advice please

[Jennifer Stone]

good evening everyone, i have received a request from a publisher to see my full manuscript. Has anyone had any dealings with Austin Macauley? I'm not looking to 'name and shame', just want to know what to expect from them, if they're a good company and if you've got any advice on how to deal with them. I don't want to make a 'rookie' mistake and mess this up here's hoping

thanks in advance

 

[Alistair Roberts]

Cough splutter cough, eh, my last post was actually about them. I say nothing, I know nothing. Still you have nothing to loose by trying, but don't pay them a CENT, let alone a Pound

 

[Kitty]

You might want to check this out.

http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=95685

 

[Katie-Ellen]

This might help, though it isn't true that mainstream publishers don't sometimes invite submissions. http://timetowrite.com/tag/austin-macauley/

 

[Jennifer Stone]

thank you very much for the links, they were helpful. I shall be on my guard, but they can't have what I don't.

 

[Carol Rose]

I know someone else posted this link, but I can't stress enough how important it is to check this site FIRST before signing on the dotted line. It's an enormous site, very difficult for someone like me who doesn't spend 24/7 online to wade through, but they are excellent at ferreting out the crap publishers and agents. This particular "publisher" sounds like one to avoid unless you don't mind paying someone else to "publish" your book. (Yes, that was sarcasm)

http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=95685

 

[Jennifer Stone]

as soon as i mention i'm unemployed, they wont be willing to enter into a financial contract with me anyway, but it's always worth a try

 

[tabby3]

You could also try:
Preditors & Editors
pred-ed.com/

 

[Carol Rose]

Money flows TO to the author, not away from him/her. Any agent or publisher asking for money up front for ANY reason - marketing, editing, printing, ANYTHING is a HUGE red flag. That's not how LEGITIMATE publishers or agents work. Just. Say. No.

 

[Alistair Roberts]

Thanks for that link Tabby, very useful.

 

[Carol Rose]

Just be aware that Preds and Eds isn't usually up to date or complete. They rely on information provided to them by others.

 

[tabby3]

Just be aware that Preds and Eds isn't usually up to date or complete. They rely on information provided to them by others.

That's quite true, Tara. However, a negative review still tells us something, regardless of when the info was collected.

 

[Carol Rose]

That's quite true, Tara. However, a negative review still tells us something, regardless of when the info was collected.

Oh absolutely. It's just that Absolute Write Water Cooler is more current and there's a lot more information including first hand accounts.

 

[tabby3]

Oh absolutely. It's just that Absolute Write Water Cooler is more current and there's a lot more information including first hand accounts.

Again, quite right.

 

[Carol Rose]

Again, quite right.

 

[Jennifer Stone]

WARNING! I sent an enquiry to Tate Publishing USA, no sample work as yet. Have been emailing them over the last couple of days to arrange a telephone call, to discuss my hopes for my book. All this back and forth, just to receive an email at the time they were supposed to call. Sorry, the international call wont go through. Really? A company that deals with international authors can't make a call? But they want me to send my work anyway. I'm sending them nothing, total time wasters, nothing but excuses.

 

[Alistair Roberts]

Yikes, and thanks for the warning. If they claim to be unable to make a simple international phone call, there is something seriously wrong...

 

[Diamond]

WARNING! I sent an enquiry to Tate Publishing USA, no sample work as yet. Have been emailing them over the last couple of days to arrange a telephone call, to discuss my hopes for my book. All this back and forth, just to receive an email at the time they were supposed to call. Sorry, the international call wont go through. Really? A company that deals with international authors can't make a call? But they want me to send my work anyway. I'm sending them nothing, total time wasters, nothing but excuses.

A friend of mine, a newspaper columnist, published a historical sports novel through Tate Publishing about six or seven years ago. He paid over $5000.00 to publish with them. The book looks professional--that is not to be denied. However, the only marketing Tate did to promote the book was posting it on their website. My friend earned back about $600.00 of that $5000.00 and that was mostly by selling it to friends, family and to the local community where the story took place. He says if he had to do over, he wouldn't have wasted the money.

 

[Jennifer Stone]

an acquaintance of mine on fb has published hers through Tate (she recommended them to me) I don't know how much she paid, but she does A LOT of self promotion. It seems more work than it should be.
Don't get me wrong! I'm prepared to work for my own success but I expect my publisher to be working equally as hard.

 

[Carol Rose]

Tate is a vanity publisher.

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=992

 

[Karen Gray]

If they want you to pay up front I would say no. You are getting a raw deal.

 

[Carol Rose]

NO legit agent or publisher asks for money up front. NONE. New author, old author, green author, blue author… it makes no difference to them.

A legitimate agent does not ask for money up front. They don't make money unless you do, so they won't take on a book they aren't certain they can sell to an editor/publisher.

A legitimate publisher does not make money unless you do, so they won't take on a book they aren't certain they can sell through their distribution.

And that is one of the major pitfalls of a vanity publisher. NO DISTRIBUTION.

YOU have to drive people to their website/online book store. They almost never have accounts with Amazon or other huge third party sites, so the ONLY place readers can buy the book is through them. Readers don't do that. Trust me on this one.

I have a difficult enough time driving traffic to my two legitimate publisher sites - Siren-Bookstrand and Evernight. Readers like their one-click shit on Amazon. Or they have a Nook and it's much easier to get e-books on it through Barnes & Noble. Or they love the buy 10 get one free program on All Romance Ebooks.

Evernight recently launched a trial incentive program on their site to drive up website sales. Siren keeps our books on their site for 4 to 6 weeks before sending them to third party sites, and discounts them to drive sales to the site.

But a vanity publisher does NONE of that. It's up to YOU to drive traffic to the site, or else buy your own print books and I don't know… sell them out of the trunk of your car or something. I'm being serious here. Not only do you pay for everything, but YOU are the only one doing any kind of marketing or selling. They do nothing except take your money and print the book, or upload the e-book version to their site.

Even self-publishing on Amazon is a better deal because Amazon controls the universe and readers flock to it looking for new books. You might have to pay costs up front for a cover, editing, or even formatting, but Amazon doesn't charge you for that. They don't charge you anything except their royalty cut on sales. And if you're good at that kind of stuff - covers, editing, and formatting, you don't *have* to pay for any of it. You can do it yourself for free. Royalties are pretty good through Amazon, and you have distribution on the largest bookseller out there right now.

BOTTOM LINE: If an agent or publisher is asking you for *any* money up front - I don't care what reason they give or what they label it - RUN AWAY. Legitimate ones do not do that.

 

[Jennifer Stone]

these are the things i need to know, why i came here to litopia, why i started looking for an agent so i don't get screwed, shame none of them ever get back to me but hey ho! someone will want my book one day (ever hopeful)

 

[Alistair Roberts]

Unfortunately Tara is right. I've read those links and seen some horrifying stories. The real point of serious writing is to get the books into the hands of the public, and if a so-called publisher asks you for money, then they ain't real and don't have faith in your book either. We just have to plod along.

As for Amazon, hm, I've had a couple of book sales through them, which should generate about 75 cents, but once got me zilch, something about american taxes? Never got an answer why, but not worth worrying about!