Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

Wow. What assholic behavior on Dorchester’s part. Seriously, there is no better word than asshole to describe them.

I’m so sorry for any former Dorchester author who’s experiencing this—what an incredibly horrible experience.

This is beyond F’ed up.
Dorchester is going down in flames and everyone, most of all the authors are beyond screwed.

Man, I’d say Dorchester is pretty much sailing away on the failboat.

Should I feel guilty about the set of free Dorchester ebooks I downloaded from Kobo a few weeks ago? Did the authors even know about them, I wonder?

With regard to Amazon and Barnes and Noble, if the authors haven’t already tried calling, I recommend it.  Here is the contact information for Amazon’s Copyright Agent:

Copyright Agent
Amazon.com Legal Department
P.O. Box 81226
Seattle, WA 98108
phone: (206) 266-4064
fax: (206) 266-7010

And here’s the phone number for Barnes and Noble’s legal department:
212-633-3300

(I got these from the respective companies’ terms of use.) 

I work for a large company that has occasional copyright issues, and I can tell you that when someone in the Legal Department gets a phone call, especially from an upset but otherwise polite copyright holder, things get done.

Since both authors have their rights back, I hope they will digitize the books themselves, put on better covers and undercut Dorchester’s prices so that customers will buy the AUTHOR’s version and the profit goes directly to them rather than to the publisher.  And they might think about getting together and hiring an intellectual property rights attorney to get professional advice.  If Dorchester no longer has rights, they have to be breaking a law by continuing to profit from those sales, right?

Thanks, miss_chevious! I have tried repeatedly to call and get legal, but only gotten the runaround and voicemail. I will try the numbers you provided!

Thanks for the support, everyone!

Julie - yes, they are definitely breaking the law, but the only way to enforce it is through a civil suit. What is the point of suing a company with no money? They are perfectly aware of the position we’re in, which is why IMHO they are taking full advantage of the situation.

I absolutely intend to make my books available in both Kindle and Nook format as soon as Dorchester takes them down. And yes, I will be offering them at a lower price for readers. I’ve even got the covers designed. :)

Trouble in Mudbug was available for free for a while, too.  I’m pretty sure that one was through Kobo, because it’s sitting on my Pocket right now, waiting to be read.  If the Dorchester authors haven’t already, it would be good to check there, too.

Becky - yes, I did notice Trouble when it was free, and Kobo is on my list of sites that I’ve sent the DMCA notice to. I am glad you got a copy and hope you enjoy it. :)

I agree with Julie—if the rights are reverted, why not sell them to the readers yourself?

Horrible, horrible, horrible! I hate to see this happen to an author, especially Jana, a writer I have grown to respect due to her writing ability and eagerness to help others.

Do. Not. Buy.

I do know from experience that getting books removed from B&N.com is a nightmare and they are non-responsive.  Amazon is usually pretty responsive.

One other method of distribution not mentioned: iPad apps. There was a deluge of Dorchester books added to Apple’s app store as iPad apps back in September. A quick search reveals that Ms. DeLeon’s books are available there, as well.

Either way, it’s still not cool.

Like Jana said, thank you all for your support!  We will definitely be selling our books digitally.  Doing so now would confuse the readers and sellers.  Such a mess!

Sarah, I think you were much to nice to Dorchester. They’re committing piracy. They really need to be called out as pirates.

I hope Dorchester gets sued or taken town flamboyantly for this. This is theft plain and simple and no one should tolerate it!

I take it that Dorchester’s offering the book for free on Kindle even after they lost the rights is their version of revenge (here, have the rights, too bad everyone’s already got a copy so you can’t sell more). And now the books are available for iPad?

Apple’s legal contacts page: http://www.apple.com/legal/contacts.html

No words….

B&N’s Terms of Use give these instructions for filing a DMCA notice:

Notices and counter-notices with respect to this website should be sent to: Teresita Rodriguez, Director-Legal Affairs, Barnesandnoble.com LLC, 76 Ninth Avenue, New York, New York 10011, at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

This is terrible, almost worse than what the authors faced when Triskelion closed. It’s happened before, but only with small publishers.
My practical advice would be to put a statement on the author’s own website, or even open a website specifically for this purpose. Then try to get it ranked high on Google, so it shows up as soon as the book’s title is plugged in.
Take legal advice and then write something fresh. Because this kind of dispute can eat an author’s career. The stress and the time it takes to sort it out can stop fresh stories flowing, and kill a career.
I wrote something completely new and sent it to a new publisher, who thankfully accepted it. I felt so much better when that happened.
Put aside a day a week, or an hour a day, or something of that nature to deal with the hot mess that is Dorchester. Then put it aside and do new stuff. Stuff that will make you happy.

From a few writer groups I belong to I can say that I know of at least one other author who is in this exact same situtation with Dorchester.

The whole situation is just so sad.

how horrible!

And Julie took the words right out of my mouth:

Since both authors have their rights back, I hope they will digitize the books themselves, put on better covers and undercut Dorchester’s prices so that customers will buy the AUTHOR’s version ...

Why wait to sell them yourselves? Considering the dorchestor dealings are public knowledge, why not go ahead? Link on your websites, FBs and whereever else to your digitized editions and start making some money back. At least you’d have somewhere to point all these new readers for more of your books.

Unless there’s a reason I’m missing on why you shouldn’t go ahead?

Thanks, Jessica and Doug. Yes, I have followed all the appropriate steps in submitted the DMCA, along with an attached copy of my reversion contract. Not a single vendor has bothered to acknowledge the documents. I am about to start sending another round and attempt phone calls again, which is not exactly an easy process when you also have a full-time job. (sigh)

Please file a formal complaint with RWA -

Contact Carol Rittter at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

send all the documentation.

Thanks

This is outrageous behavior. I have to wonder if it violates the bankruptcy proceedings as well. Maybe a little research into the cease to operations required in bankruptcy court will shed a little light too. Hope you nail them Jana!

Thanks, Lynne. I totally understand your advice from a professional perspective and took it long ago when the ship first started leaking. My first books with Harlequin Intrigue release next year and Harlequin has been an absolute joy to work for. Any author considering them should definitely pursue it. Professional, timely, wonderful staff to work with. I can’t recommend them enough.

Keri - If they were all offered at the same time, readers wouldn’t know which to order, so you might end up creating more revenue from Dorchester, which the authors are highly unlikely to ever see.

Cyndi - Everyone in a similar situation, that I am aware of, has notified RWA as well as our agent. They are aware of the situation. Thanks!

A pox on their heads.

There’s a special circle in Hell for people like this…

:(

Sheryl - you and I must have shared a similar upbringing. I wholeheartedly agree!

This is outrageous behavior that incorporates both theft and fraud.

If possible, with the company being bankrupt, I would talk with an attorney about going after the distributors and outlets like B&N; and ALSO about going after the individual people in the company versus the company itself and holding them liable.

It’s happened before that that has succeeded, just as managers have been held responsible out of their personal funds for fines if one of their workers leaves the job intoxicated on Friday afternoon and has a DUI accident.

Low class, greedy behavior on the publisher’s part. I understand a company having financial problems, delays and whatnot, but this is well beyond “understandable.” Sad for Dorchester’s authors and the readers, who I’m sure want to support the authors, not just the publisher.

Miriam - I totally agree and have said the same thing. As a former CFO, I understand completely that businesses can experience hardship and sometimes unsecured creditors are the big losers, but that’s just business. However, the continued and willful theft of my property is NOT just business, and that’s what has me so upset. Not to mention that the legal system provides no relief for authors in my position other than to sue for money which the company does not have.

That a publishing house should treat authors in this way, even one that is bankrupt and about to be dismantled, is a blemish on the entire industry. It may also be an example, though, of why more authors are choosing independent publishing, rather than risk losing their fair share to corporate greed. I wish these authors, and all authors affected by Dorchester’s lack of ethics, the best of luck in their fight.

First off this sounds like business as usual for Dorchester.  Typical of their business practices from what I heard, so that sucks for the authors.

What’s most concerning is that the general reading public doesn’t know about this sort of stuff.  I know plenty of avid readers that turn white when I tell them about this side of business.  It’s shocking.

Jana and Leslie,

Would you consider putting a paypal button on your websites?  I can’t be the only one who got a free copy of your books and is now finding out that the publisher didn’t have the rights to them.  It’s not quite the moral victory of making Dorchester pay for their theft, but at least you’d be getting something for your hard work.

Piracy has a new name. We thought the enemy was unknown.

Becky - Please don’t feel bad, and no, I absolutely do not want to take your money. If you enjoy the book, then that’s all the payment I need. Just, maybe, hold up buying the others until I’m actually selling them myself. :)

Thanks so much for your support and concern. I truly love romance readers. It’s the best community to write for.

My heart breaks for every single author who is dealing with this nightmare.

Sadly, I don’t know that there’s much I can do to help except take Sarah’s advice and NOT purchase anything from Dorchester. This I can and will most certainly do.

Authors, please let us know when your non-Dorchester books are available for purchase, because I’ll be there with a fist full of dollars. I support my romance authors. Hang in there!

I don’t think you should wait for Dorchester to stop selling your books. Put them on Amazon/Kindle and add a note to your sales copy that the other versions are being sold in violation of your copyright. That might catch Amazon’s eye - plus at least you’d have a link to give people where they could buy it and you would get the money!

The version linked to on Amazon above is Dorchester’s? Because if so, I’d be happy to write a “review” that praises the book and points out that this publisher no longer has the right to sell it - if that’s ok with you?

Thanks, Melissa. And I will definitely let readers know when the books are available from me.

Isobel - I am perfectly fine with that. :)  Thanks!

Why isn’t anyone issuing a class-action lawsuit?

teshara - It’s fairly well-known in the industry that Dorchester is in huge financial trouble. There’s nothing to sue for.

And it costs a lot of money to sue. 

Becky, I think it’s great you got the book!  I really love having new readers.  And I’d rather you got it free anyway!

After noticing the logo, I had a thought.

When the company’s initials are “DP” I guess it’s pretty much a given that you’re going to get totally fucked.

Jana: Customers will order the book with the lower price!!!

And those of us who are following this travesty will make sure to order the right one AND get the word out for you, as well.  I’ll tweet it.

I see absolutely no reason for you to wait.  Strike now while readers are outraged on your behalf!

Julie - but doesn’t amazon automatically lower the price of all books to equal the lowest price offered? I think that’s what it says in their terms of use. (sigh)  I guess I am going to have to do it anyway.

Thanks for your support and I will let you know when they’re available!

Okay, Dorchester might not have any money: but Amazon, B&N and the like DO.

Have your lawyer write to them.  They are supporting the illegal distribution of your book by not pulling down the listings.  I’m quite certain that big booksellers do not want to be associated in any way with illegal dealings.

Dorchester is not in bankruptcy.  They have reorganized to move to e-books and trade and dropping mass market, so bankruptcy rules do not apply.

That said, I don’t know any Dorch author getting paid.  Many are not getting paid royalties for years, but I know some that haven’t even been paid advances after years. Our contracts give us the right to an accounting, but this isn’t happening either, so not only are authors not getting paid, they are not even aware of how much they are owed.

Wow. I just submitted my manuscript to Dorchester. This is good to know. Thank you!

To be honest, I don’t know about them automatically lowering prices…I mean, a lot of my books are up from secondary sellers at lower prices than the publisher.  Why would this be any different?

Either way, do let me know and let’s get the word out!  This is absurd and I’m very sorry it’s happening to you and others.

Julie - yes, I am checking into hiring a copyright attorney to see what is required to move on amazon and b&n.

Deborah - true, they are not in bankruptcy (yet). But I’m not the one who originally said that, either. For the case of piracy, however, it makes no difference. For the case of royalties, I’ve already given up ever seeing any.

Rima - you might want to pull that submission.

Wow, when Deborah Macgillivray - the author who personally stalked and threatened readers who gave poor reviews to her books - chimes in to say Dorchester’s bad news, that’s gotta mean Dorchester’s fallen on pretty hard times.

Speaking of copyright, did Dorchester actually file a copyright form with the US copyright office? If this case goes to trial, that will/might have an impact on damages. So please do some research on this aspect as well.

I agree with others. Get your cover-art ready, format your books and start selling them yourself unless there’s a legal reason not to. Make every attempt you can to capture the money via self-sales that you can. 70% of the cover price vs. nothing means that even if you capture only 10% you’re still making some significant money well compared to zero.

What’s really distressing me with this is that the agents involved don’t seem to have any power over the situation. Am I mistaken in thinking that a literary agent is supposed to be looking out for our business welfare in these situations? Do they really have no more power than the author?

Wow, these guys have a lot of stupid to do this to their authors. The lack of response from Amazon and B&N says they don’t give a crap either. IMO, it just gives them a bad name that such a serious matter is left to sit, it should be given top priority. Dorchester people need to be arrested for thievery and thrown in a hole!

@AQ: You can search the copyright registry. There are entries for the books in question here.

http://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?DB=local&PAGE=First

I just want to say: Guys, that sucks. I’ve read both Jana DeLeon and Leslie Langtry. Please let me know when your books are available for legitimate purchase, and I’ll be happy to buy them.

Just curious, does anyone know what did the rights holder to Orwell’s 1984 and Animal Farm did to get the illegal copies removed from Amazon?

I won’t buy any book from Dorchester. I don’t know what else to say other than I am behind the authors 100%. I’m not an author myself—a humble reader, me—but I respect authors and what they do enough that I won’t buy pirated books. Good luck, Jana.

@Courtney: While I see the following titles for Jana:

[ 1 ]    DeLeon, Jana   Mischief in Mudbug.    TX0007133984   2009
[ 2 ]    DeLeon, Jana   Rumble on the bayou.    TX0006450683   2006
[ 3 ]    DeLeon, Jana   Trouble in Mudbug.    TX0007041640   2009
[ 4 ]    DeLeon, Jana   Unlucky.    TX0006956699

I don’t see the one Sarah listed in her post. Showdown in Mudbug

I’m a Dorchester author whose rights have not been reverted (not for lack of my agent’s trying). However, let me chime in here and say I NEVER want a reader to feel guilty for reading my work—either as a free download from Borders or Kobo, (Distracting the Duchess was available as a freebie a few weeks ago, but now is back for sale.) or because the reader plunked down her hard earned money for my books. It doesn’t matter to me at this point if I won’t see a penny from that sale. For the sake of my blood pressure and sanity, I’ve let it go.

Of course, I’m also hoping the reader will enjoy my Dorchester titles enough to follow me to Kensington where I’ll be writing as Mia Marlowe (and will eventually see the payment I’m due from those sales!) But that’s another issue.

Everyone has a different take on what’s happened with Dorchester. What I don’t want to do is sever a connection with a reader over it. I wrote those books with love. If a reader accepts them the same way, I’ve been paid. In full.

Yes, I’ve already checked the copyright situation and am fixing that for the last book.

Jeffe - my agent has done everything she can do. She has attorneys who have done everything they can do. The simple matter is that anyone can steal your intellectual property and the only recourse you have is to sue. If they’d stolen my stereo they’d be in jail. What this industry needs is a change to the law.

Thanks to SBTB for getting this story out. I hope more blogs and news sites publish this.

Yikes, this is terrible. I’ll signal boost over on my blog for what it’s worth. My sympathies to the affected authors. :(

Emily - I certainly have NO problem with readers having my books. In fact, if you got them for free, even better! My problem is that book piracy is a very real problem for authors to begin with. The LAST person who should be stealing from us is our publisher. ALL of my anger is directed at Dorchester. I love my readers and hope every one of them enjoys the heck out of my books.

SRC - I totally agree. Thanks so much to Sarah for running this and getting the information out there. Perhaps having this information can save some heartache down the line.

Theft is theft - Is it legal for you to walk in and sell their office furniture? No, kick ‘em hard with every avenue you have available. Maybe their business practices are why they are going bankrupt, what comes around, goes around. They owe these authors money made for selling what is not theirs to sell.

Emily, while I would love to be altruistic, the truth is that each of my four books took at least six months to write and more to edit.  That’s at the very least, two years of full-time work.  I love writing, but I can’t do it for free.  I have to feed my family, pay the bills, etc.

Thanks, AngR and Anna!

I have to agree with Leslie. I don’t care if readers got my books for free in the fray or if I ever see a dime for those that were paid for, but I can’t afford to write for free forever. Unless someone wants to give me the winning lotto numbers. LOL

This is just ... wow. Horrible for the authors, and a lot of my favorite authors were Dorchester authors.

I won’t be buying Dorchester any longer.

What Dorchester is doing is just plain wrong on so many levels. The authors should sue any online retailer that sells their books without permission.

@Leslie Langtry - which is why I’d like to pay you for what I consider the (inadvertant) illegal free download of Guns that I got last month. Please let me know how I can send you at least *something* - I know it’s not much, and only from one reader, but I believe in supporting my authors.

I am flabbergasted by the nerve of some people.

Not Dorchester - hell, publishers behaving like dickwads is so common as to be the norm.

But a certain bullying, lying scumbag turning up in a respectable forum like she has any place to open her nasty mouth. Yes, Deborah MacGillivray, you. What the fuck are you doing here, and why do you expect anyone to listen to you?
http://dearauthor.com/wordpress/tag/deborah-anne-macgillivray/

Maybe you think we’d forget - it has been two years since you threatened and stalked Reba Belle - but we haven’t, and never will. You’re someone who should never show your face *anywhere* in the romance community after what you did.

Go away and contemplate your crimes in solitude and silence.

Other *decent* and *honest* Dorchester authors who’ve been fucked over have my sympathy, and I hope they can stop this utterly illegal misuse of their rights. I have my own publisher problems right now (not with Samhain, I hasten to add) and know how powerless one is unless you have lots of money to throw at lawyers. It sucks.

I have to agree with Julie and Keri.  Don’t wait for Dorchester to take down my books. I’d put them up and undercut them. 

Good luck.  I hope now that this blog is outing Dorchester, they’ll act promptly.

Hey, All –
I was referred here by others, and I wanted to take a moment to address what’s being said, mostly because there’s a lot of misinformation floating about. A lot of that is Dorchester’s own fault, so I’m not pointing fingers when I say that.

Dorchester is currently switching to an all e-book and trade publishing model. Early on there was talk of this being a POD model, which is not true. This is a misnomer, because while POD technology will be involved in the smaller print runs, the actual strategy is to maintain a list very much like our old mass-market list, using IPS to do distribution and sell-ins of our print product. Larger runs will be printed on the usual trade offset presses. All of our titles will be e-books first and eventually trade paperbacks as well. It is our intent to convert our backlist, too.

Many authors were disconcerted by this development—and rightfully angered that royalty statements were not promptly forthcoming beforehand. There had been difficulties with accounting for some time, which is perhaps unsurprising, given the financial concerns that eventually forced the company to look hard and change its model. There came a wave of reversion requests/demands. These inundated the remaining staff, which was significantly reduced during the recent restructuring. That said, that staff is doing its very best to rectify past errors, protect the revenue stream and pay off all back debts. Some recent events have been encouraging. The company is also doing its best to revert those titles which are contractually in default.

From the author’s side, each individual sees her own book as priority number one—as she should. But the logistical reality is that a limited staff cannot relearn the jobs of other people and process requests for years’ worth of backlist in the same time a full staff might. Processes take longer than expected. Oversights occur. And there is the constant scrutiny from the public and the authors. Deserved scrutiny, of course.

Problems have occurred. I don’t deny that. That’s what has happened in the case of Jana. The other books mentioned in this post were sent in a suppression request earlier in the month, a suppression protocol on the 15th of each month that we have developed to get reverted titles off e-tail sites as quickly as possible given our limited manpower, though after we send the requests we have no ability to make the changes happen ourselves. Each individual e-tailer (Amazon, B&N, Kobo—which feeds Borders independently) has their own timetable and process, and all we can do is continually ask them to take titles down.

Jana’s suppressions were overlooked. I take responsibility for that, as I approved the 10/15 suppression list and did not catch that her name wasn’t on it. But as soon as I received notification—ie., saw this, as there was no other contact made—a new suppression request was created. We’re not trying to cheat anyone. We’re trying to sell the books to which we have rights, complete the deals we made in good faith, get revenue and pay people off. Then we can go back to doing what each of us got into this business to do in the first place: create books people want to read.

So, all of the books mentioned here—and for which we have received signed reversion requests that have not made specific other arrangements—have been put through our suppression protocol. It is now in the hands of the e-tailers. If any author or person knows of a title that is unsuppressed despite a reversion, please contact both the e-tailer and myself at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). I and the others here will do our very best to see the situation rectified immediately.

Regarding the free e-book giveaways: those programs were put in place by the marketing department long before the reversion requests came in, and I believed the authors were notified before reversion that they couldn’t be taken down without damaging ongoing relationships. The programs were intended to spark interest in the individual authors, interest that we hoped would spur those authors on to greater fame and ultimately fortune. We had experienced some success with such a program at an earlier date and were looking to repeat that. The programs were intended to do good, though that is perhaps difficult to see through the fog of recent events and the fear that surrounds financial uncertainty—an uncertainty that seems to be everywhere these days. To be fair, I still believe the programs WILL do good for the authors.

I don’t counter your exhortation to the public not to buy our books, Sarah. Every consumer should be aware of the background/situation of the companies from which they buy. I just wanted to clarify what’s going on here: there’s a limited number of people trying to get things done through trying circumstances. Those people make mistakes, but they are doing their best. It is unquestionably your right to steer clear, and to suggest others do the same, but at least do so with illumination from both sides. Recognize that this is not the monolith of big business exploiting and pirating; there is a broader scale of grey involved, and that grey involves people trying to create a good greater than that of any one individual.

Sarah, I know you must see yourself as a champion of the weak or disenfranchised, and I salute you for that. Above all, I am glad that this post caused our error to be fixed. I would, however, have preferred you contact me for our comments. It would have made this more journalistic.

Best,
Chris Keeslar
Senior Editor @ Dorchester

PS - I unfortunately don’t have time to get into a long debate about processes or culpability online, so I won’t be back, I don’t think, but if people really feel they need to be heard on this score they can write to the above email address. I can’t promise a response, but I will read each and every email.

Wow! What is this world coming to? You can believe that I will be checking ALL books I want to purchase to be sure that Dorchester isn’t the publisher. I will pass this info along to all 1,000+ of my FB friends and all of my Twitter friends so they know how unethical Dorchester is!

No, the laws don’t need to be changed because there is already a civil remedy in place. It sucks, definitely, but that would be like saying all bankruptcy laws need to be changed because authors got sucked in to a terrible situation at Triskelion.

If Amazon and BN continue to sell books for which the publishers’ have no legal right to sell, then they are committing copyright infringement and can be sued for that.  Neither company appears in danger of going out of business anytime soon.  They would be subject to the treble damages claim and attorneys’ fees clauses in the copyright code. 

Amazon does have a parity clause as do a lot of other vendors.  If you price your product lower at BN, Amazon will automatically lower the price of your book at AMZN to match.  It’s in the contract.

It is sad to hear that Dorchester has failed to promptly remove the e-book titles of those whose rights have been reverted. The publisher should be able to easily cancel the title from retail databases, although retailers do have a grace period of 30-60 days to remove cancelled titles from viewing, while they retain them indefinitely for people who have already made a purchase. Authors need to carefully review their publishing contracts and to look for the clauses that designate the publisher’s policy for “out of print.” Many authors have been caught short when e-books continue to be sold under a contract’s definition of out of print. However, since Dorchester clearly reverted the rights, we would assume that would mean all rights. Contacting Ingram is an excellent idea. Good luck.

Chris - PS - I unfortunately don’t have time to get into a long debate about processes or culpability online, so I won’t be back, I don’t think, but if people really feel they need to be heard on this score they can write to the above email address. I can’t promise a response, but I will read each and every email

Thanks for the damaged control.

Becky, please do not pay me for my book.  I am thrilled you have it and you have done nothing wrong, whatsoever.

As to Dorchester, my books are still being sold.  And this is the first time in over a month any of us or our agents have heard this line of reasoning.  Or anything for that matter.  It is sad it took public embarrassment to get them to respond to us.

Sarah, you are a goddess!  Thank you for writing this.

Thanks so much, Sarah, for running this story. I, and I’m sure all others here, have NO problems with your journalistic integrity. And considering my agent has contacted them multiple times with no response, I can’t imagine you would have received one either.

She has, of course, been contacted now and assured that all books will come down. I can’t thank you enough for making the community aware of this issue.

It would be cool if the Dorchester authors who get their rights back form some kind of clearing house page with a list of re-issued titles, hint hint! