It's disturbing to note that PA would stoop to printing a 130-page manuscript and call it a book or a novel. But I would have never imagined that they would allow a 70-page script to be regarded as a book. That has to be an all-time low.
When I began writing 20-years ago, I first consulted writing groups, fellow writers, agents, and editors (not to mention ate up every how-to book I could on the subject). They were all of the general (but firm) opinion that you do not write or submit the following manuscripts because of their economic infeasibility (also 100+ years of publishing experience, via tested marketing evaluation).
Most publishing houses are not interested in:
Books of poetry (selective market here)
Autobiographies (unless you're a Clinton)
Short story collections (unless you're James D. McDonald)
Biographies of family members (unless you're Paris Hilton)
Personal true-life accounts (unless subject overrides your non-notoriety)
Books under 60,000-70,000 words in length.
Personal diaries
And...I won't even get into politics and religion here, consider those subjects caution areas, or reserved for specialized markets. Let's not forget about some other gray areas: The family pet is the main protagonist, and mom writes about her first child birth...(bless the beasts and the children and I love moms--not being callous here).
It's just plain economics and market savy. Publishers can't take huge risks on risky books. YET, PA perpetuates and reinforces the myth that these are reasonable titles that "resonate" and are bound for brick & motar book stores.
"You've been given a chance as an artist. We won't intrude (edit)on your artistic style--you're free for the first time in your life to express the real you."
Yet, I am agog at the number of such titles that have been published by Punish America. There isn't an editor in the world that wouldn't have kindly (or gruffly) warned these people that such books were not accepted standards in the industry. When one publishes such a book, and it's snapped up by a so-called publisher, the instinct is to follow it up with something similar or sequential. To the same pub house. Over and over again.
Punish America has not only gathered a horrific number of scribes but has actually taught those writers how to unwrite and disregard viable books that appeal to a mass reading audience. HOW LONG IS IT GOING TO TAKE TO DEPROGRAM THEM? As for myself, I would personally like to mentor the PA authors on the "basics", the marketing savy of the industry (which has been wrenched from them, or avoided altogether by their previous Printer).
Right when these writers approached this publisher is when they needed the
most guidance. That is the real cruelty about PA--the long term effects.
Punish America is malignant. It wants to grow Stepford Scribes. But we ain't gonna let it happen. You 13 guests who are reading this right now...did you hear that?
Tri