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[Publisher] Black Rose Writing (Reagan Rothe)

BarbJ

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After throwing up I took the pic down and reported them to my host server AND the FBI AND my local police. I got a call back from the FBI who told me I did the right thing, and it was the agent's good opinion that proud parents should keep their babies off the Internet. It's as bad as putting their kid pics up on a billboard with a "please kidnap" message.

You parents--please-please-please, be SAFE.
icon14.gif

Thanks for posting the warning, Gilhoughly.
 

Gary Clarke

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Thanks so much for telling us that GillH, its horrible, but good to be told this stuff.<p> Not sure I can face my lunch now though.
 

Gillhoughly

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We've wandered off topic, but in a good cause.

If you've friends or family with websites or blogs where they've got their family pics up, refer them to my posting or the links below. I think most people are scared, but not nearly enough.

Sometimes it's not just a proud parent with a pic, it's passive information.

From Ask Perry:

"Polly Klaas was targeted from a mailing list compiled for marketing to teenagers in a particular zip code area. Her killer bought this list of girls between certain ages and chose her at random from the list. The list contained her address, name, and age."

http://www.pollyklaas.org/internet-safety/

http://www.squidoo.com/pollyklaas/yourchildsafetykits

Pass it on.
 

talps

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Mr. Rothe is back and pushing another book in the Announcements/Self-Promotion section.

I know, I know... That's the section where people do this... But doesn't it feel a little, y'know, sketchy? He also posted the very same notice on QueryTracker. At this point I'm just put off that he seems to be advertising more than anything else, that's all.
 

Glenda

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Priceless1, I have listened to your advice and trust your warning. I for one will steer clear of this 'publisher'. :scared:Thanks.
 

talps

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I think Mr. Rothe is spamming every chat board he can find!

:rant:and he's back at it again today as though he's paying no attention to AW itself...

Can I be a Mod for like 5 minutes? Please? :D

Ah, I'm kidding. I know he has the right to make announcements, but... but... *tapes mouth shut* :rant:
 

Pilot

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Hi, guys. New kid on the block here, making my first post. First thing I notice is, WOW, you folks are tough! It seems that with the advent of the Internet, people are just flat paranoid about everything. I refer to the comments regarding Black Rose Writing and its owner, in particular. So far on this thread, I've seen lots of negativity based upon I'm not sure what. I've seen references to Publish America, of whom I know nothing being new to the writing game, and that seems to be the biggest mark this Roche guy has against him. There's someone named priceless1 who just flat out warns you away from the man with nothing but innuendo. Odd. I've known a couple of Mafia men in my time, but that sure doesn't mean I'm Mafia myself. In fact, I'm not and never have been. And one publisher talking about another makes me wonder about motive, since there are no specifics given. Does anyone know of a specific incident where the man Roche has cheated someone? If so, that would carry weight. Otherwise, what I've seen is just a bunch of words with no substance. What happened to "give a man a break until he proves he doesn't deserve it"?
 

veinglory

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Publish America is not, name aside, a publisher--they are a hybrid of a printer and a scam. Thus having anything to do with them bespeaks, at best, of naivity. As does repetitive spamming.
 

Pilot

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Publish America is not, name aside, a publisher--they are a hybrid of a printer and a scam. Thus having anything to do with them bespeaks, at best, of naivity. As does repetitive spamming.

Like most people, I have to judge others by my own life. In my twenties, even though I'm not especially proud of it, I was terribly naive. Perhaps the same can be said of Roche. And maybe I'm just a sucker, but I like to give people a chance to prove themselves. My work is unpublished and some publisher is going to have to take a chance on me, so why shouldn't I be willing to take a chance on a new publisher? Maybe the Roche kid is being straight and really wants to build a good business. On the other hand, if he mouses me around, I'm not twenty anymore, but am a retired fed. I'd imagine I can deal with it. BTW, thanks for the welcome, Giant Baby.
 
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Giant Baby

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If you look around here, you'll find people who want very much to answer your questions. And likely already have.

Decide what you want to do, and people here will help you. If you want folks who weren't at your baptism, or napped through your college graduation, to read your book, however, you'll want to investigate further...
 

veinglory

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I have published with several new publishers, but none of them represented taking a "chance". I researched the owners, their market plan and their distribution abilites and knew they were pretty close to a sure thing for making earnings in four figures per book. Even amongst start ups some are better than others.
 

Birol

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That's a good question right now.
Like most people, I have to judge others by my own life. In my twenties, even though I'm not especially proud of it, I was terribly naive. Perhaps the same can be said of Roche. And maybe I'm just a sucker, but I like to give people a chance to prove themselves. My work is unpublished and some publisher is going to have to take a chance on me, so why shouldn't I be willing to take a chance on a new publisher? Maybe the Roche kid is being straight and really wants to build a good business. On the other hand, if he mouses me around, I'm not twenty anymore, but am a retired fed. I'd imagine I can deal with it. BTW, thanks for the welcome, Giant Baby.

Welcome to AW, Pilot. I sincerely mean that.

That said, here's the Captain Lemming suit. The roof is that way.
 

Marian Perera

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And maybe I'm just a sucker, but I like to give people a chance to prove themselves.

That's very nice of you. Personally, I wouldn't hand over my book's rights of first publication to an inexperienced publisher. Especially now that POD technology means pretty much anyone can call themselves a publisher.

For me this is a business, not a charity where I give people chances.

