I. AM. AGOG.
Let me get this straight: Lanaia is a good sister/friend of Pillsbury, and has been for a number of years. They also share poetry publication together. Pillsbury is a self-proclaimed agent, who is a (four-times) vanity author (PA twice), and is currently Lania's agent. Was it Pillsbury who hooked up Hill to Lanaia?
So then Hill ghostwrites a fantasy book for Lanaia and charges $400 per month for a period of two years, or...it takes two years to pay the bill off, of which the real total to write the book can't actually be determined.
Uh, then was the reviewer (Jane) a pay-to-play book reviewer or publicist of some type? (There's nothing wrong with this IMO--it's a seperate entity). I believe it was Jane's friend who spotted the plagiarism, BTW.
Jesus H. on a pop sickle stick! It looks like Lanaia (Mary) ran out of orifices to get plugged. She got it by a vanity publishing house, her agent (Pillsbury), the ghostwriter Hill (Christopher), and was she destined to spend any money with a publicist or reviewer?
Conclusion: Reading all of Pillsbury's background, I would think that she was the first stinger in this operation and that she failed to warn her friend of impending financial doom. Reportedly, Lanaia could not afford health insurance, and certainly with her ills (spouse included), this would have been a priority. Is is possible that Pillsbury tag-teamed with Hill (from the very begining) to rip a new one in her so-called loving sister/friend, client, sucka, mark?
Sorry I'm off topic but I went gonzo numb reading about all of this late this morning. My WIP went to hell in a handbasket, slogging through all of this stuff.
PA authors: It is a very, very bad idea to hang out your agent or publisher shingle, thinking that you know the ropes as a result of a book or two with a vanity outfit. I don't even think Victoria or Yog would try it, knowing what kind of extra responsibilities and time it requires. And THEY know their shite. JUST DON'T DO IT.
Is there anybody out there that has used Christopher Hill to splash ink in their manuscript? Ghostwriting services, I mean? Perhaps Victoria has him on record as such. I wasn't aware that he dabbled in that area.
Judging from the figures involved in all of these connections, the cost could have been as low as $8,000 to over $12,000. Just out of morbid curiosity, I would like to know what the end numbers were for OF Alantis.
Gee, where was Lulu in all this? Better yet, where was starting at the top and working your way down with commercial publishers?
Again, sorry about the off-topic, but it's a damn web of deceit and lies that goes every which way but truth.
Tri