What do they say about hindsight?

You know, they say hindsight is twenty-twenty, and that is true, but if I'm honest with myself, I'd admit that something felt "off" in the beginning of my publishing experience. I had received a letter from the publishing house telling me that they'd like to publish my book, strongly encouraged me to buy a book from their website so I'd know the type of cover (quality, I supposed) and to generate a list of family and friends for marketing. At no time did I work with an editor. This seemed strange to me, but I had no one to ask.

Instead of involving my newly acquired agent, I explained to him that this publisher had contacted me about publishing my manuscript. He congratulated me, wished me luck, and said I owed him nothing. I never heard from him again. I really do see this as my biggest mistake. I should never have let him go, even though he may not have been the best agent on the planet. After all, he never tried to help me or explain that I would still need representation and someone to look out for my best interests in the process. I truly believed that I would work with an editor and be sure my manuscript was in the best possible shape and that the hard part was over. My book would be in print!

Not long after my agent dropped me, I received a complicated contract from the publisher. Of course it was difficult to decipher and I took it to my personal lawyer. Living in rural PA meant my lawyer had no experience with publishing contracts, which he clearly explained to me. I wasn't a member of SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) at the time or I most likely could have found assistance there. This publisher was a POD (print on demand) publisher and there was no fee for me to publish my books. Being POD meant they could save costs by not having large stacks of unpurchased books sitting in a warehouse somewhere. It sounded fine to me because it cost me nothing (except my self-esteem perhaps?) and they would pay royalties - no advance. My attorney said it looked okay to him, no red flags, and I left his office feeling confident. I signed the contract.

As well as I can remember, the publisher instructed me to get a copyright for my book, make sure my manuscript was in the best condition I could make it, and to send it to them. In the meantime, I prepared the list of family and friends sent that as well. I received a galley proof at some point, got a peek at the cover, and waited. I began writing a sequel. It didn't take long for the publisher to send more puzzling requests. Despite insisting that they would send my book to big retail stores like Barnes & Nobles, they sent me emails with sales pitches to buy my own book from them. They insisted that I needed to be the biggest marketer for my book. Therefore, I needed to purchase multiple copies to sell to people I knew. The more copies of my own book that I purchased, the bigger the discount. They spun it well and convinced me that I would have large lines at book signings and could sell hundreds of copies at each event. The bottom line -- the publisher did nothing to market my book except to send a letter to the people on the list that I had generated.

I definitely remember how excited I was when the box of books arrived. I may have ordered fifty or a hundred, but I wasn't prepared for the price they had listed on the back of the cover. A young adult paperback of approximately 200 pages should sell for $10, especially in the year 2000. Instead, it was listed for $20 on the cover. This didn't make sense to me and I began to realize that it would be difficult to sell this book to anyone other than acquaintances.

I did sell a few copies, though, and tried signings at local stores. But I never came close to selling a dozen copies, let alone hundreds, at one of these events. I tried making bookmarks and personal cards with the cover on them as a way to market. I did talks at schools about the writing process and the rewards of writing. All the while, the publisher sent me emails encouraging me to buy more copies of my book at a discounted rate. I grew frustrated.

One day I decided to go to a large chain bookstore in the mall and talk to the manager about selling copies of my book. After a quick search of the ISBN, she explained that it would be difficult for them to get copies of my book, mainly because they were a POD publisher. My only course of action was to buy the books myself and give them to the bookstore. They would get their cut for providing the sales space. Had the publisher lied to me?

I was disappointed, but not completely discouraged. I suppose I saw my dreams of being a successful writer slipping away, but I wasn't ready to give up, and I definitely wasn't allowing myself to believe I had been succored. To do that would mean admitting failure.

Looking back now, I think I merely assumed that my ignorance was the problem, that perhaps this was the way the publishing world worked, and what I thought I knew was just the stuff of TV dramas. Now, twenty years later, I see the truth of it: there may have been warning signs, but this was a predatory publisher.

To be continued...