Book Contests – Good Idea or Not?
I received an email from (an online book contest). It is for recognition. Is this kind of thing normal? The entry fee is $50 at this time. …
Ask The Expert
Can I Get My Book’s Sales Info. Directly From Ingram? Nope.
I don't think my publisher is reporting all my sales. Can I get this info. directly from Ingram? …
How Often Does My P.O.D. Publisher Get Sales Info. From The Printer?
According to (my P.O.D. publisher), I have NOT sold ANY books - ever. They also claim the printer (which is owned by the distributor) "won't give out those stats." However, I have been contacted by international fans who have purchased both paperbacks and ebooks, so this is mystifying, to put it mildly. …
Who Owns My Cover Design?
My book was published by (one of the largest POD publishers) and I am not happy with their service or prices. They designed my cover but I want to move my book to BookLocker. Can you use the cover they designed? Can they sue me for leaving? …
Should I pay $300 for a press release service? Probably not…
I am contemplating using a service to send out a press release for my book. Seems like it may be a good investment of $300.00. I wanted to get your input on the subject though. What sort of thoughts would you have about press releases in general? …
How Fast Can You Publish My Book?
Can you publish my book immediately? My current POD publisher (one of the largest ones) is trying to get more money out of me for marketing so they are STALLING, and have been stalling for about two months now. I told them I am not giving them ONE CENT MORE!!! …
My Printer Overprinted My Book, Selling at Discount, Not Paying Me!
My printer said they overprinted my books and that they're selling them at half-price. They are paying me no royalties. They did not have my permission to do this. When I asked my printer about this issue, I was told, quite curtly, that there was nothing that could be done, that I had no recourse and "printers selling cheap, brand new books without permission is a simple fact of publishing." I consulted a lawyer on this and other matters and was told that this action was NOT an accepted or legal practice, as far as his research showed. Am I totally out of line assuming that this is NOT acceptable? …
Client Trying to Make My Contract Retroactive?!
I work with a not-for-profit company, writing materials for them such as volunteer handbooks, procedures and policies. I am a contractor, and I submit monthly invoices to them. I did not have a contract until now, and now they are asking me to sign something which includes the lines: "All Copyright in all works, (including those works originating prior to the signing of this contract) procedure, policy, training materials, discovery, invention or process made, designed, drafted or discovered by you whilst engaged by the Organization will be the property of the Company..." I'm not okay with this at all and I've mentioned to the CEO before that these documents are my intellectual property. It wasn't work for hire. They were paying for my time in constructing these materials. Do I have a right to the materials I have already written? I want to keep working with the organization but I feel they're making a huge assumption here. I have also written an extensive groundbreaking document for the organization that I wish to draw on in future works. I'd appreciate any advice you can give, I'm so confused. …
Book Returns and Ingram
My brother in law has a traditional publishing house, small to be sure. He has ceased dealing with Ingram not only because of the discounts they demand, but also because of the mountains of returns he gets months later of books with torn covers, etc. What is your experience? …
National Women’s Mag Owes Me Money!
I have been reading your site for a few months, and I was wondering if this would be appropriate for Whispers and Warnings. I have written four articles for a national women's magazine, one every month or two. The magazine's policy is that writers are paid 60ish days after publication. The first was paid late (in the meantime, I was working on the 4th), and after much haranguing, they finally paid about a month late with excuses about how the financial department was held up due to this or that. Now we're at over 90 days on the second... so I'm detecting a pattern. I never signed a contract (I know, I know...) My emails asking about payment for the second are going largely ignored (my contact keeps saying, "I'll check on it for you!" and then never responds). I've Googled, and I can't find anything from writers with similar experiences... what do you think? Thanks! …
Why Does Hardcover Edition Appear Above Paperback on Some Online Bookstores?
Do you have any suggestions on how we can get the paperback edition of my book to appear first on the Barnes and Noble website? When shoppers look it up, the hardcover comes up first and I think the price is going to scare readers off, especially if they don't know how to navigate to other formats of the book. …
Reminder – More Than One Way to Expose a Deadbeat!
I have written four articles for a national women's magazine, one every month or two. The magazine's policy is that writers are paid 60ish days after publication. The first was paid late (in the meantime, I was working on the 4th) and, after much haranguing, they finally paid about a month late with excuses about how the financial department was held up due to this or that. Now we're at over 90 days on the second... so I'm detecting a pattern. I never signed a contract (I know, I know...). My emails asking about payment for the second are going largely ignored (my contact keeps saying, "I'll check on it for you!" and then never responds). …
My Publisher Owes Me Thousands in Royalties! What Can I Do???
Remember me? I miss you. You are by far the best publisher I've met so far. You answer e-mails, you keep promises, and you pay royalties on time to your writers. My current publisher doesn't do any of that, and that's why I'm contacting you. I plan to enter a complaint into your Whispers and Warnings section, but I want to touch base with you before I do it, and explain. (My other publisher) started off as a dynamic, responsive and very active publisher when she initially persuaded me to sign on. In September 2011 she did the royalty accounting and paid me a big check for the months up to and including May 2011, which covered the first month of my sales surge. I sold over 17,000 e-books on Kindle that May. In June, I sold over 19,500, over 10,000 in July and over 6,000 in August. I don't have exact figures because she never sent me exact figures after May. The problem is that she has not paid me royalties covering the period June 2011 to the present. And, she stopped sending me monthly sales figures around the same time. Also, she stopped answering my e-mails, except for very occasional one- or two-sentence responses that never mentioned royalties. It has now been 14 months without a royalty payment to me. Her other writers I am in touch with have similar problems with her, all centering around a lack of communication, missed deadlines and royalty problems. What else can I do? …
Should I Try to Land a Literary Agent?