My work is unpublished and some publisher is going to have to take a chance on me,

Real publishers don't take chances - they read the work closely, decide whether it's marketable, hold meetings to discuss it and then make an offer. They're not taking a chance on you any more than your employer takes a chance after reading your resume, calling you in for interviews, checking your references closely and then offering you the job.

so why shouldn't I be willing to take a chance on a new publisher?

I can also recommend some agents who are very new and don't know what they're doing, if you'd like to take a chance on them as well. Let us know how it works out for you.
 

M.R.J. Le Blanc

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Hi pilot, and welcome to AW.

Yes, folks here are hard - and for good reason. If you decide to stick around, you'll quickly discover that this isn't just a meeting places of sorts for writers, nor is it a gathering place for rejected and disgruntled writers to complain and bash those who rejected them. In fact quite the opposite. Many members here are published, have been published for years, and/or have experience on both sides of the desk so to speak. A couple members own their own publishing companies, which are doing rather well. They know how the industry works, they know what is good and what is to be warned about and how to tell the difference. And they gave unpublished writers like you and me a place to learn so we don't get screwed.

No publisher or agent or whatever that is not recommended by folks here has EVER been because of grudges or an axe to grind. It's because that publisher or agent could potential do more damage than good based on what is presented. A publisher or agent with no experience is far worse than being unpublished, and you had best remember that. There's nothing wrong with giving a new publisher or agent a 'chance' - if they know what they're doing. But if you get someone who's self-published starting a publisher (with ONLY a published book as 'experience') or someone who decides one day 'hey I'm going to be an agent' and sets up shop, those are gambles you're going to lose and they'll take your book with them. If you're okay with that then very well, all the best to you. But as a fellow unpublished writer, I'd rather go with someone who knows what they're doing. And thanks to the folks at AW and threads like this, I know who those people are. Please stick around, there's a lot of great info no new writer should pass up.
 

Jersey Chick

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And maybe I'm just a sucker, but I like to give people a chance to prove themselves. My work is unpublished and some publisher is going to have to take a chance on me, so why shouldn't I be willing to take a chance on a new publisher?
Being published badly can hurt you in the long run, far more so than being unpublished ever would. In some cases, writers have given up writing altogether because of their treatment at the hands of less than scrupulous publishers (and I'm not suggesting this publisher is that, of course, but just saying.)

Anyway, I hope you stick around because there is so much information all over these boards. :)
 

priceless1

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There's someone named priceless1 who just flat out warns you away from the man with nothing but innuendo. Odd ...And one publisher talking about another makes me wonder about motive, since there are no specifics given.
My only motive is to help authors make informed choices about whom they query. If have personal information that reveals someone to be less than educated about the industry, then I feel it fair to sound the alarm. That I haven't mentioned the specifics was a courtesy to Reagan Rothe - why embarrass him unnecessarily? Take a look at our website and blog. I believe you'll see that my business experience and time on AW affords me a wee bit of trust on these matters. Do you really need me to be specific?

Does anyone know of a specific incident where the man Roche has cheated someone? If so, that would carry weight. Otherwise, what I've seen is just a bunch of words with no substance.
If you read my posts, you'll note that I never mentioned that Reagan Roche cheated anyone. As I said, my contact with him was on a different matter. Through the course of that contact, he revealed to me as one who is woefully and embarrassingly undereducated about the publishing industry. Because of this, I implored him to put on the stops and learn the industry before he accepts anyone's book for publication. I never heard from him again.

What happened to "give a man a break until he proves he doesn't deserve it"?
If you're willing to take that chance with a book you worked hard to complete, then be my guest. I know of few who are that trusting. Most have that silly dream of seeing their books in the stores and having a legit publishing credit.
 

JulieB

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Welcome to AW, Pilot.

I paid a visit to their web site today, since I hadn't been there in a while. The publisher strikes me as someone with good intentions (they now state they take returns), but without distribution it's going to be difficult to get books into bookstores across the country.

All anyone is asking is for you to understand what a particular publisher can offer you and to compare that with your expectations. Don't be afraid to ask questions.

And please, take a look around AW. There are some very good threads here that will help you evaluate publishers and determine who may be best for your book.
 

Pilot

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I'd like to thank you all for your responses. My ignorance level regarding the publishing industry is near the 100% mark, so please understand that I'm likely to say things here that many of you will find laughable. I've always been a fairly quick study, however, so perhaps that won't last. I might even learn enough eventually to ask an intelligent question or two. I've spent too many years having to be suspicious of everyone and quite frankly am sick of that kind of attitude in myself. Wasn't raised that way and don't want to die that way. So if I occasionally root for the underdog, try to understand. That doesn't necessarily mean I'm totally stupid, though. At least I hope not. I think that now would be a good time to do a lot of thread reading. Thanks for the welcome.
 

Marian Perera

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So if I occasionally root for the underdog, try to understand.

Nothing wrong with rooting for the underdog. I would give Mr Rothe or any inexperienced startup publisher as much encouragement and support and information as I can.

I would not, however, give them the rights of first publication of my book.

I don't think this is being "suspicious". If your child wanted piano lessons, would you take her to someone who was also a learner, or would you prefer someone with experience in both music and teaching? If you pick the latter, does that mean you're suspicious of the first "teacher"?

I think that now would be a good time to do a lot of thread reading. Thanks for the welcome.

Sounds like a good plan, and welcome to the board.
 

stormie

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As others have said, this is a business. His website looked very unprofessional before he cleaned it up a bit. (Don't know how much he improved it, but he originally had photos of his niece and nephews and was only pubbed by PA. That doesn't bode well for an editing and/or publishing company.)

Stick around and read all you can on AW forums. Very well informed people here.