how much it costs in legal fees to hire a lawyer to help in this regard?

I second this question. I cringe when I think of what it might cost to get a lawyer. My mother in law's lawyer charges her $150 and hour!

Help!
 

James D. Macdonald

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tarra74 said:
You all seem like very nice people and I'd like to get to know all of you.


We are, mostly. Just if Kev invites you back to "his place" to "ride the Purple Pony," don't do it. Have some self-respect.

Lessee ... we have a lot of boards here. You might like to check out Novels and Romance, unless I miss my guess. We have a number of published romance novelists here who are very generous with their time and advice.
 

CaoPaux

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ByGrace said:
I second this question. I cringe when I think of what it might cost to get a lawyer. My mother in law's lawyer charges her $150 and hour!

Help!
Uncle Jim posted this a few pages back: Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts http://www.vlany.org/
 

Christine N.

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BeeBomb said:
Kevin, don't you remember the cryptic message I wrote in the book? I sat between you (huggy hunkachunk) and the other hunkachunk at the so called banquet. Remember the fire alarm going off...I split and I have no clue where the two of you went. It was the friggin' pitts without the peach.

Hey, Bee. I know who you are. I was right.. you WERE about this close to coming over here. Good for you!
 

realitychuck

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Wecome to Bee and all the other PA authors. I think you'll find us all very congenial. We understand your dreams, and get angry at PA for building up authors only to squash them.

On another topic, the poster idea is fairly typical of how new PA authors brainstorm. Since they have no real idea of how books are sold (and PA ain't gonna tell them), the come up with schemes that may even sound plausible on the surface, but which fail because the cards are stacked against them.

In addition, many of the schemes have failed PA authors in the past, but that knowledge is kept off their board.

But any PA author who sees these suggestions needs to use a reality check: ask yourself, "Would this make me want to buy a book from someone I don't know?" Ask, "does this match my bookbuying habits?" and "Have I ever bought a book this way/for this reason?" It will save you a lot of grief.
 

ResearchGuy

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That nondisparagement clause

Hi, folks ...

I just informally asked a lawyer friend about the PA contract amendment clause putting a "nondisparagement" gag on family members. He stated flatly that that is not enforceable. That is just as folks here posted, of course, but I thought the concurrence was worth mentioning.

--Ken
 

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robeiae said:
Actually, posters in windows can get ripped, or the windows might not be cleaned often enough, meaning no one can see your poster clearly.

K, I haven't read the other hundred pages that I missed since going to work today so someone might have already answered this, but isn't window space PRIME commercial space in a store? Don't you have to pay big bucks for the right to have your poster prominently displayed?

Just a thought.
Continuing to read... (I really DO have to stop going to work, I miss so much that way!)

Jenn
 
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