Boundless Publishing Group is an independent book publishing company based in London. We are the home of unexpected stories, a place where bold ideas and brave voices thrive. Our imprints include Unbound, Neem Tree Press and Boundless Magazine.
unbound.com
I am thinking that this guys problem could be solved if he had published it as an audiobook and sold it from his youtube channel. I actually would probably listen to this guy as a narrator. He knows enough about not popping his p's and somehow his voice goes with nerd books.
That’s a good point. Actually, two good points, viz:
1) At the time (and today, but less so) authors really wanted the kudos of being “properly” published, i.e. not vanity. Although I know very little about Unbound, they did have a generally positive reputation in the trad (and very conservative) publishing business, i.e. they were seen as “one of us”, not some weird, wild upstart with barmy ideas. I suspect that reputation enabled them to attract some “name” authors who otherwise wouldn’t have gone the self-pub route. Lesson to be learned: your publishing relationship is strictly business (believe me, that’s how the publisher sees it). Don’t go the trad route simply because you want your ego massaged / self-confidence bolstered.
2) “Why should this idea be a book?” is a question we should asks ourselves more often. Sometimes, the honest answer is that it shouldn’t, it might be better suited to another medium.
So the publishers used AI for editing.
Again, I didn’t know that. Bastards!
I remember wondering why someone so successful in other fields, and who has had earlier books published by Virgin Books and Michael Joseph, needed to use this crowd-funded model.
Yes, we discussed this in Huddle a bit. Sometimes celebs have wacky ideas that simply aren’t commercial. But more likely, it reflects a persistent shortcoming in publishers’ imaginations.
“You’re Vic Reeves, aren’t you? So do us a joke book!” sort of thing.
They were a big concern with many successful authors on their lists. Watching the video above makes me so angry that they could treat writers that way and there is seemingly no redress.
Writers are simply trade creditors, and they get paid last, if at all.
Watch for this in your contract – if the publisher goes under, you
must be able to get your rights back asap.
Okay, so the author crowded funded the costs of publishing, then Unbound published the books, helped with picking a cover according to the video, but also according to the vid, didn't put in much effort.
Yeah, shocking, actually.
So, I know this was trendy and the future and as the vid-guy said, "Brilliant, with the crowd-funding, no book could ever lose money" but how, exactly is this model different from vanity publishing?
Main difference is that some books would actually be sold (presold) commercially. Vast majority of vanity books never sell any copies at all.
Unbound sound really bad in the areas that trad publishing is usually quite good at, i.e. editorial, cover design, etc. Big red light there.
I admit, very little danger of loss to the publisher.
If publication is conditional on 100% prefunding, there is ZERO risk to the publisher! No bloody risk at all! Which makes it even more bizarre that they went spectacularly bust. Smells v bad, as does the apparent prepack administration…
But I do wonder how the suckers who were fleeced in this arrangement will feel about supporting the next author with a similar plea.
Bad news for all authors thinking of crowdfunding.
All I can say is, this does happen to other crowdfunding projects too, not related to books. It’s a risk funders take.
Finding faceless others to foot the bill, instead of facing personal or coroporate debt, is only genius in the sense of running a good scam. I admit, a very good scam, for a while. but like all houses of cards, eventually a breeze comes.
The basic business model (get projects 100% funded before publication) is almost riskless, see above. It ought to have been a stable, if a bit dull, business. Something doesn’t smell right.
PT Barnum underestimated the frequency at which suckers, and those who would prey upon them, were born.
Yes. The thing about vanity publishing is that it ruthlessly exploits the hopes of naive (and often not so naive) authors. This is still very much happening today, e.g. the glut of “writing courses” out there with high sticker prices and invisible results.
People always want the quick (if expensive) solution to a problem that actually cannot be resolved quickly. That’s the historic pitch of so many scammers.
Future versions will almost certainly have the authors putting up their homes, cars, savings as collaterial, just in case, you know.
You may jest, but I can totally see this happening. Yes,
totally.
The woman who is currently heading up the surviving entity says it doesn't, and that was the problem.
Ha! Well, there you have it. I’m guessing now, but possibly there simply weren’t enough authors who could get their friends/family to pony up 20k a pop?
