Saturday, October 17, 2015

Ellora's Cave: My Statement and a Warning @KarynGerrard #Publishers #Royalties #RWA


I have one book with Ellora's Cave released December 2014 KNIGHT OF CHRISTMAS. (contracted way back in July 2013) Thankfully I listened to my gut alarm in early spring 2014 and turned down a second contract.

I am not being paid. This is a fact. Not opinion. Not bullying.

My last royalty cheque was May for website sales for January 2015. I have yet to see any third party sales for this book (Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc) All I have been paid for is Dec 2014 and Jan 2015 website sales. Nothing else. This is a fact.

Emails have gone unanswered. No response. At all. From anyone at Ellora's Cave. A fact.

In August 2014, all the contract editors and cover artists were let go. In September 2014, Ellora's Cave sued blogger Dear Author for defamation regarding a story they posted concerning EC. This is a fact.

The bottom line is regardless of what I think of the people involved and the lawsuit itself, people (mostly authors) are not being paid. And according to a footnote on a recent filing by the defence, the lawyer for the plaintiff (EC) has not exactly been paid in a timely manner. See snip from Twitter below.




The RWA (Romance Writers of America) do not recommend this publisher. CHECK HERE FOR RWA AFFIDAVIT  in the on-going court case. In the statement it says: "Ellora's Cave is not up to date with paying its royalties and has not paid its authors in a timely manner." This is not speculation, it is not opinion, it certainly isn't bullying, cyber or otherwise. IT. IS. FACT. And it is a legal statement.

There are red flags all over social media. For anyone considering submitting to EC, its ultimately your choice. But be warned. It also should be a warning to all of us. The digital publishing industry is in a state of flux with declining sales and other earth-shifting changes. Any publisher could be ready to fall off the cliff. Monitor social media closely. Listen to what others are saying. This paragraph is just my opinion.

Cheers,

UPDATE NOV 5th: * I got a check 3 days ago. It covered Jan-March, including third party sales. They are still behind. I should have rec'd up to and including July's*

6 comments:

  1. Many years ago it was "the rule" that authors were not supposed to mention problems with their publisher (true problems) for fear that no other publisher would take them on. That "rule" let so many authors without royalties when their publisher failed or went into bankruptcy.
    Authors have too many options today to put their finances on the line. We need to let fellow authors know when there are major issues with payment, when a publisher does not respond to our questions, when the company seems to be in financial trouble.
    Writers need small presses but small presses need writers more in the age of self-publishing. Too many small/ePublishers do not seem to be managed correctly.
    Karyn hit the nail on the head when she said to keep a check on social media.
    I personally think that RWA took too long to warn its members about EC.
    If our professional organizations take their time in protecting us, then we must protect each other.
    This is not bullying. This is my opinion based on facts
    Too many EC authors are having financial problems. It's time for all authors to wake up and let each other know when there are major issues like this.
    Do not be afraid of the truth.
    Mitzi Reinbold w/a Mitzi Flyte

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  2. I've been through this with Silver Publishing, and I cannot believe the same things are happening again with Ellora's Cave. So many similarities it's eerie. I put this out there as fact. I'll keep my opinions about this mess to myself. But too many months have slid by and there have been no responses to emails. Enough is enough. Thanks for commenting!

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  3. I had once thought to sub something to EC, but then the whispers started about non-payment. I figured when things blew up, everything would straighten out. But to find out that even during their lawsuit they still aren't paying people is more than enough to keep me away from their submissions page.

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    Replies
    1. When I heard whispers, that's when I turned down the second contract. Its never a good idea to submit to any publisher behind on payments, you made a good decision. Thanks for commenting!

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  4. I have trouble believing they're still accepting submissions. This may be just my opinion, but I gotta wonder what kind of pyramid scheme they've been running.

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    1. Not only are they accepting romance submissions but here is what is posted at their site:
      ~~~~~
      In addition to our trademark erotic romance and erotica for women and men, we also now accept the following:

      Nonfiction
      Comedy
      Thriller/Horror
      New Adult
      Sci-fi/Alternate Reality
      ~~~~~
      *Wow.*

      thanks for commenting Liv!

      Delete

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