Hi,
I had a book published by (a small P.O.D. publisher) in the US and it has been on sale since Oct. 2011, I have received no royalties, no answers to my emails, and now all emails are sent back. The editing was disgraceful (no errors fixed, etc.) and they took a lot longer than my contract stated to publish it. I have seen no advertising as was promised. In fact, they did not adhere to any of their contract. I have cancelled my contract, but they are still selling it on Amazon and other similar sites. I really don’t know what to do about it. I’m completely at my wit’s end.
I researched the firm you contacted us about and there are numerous complaints about them online so you are not alone. They may have simply abandoned the business altogether. This is one of the dangers of using a small, new P.O.D. publisher. People think it’s an easy business to get into but they later find they’re in way over their heads. Many have folded over the years.
Unfortunately, unless the authors sue, they are left with few options. The crooked publisher continues to collect “royalties” from Amazon and other online and physical book sellers but they don’t send the authors’ portions to them. Getting Amazon to remove a book published by someone else can be difficult because their legal department must get involved.
If it were me, I’d first confirm my contract cancellation via certified mail to the crooked publisher. I would then publish a new edition of the book under a different name. That would prevent future reader confusion. Also, it would protect me from any bad reviews that resulted from their poor editing.
BookLocker.com offers a special ($199 setup fees – cover design is extra) to authors who have been ripped off, or are otherwise simply unhappy with their current or past P.O.D. publisher. Contact me at angela@writersweekly.com for more details.
Angela