I recently received the following email:
Hi Angela,
Wanted to bring you up to date regarding the struggle with Infinity Publishing.
I have still not been paid what I am owed in royalties – going back to the end of 2017. A few authors that I am in contact with have said they have been sent checks, though we don’t know if they are accurate, full payments.
I informed the Attorney General of Pennsylvania back in Feb 2018 but they do not communicate with us about their investigation or dealings.
Just last week I received an email from an Independent Publisher called Opyrus. Have you heard of them?
Turns out Opyrus is what FastPencil is turning into, but the email gives the address for Infinity in Pennsylvania.
I checked it out and, sure enough, FastPencil, Infinity Publishing, and Opyrus all have the exact same address!
Infinity Publishing
Fast Pencil
Opyrus
If you are thinking about giving business to one of these companies, you should first click on these links:
Complaints about FastPencil / Infinity Publishing!
Infinity Publishing Tries to Insult Us on Twitter, Then Immediately Blocks Us
In addition, there are now even more complaints about them online:
“I have not received any royalties in years!”
– Wendy A.
“I wish to join the chorus of those one star reviewers, wishing there was a lower choice. The last statement I received was August 2018. It showed they owed me a royalty check but none has been forthcoming. I called several times and got hollow promises. Now they won’t even answer the phone and ignore my messages.”
– David T.
“This company is not even worth a 1 star. After ordering an initial supply of my self published book – I received nothing in return. I have sent 4 emails, 3 chat messages, 4 voice messages and a complaint to the BBB – all with NO RESPONSE at all from this company. They are stealing from consumers and worthy of a class action lawsuit to be shut down.”
– Rick W
“Selling my books in the hundreds and zero royalties payment.”
– Joanne K
“Infinity Publishing is ******** all 7,000 of its authors by not paying royalties on the 10,000 books published under Infinity. There have been no royalties since the end of 2017! They are pocketing all the profits from the book sales.”
– Bo M
Read more complaints about Infinity Publishing / Fast Pencil on the BBB website HERE and HERE.
RIPOFFREPORT.COM
Fastpencil Took my money and no services rendered
Fastpencil preys off of budding writers, steals royalties, refuses refunds
“Because they are refusing to pay royalties to a friend and don’t even respond to phone calls and emails… I would give them ZERO stars if possible. They are a rip off.”
– Anastasia S.
“Horrible and frauds. They do not pay royalties. It’s been over a year that we’ve received a check and our book is selling. Steve is a con and should go to jail.”
– Samantha S.
“No customer service. More like SlowPencil. Do any humans work here? Nobody cares. Avoid!!!!!”
– Luke W.
Read more complaints at Yelp RIGHT HERE.
AND, EVEN MORE COMPLAINTS ABOUT FAST PENCIL / INFINITY PUBLISHING!
The Alliance of Independent Authors has given “Caution” ratings to FastPencil and Infinity Publishing.
PDF of a lawsuit filed against Infinity Publishing
Complaints about Infinity Publishing / FastPencil posted on Amazon
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- BookLocker Has a Fantastic Offer for Victims of Defunct Tate Publishing (and other firms)! Move to BookLocker for as little as $78! (And, get your book back on the market in as little as 2 weeks.)
- MORE COMPLAINTS about Lulu.com! WHAT the HECK is going on over there?!
- Dog Ear Publishing Is GOING OUT OF BUSINESS
Got questions about Print On Demand and Self-publishing? Ask Angela Hoy.
About The Author
Angela Hoy is the publisher of WritersWeekly.com, the author of 19 books, and the co-owner of BookLocker.com (one of the original POD publishers that still gets books to market in less than a month), PubPreppers.com (print and ebook design for authors who truly want to self-publish), and Abuzz Press (the publishing co-op that charges no setup fees).
Angela has lived and traveled across the U.S. with her kids in an RV, settled in a river-side home in Bradenton, FL, and lived on a 52 ft Irwin sailboat. Angela now resides on a mountaintop in Northwest Georgia, where she plans to spend the rest of her days bird watching, gardening, hiking, and taking in all of the amazing sunrises.
WritersWeekly.com - the free marketing ezine for writers, which features new paying markets and freelance job listings every Wednesday.
BookLocker.com - According to attorney Mark Levine, author of The Fine Print, BookLocker is: "As close to perfection as you're going to find in the world of ebook and POD publishing. The ebook royalties are the highest I've ever seen, and the print royalties are better than average. BookLocker understands what new authors experience, and have put together a package that is the best in the business. You can't go wrong here. Plus, they're selective and won't publish any manuscript just because it's accompanied by a check. Also, the web site is well trafficked. If you can find a POD or epublisher with as much integrity and dedication to selling authors' books, but with lower POD publishing fees, please let me know."
Abuzz Press offers FAST and FREE book publication, but only accepts a small percentage of submissions, and only works with U.S. authors.
PubPreppers.com - "We Prep, You Publish!" Print and ebook design for authors who truly want to self-publish. Offers formatting and design services only, and then provides simple instructions for authors on where to sign up to have the print and ebook editions printed/listed/sold. Cut out the middle man. Keep 100% of what bookstores pay for your book!
Angela's POD Secrets Revealed Series can be found HERE.
Have a POD Book with another publisher? See if BookLocker can give you a better deal. (BookLocker offers "disgruntled author discounts" to those who want to move from other POD services.)
See BookLocker's publishing packages HERE.
ANGELA ON TWITTER https://twitter.com/AngelaHoy
BOOKLOCKER ON FACEBOOK - Provides links to free excerpts!
https://www.facebook.com/booklockerbooks
ANGELA ON FACEBOOK
https://www.facebook.com/angela.hoy.750
ANGELA ON LINKEDIN
https://www.linkedin.com/in/angelahoy/
Angela is the creator of the Original 24-Hour Short Story Contest!
https://24hourshortstorycontest.com/
Read More Of Angela's Articles HERE
Make Sure Your Marketing is Targeted at the Right Audience
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Wow! How are these companies allowed to operate? I thank my lucky stars for BookLocker.
I got this from them in June. I had no interest, since I can’t stand those schmoopy anthologies, but when I looked at it out of curiosity, I discovered they’re actually charging writers to submit work for inclusion. Checking the LifeWrite link now, they’ve added an auto-play audio that I couldn’t find on the page to turn off.
EMAIL FROM OPYRUS:
I know you are still getting used to our transformation from FastPencil into Opyrus, but the surprises are not over!
We are thrilled to share with you The LifeWrite Project, a non-profit initiative from Opyrus, which supports organizations helping those suffering during the pandemic.
The LifeWrite Project’s first initiative is The Corona Silver Linings Anthology, a written-word thought capsule on this global pandemic.
We are reaching out to you first in hopes that you will share your unique voices and submit your writing to be considered for our print and digital publications. As writers, you know how powerful the written word is in impacting your life and the lives of others.
So please submit your piece, let your inspirational story uplift, strengthen and encourage others, and in doing so, not only are you giving permanence to your experience during this pandemic, but you are giving vital funding to organizations who are helping those who need it most.
Join NY Times best selling author Ridley Pearson (Peter And the Starcatchers) and Guy Gilchrist (The Muppets) in creating an everlasting tribute of courage, resilience and transformation. Submit your piece to The LifeWrite Project today.
Sincerely,
Team Opyrus
Thank you Angela for this. We do meet such characters in the writing world.