I tried to look at their covers, but the .pdfs aren't working (hey DAP web guys: the uploadedfiles directory still has a Hh subdirectory). I'm hoping they'll be redesigning their stock covers so they don't look exactly like Harlequin covers.
There are still some sneaky things in their FAQs that I don't like. For example, in the
Printing & Publishing Style FAQ:
You also retain the rights of your manuscript, unlike a traditional publisher.
Technically, true, because they don't tell you're their talking about the publishing right you leased them and not the copyright they're implying.
Another place I can't find right now, they mention the publishing house has full control over the text and cover once they buy your rights (and still don't make clear they're talking about publishing rights, not copyright). Cover, yes, but if a publishing house tried to change my text without my approval, you'd hear my wrath from one side of the ocean to the other.
In the end, this is still a terrible deal for anyone, and 99% of their customers are going to lose money. I still find it predatory, because it's simply not set up to make a profit for the writer even if they try really, really hard.
I'm not going to go back and tell my agent I'm cool with Harlequin now, even if the writers' organizations back off their stance (Thomas Nelson was never on the table; they're more likely to offer me an exorcism than a book deal).
(Anyone else find the words "traditional publisher" to be like nails on a chalkboard?)