I recently collaborated with a much-published and widely read author to edit one of her pending publications. We discussed my literary life, too. She indicates I should get an agent to market my newest manuscript. What do you think? …
Does AuthorHouse Charge Authors for Production Files? Yep! And the Amount is Ridiculous!
I messed up. I published my book with 1st Books, now named AuthorHouse. I want to have an ebook to sell, but not thru AuthorHouse. Do they own publishing rights? I know they have sold some books, but I have not received any money from them in years. …
Why Is The Booklocker.Com Cover Design Price So Low?
Your price (at BookLocker.com) for cover design is much lower than freelance designers, I find myself wondering what I would get for $200. …
Where Can I Find Paying Markets?
Do you guys know of any places where I can write online and make money for my articles, while retaining copyright? …
Out of Print Books Still for Sale on Amazon?
I checked my out-of-print books at Amazon and the print versions are still "available". However, their message to customers is that there is only one copy left, and on backorder. If there is only one copy left, where's the money for the other ones? How are they sold? In batches? I'm not getting anything because my book is out-of-print, so where's the money going to? …
Creating Book Trailers?
I am working on a book trailer. Do you know of any people who create those professionally? …
Is Anthology Creator the “Author”?
A (local) man decided to do an anthology with the proceeds going to a charity. I submitted a poem and it was accepted with a small, simple contract offered. Everything was fine until the anthology came out and the man had listed himself and his wife as the authors of the book. Now, individual poems were listed by author but the cover / title page and back of title page showed the couple as authors. …
I Sold My Article to One Magazine…but Two Published It?
I was referred to you by a friend. I just found an article I wrote, that was published in March, also published in April in a completely different magazine. I had no idea it was being published in April, have never heard of the publication, and received no payment. I am trying to figure out the best way to handle this... is this not copyright infringement? …
Does My Publisher Have The Right To Publish The Ebook Edition Of My Book Without Asking?
My POD publisher recently released an ebook version of my book without telling me. I only want a print version of my book available. What can I do? …
IF I PUBLISH SOMETHING ONLINE MYSELF, WHAT HAPPENS TO FIRST RIGHTS?
I have a question about first electronic rights. I have a writing blog where I "publish" a lot of my writing, including short stories, articles and poetry. If I've published something on my blog, can I no longer submit it to anyone requesting first electronic rights? My blog is set to public, but I don't have a ton of followers or anything. Do you know the legal ramifications on this? …
Well, Are POD Books in Bookstores…or Aren’t They?!
Some POD publishers imply their books are available in all bookstores but you don't make that claim. Why? …
My Publisher Disappeared but Amazon is Still Selling My Book!
My publisher, who placed my book on the Kindle, has disappeared. He previously obtained my royalties and forwarded them to me. I have been unable to contact him or anyone at Amazon so that arrangements can be made for me to deal directly with Amazon. …
Private vs. Bookstore Book Signings
I have many friends asking me for a signed copy of the book when it is published. As I have thought about this, I need to ask for advice. Do I order the books and sell them? Do I direct them to a particular bookstore and ask the store to order so many copies? I want to have a book signing for them as there were many who supported me in this effort and I am not sure of the best course to accomplish this. Thank you in advance for your input. …
How Can I Spot Content Mill Ads?
There are so many sites with ads that seem desperate to hire writers. I think most of them are content mills. How can I easily spot one? …
Should I Apply To “Blind” Employment Ads?
Do you feel there is high risk in replying to a blind ad with a Craigslist address? …
Do I Need Permission to Feature Local Businesses in My Novel?
My manuscript is a humorous mystery and uses some of the local haunts in (my city). I don't say anything bad about any of them. It's mainly the characters going to places like (a local restaurant), which is considered a local original. I explain why. Also, (a local diner). Everyone in the area where my heroine lives would know this place. They would also know that the bathroom is decorated with (a well-known cartoon character) accessories. This is mentioned in my manuscript. One character also works at a local charity, mentioned by name. Is it okay to use them as long as I don't show them in a bad light? Or, should I get them to sign something? If so, what? …
Help! My Book Has Been Attacked on Amazon!
For some inexplicable reason, my novel has been attacked in an Amazon review by a first-class idiot who hasn't even taken the trouble to read it. I can't imagine why anyone would want to damage my book's credibility, but I suppose there are some people who are capable of such nastiness. I've contacted Amazon. but they won't remove it, saying it doesn't violate their guidelines. Hard to believe that they would keep a review that falsifies a book's major premise. I'm hoping anyone with half a brain will understand that this is a vicious, mindless, unfair, and irresponsible smear, and not a legitimate review. …