The New Never-Ending PublishAmerica Thread (NEPAT)

Some of the PAers have expressed written concern with this latest ad/auction/bidding campaign, but most feel PA knows what they are doing. Sort of like "Father Knows Best." PAPA knows best! It's sure keeping this thread active It sounds like desperation.

Yes to answer the question I do indeed have counsel and my Marketing Manger dealing with P.A. now. As for "happy" authors........I received their garbage email about auctioning ads as well.....they have no shame at all!
BTW..their "tests" were to place ads on the back of new author books without telling them!

How much do you want to spend on securing a full page in ten thousand books?

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Now that depends. Is the book well written or garbage? Is it filled with misspellings? Is it in my genre? Are either books priced to move?

James D. Macdonald said:

In real publishing, titles that are advertised in the back of other books are selected by genre -- if you like this book, you'll like this other book.

It doesn't make much sense advertising a romance in the back of a western.

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That's the first thing that crossed my mind when I read this e-mail—most of the ads would be useless because they would be in the wrong genre.

But the more I thought about it, the more I realized: this ploy isn't about PA authors (and friends and family) buying other PA authors' books, and it's not really even about suckering the highest bidder into paying (whatever crazy amount of) money for advertising that probably won't work, although PA will be glad to pocket the dough.

You know what it's about? It's about building a list of authors that have extra money to spend. And since this is an auction, PA will even be able to estimate how much each person is willing to spend. With this list, PA can focus efforts on those authors that are more likely to open their pocketbooks and wallets. Maybe they'll target higher-volume sales pitches to these folks and/or fast-track the author's second & third books, etc.

Or they may be testing the water to see if they can start up a whole new revenue stream by selling advertising to the authors.

I did not receive the auction email. I wonder if PA has finally taken me off their email list (as I have repeatedly asked them to).

SC Harrison, I think your last line has it right--PA is trying to develop a new revenue stream.

SC, I think you bring up an interesting point. I haven't seen you post in forever. How have you been? It's been a very long time.

Oh, I love how they worded it in the sample ad: "Available to all bookstores nationwide". Not "in". Not "at". Not even "outside on the front lawn". "Available TO". BIG difference, I'd say...

Alien Enigma said:

SC, I think you bring up an interesting point. I haven't seen you post in forever. How have you been? It's been a very long time.

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Hey, Jeff.

I stick my head in from time to time. I was spending a lot of time over on the Politics & Current Events board, but then (a little over a year ago) I actually got involved in politics here in N.C. I'm not running for office (yet), but I've worked on a few (national) campaigns and I've met and talked with so many elected officials and candidates I've lost count. It's been a pretty wild ride, and it ain't over yet.

And in case you're wondering, I'm a liberal tree-hugging Democrat and an opinionated and outspoken blogger:

http://bluenc.com/blog/scharrison

They're probably going to put the ads in the back of the books that are selling the best. But 10,000 in a week. I didn't know that they could sell 10,000 books in a week. Or print 10,000 books in a week. And I thought that they didn't print books until they were ordered & sold. They've got balls, I'll give them that.
And if like it was mentioned earlier. If all the PA author's were to bid 1 cent, that means my bid of one symbolic dollar would be the winner! Wooo Hooo!

Yes, you too can be a Published Author!

Thrill as you inhale the smell of ink fresh from the printer! Gaze in awe at your almighty dollar! Share your story at bookstores from sea to resonating glove!

And now, the Big News:*

Buy An Ad!

Yes, just like the big boys Proctor and Gamble or Toyota, you too can experience the joys of advertising. For the mere price of a young lady from Bangkok, you can have your very own ad! It'll appear in 10,000 books available wherever you can place them. Be seen by literally tens of readers as they receive the book of their dreams!

What are you waiting for?

*Offer not valid in bookstores.

Assuming that more than one person can win this auction (no-one said there'd only be one advert in back of a given book, right?), this is actually an attempt at what economists call price discrimination, which is a type of selling which absolutely favours the seller over the buyer.

If you go to your supermarket, you're given a set price for a bottle of milk, whether you're a millionaire or penniless. The supermarket would love to be able to charge the millionaire more, but the means of selling makes that impossible. With an auction, only the very highest bid succeeds, with the maximum the buyer is willing to stump up. PA's auction appears to be a set of bids where the seller can decide how many can succeed. It scoops off the maximum amount of revenue from a number of customers decided by the seller. That being so, it promises to provide a much higher level of revenue than simply charging advertising rates.

Ethically, it's wrong on so many levels it's physically painful, but as an exercise in revenue gathering, it has a brutal charm.

brianm said:

Additionally, did any other AW members who still receive emails from PA get this email? Rose?

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roncouch said:

I'm hurt - deeply. PA has not contacted me about the auction or whatever it is. Perhaps they will not contact a "published author" who have been banned. Did they hire a manic marketing director?
Ron

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Don Davidson said:

I did not receive the auction email. I wonder if PA has finally taken me off their email list (as I have repeatedly asked them to).

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I got it this morning. Since I've been banned for years and repeatedly asked them to stop contacting me, too, I'm betting they'll get around to emailing everyone they've got an email address for sooner or later. One of us ol' timers with deep pockets just might try one.last.time to resonate from sea to shining sea, y'know.

Who's to say they will even put the "winner" in 10,000 books. There's no way to prove whether they will or won't. Those 10,000 or however many will just be shipped to authors anyway either by author sales or author copies. I got my e-mail today and put it with the rest of the ridiculous correspondance.

Afinerosesheis said:

Who's to say they will even put the "winner" in 10,000 books. There's no way to prove whether they will or won't. Those 10,000 or however many will just be shipped to authors anyway either by author sales or author copies. I got my e-mail today and put it with the rest of the ridiculous correspondance.

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Books will begin printing and shipping in the week of September 22.

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Begin is the operative word. There's nothing in that email limiting the time that can pass before 10 000 adverts have been printed.

Man,

I just read the latest PA auction e-mail... These people have no shame. SC nailed it with his brilliant analysis; this is a quest for capital. I am so glad I have a real publisher.

Afinerosesheis said:

Who's to say they will even put the "winner" in 10,000 books. There's no way to prove whether they will or won't. Those 10,000 or however many will just be shipped to authors anyway either by author sales or author copies. I got my e-mail today and put it with the rest of the ridiculous correspondance.

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Is it "winner" or "Weiner?"

How about a petition signed from all ex-PA authors for the Attorney General to look into their business practices? Or at the very least a petition by many of us could probably help hmcalendin get her rights back without putting out any money. That may be more practical than my meteor idea.

There must be some ambivalence in infocenter right now. Some of the PAMB posts are less than happy:

Advertising is good for everyone. I know I need it. My books are not selling the way they should be selling. My books need the explosure more than anything. If this works why not let it? I know I am up for anything. My book is "I Confess," and I really appreciate my writing this book. I am so proud of this book. My readers like it, and want me to continue the trend. I am working on "I Confess 3," and I Confess 4." I want the entire world to love this book.

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Dang published authors! Sullying up a happy thread with their whining complaints that their books are not selling like they should.

However, this author, in this post, has taken self-esteem a little too far:

My book is "I Confess," and I really appreciate my writing this book.

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This ad auction is insane. The PAMBers say it is okay as long as they don't cross genres. Well PA has come right out and said that placement may include all genres. So, taking into account that non-fiction is usually the best seller in self-pub, all the novelists and inspirational writers will likely find their 'ads' placed in the back of 'Plumbing Fixes for $10 or Less' or 'Yes You Can Rebuild Your Own Transmission.'

::Shakes head until the little beads inside start rattling::

I appreciate your support smsarber. I had a similar idea to see how many former and present P.A. authors would start an email campaign/petition against P.A. and their shoddy treatment of authors, pricing ethics etc. Do not know how it will turn out. I am finding that a lot of people are talk but when it comes to action.....it's a no go.

If you met me you'd probably assume I am the least likely person to disturb the sh't But, I work hard at my craft and although I blame myself for falling into the P.A. trap I am certainly responsible for how my work is published an dinterpreted from here on in.

I will NOT go quietly into the good night....

I've blogged about the latest events at PA. The more people know about it, the fewer potential victims.

I'm thinking this may be exactly what PA wants. Think about it for a minute - even the PA faithful are looking puzzled at this action. They're scratching their heads, wondering what has gotten into PA's head.

If no one bids, or 'takes advantage' of the auction, then the ads don't go in, and PA can say "look, we TRIED to market the books, and you didn't help us!"

Like the "Book Contests" board, it could be just another show of smoke-and-mirrors.

Shadowman said:

But 10,000 in a week. I didn't know that they could sell 10,000 books in a week. Or print 10,000 books in a week.

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They didn't say "10,000 a week." They just said 10,000.

Priene said:

Begin is the operative word. There's nothing in that email limiting the time that can pass before 10 000 adverts have been printed.

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AHHHHHH.... that makes sense. But many PA authors will have visions of a 10,000 book print run going out immeditately to who knows where. That's the sad part.

roncouch said:

Is it "winner" or "Weiner?"

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No, it's the hellocopter!

Christine N. said:

I'm thinking this may be exactly what PA wants. Think about it for a minute - even the PA faithful are looking puzzled at this action. They're scratching their heads, wondering what has gotten into PA's head.

If no one bids, or 'takes advantage' of the auction, then the ads don't go in, and PA can say "look, we TRIED to market the books, and you didn't help us!"

Like the "Book Contests" board, it could be just another show of smoke-and-mirrors.

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This rings true with so much insight and wisdom; could they be smart enough to do it?

They came up with the useless Book Contests listings. I'd bet they have a whole list of useless promotional ideas that will make it seem like they're doing something when they're not. The new crop of authors must be getting smarter for PA to go to such lengths. I mean, the contract says promotion is "at their discretion"; this is just another way they use their contract to manipulate their authors.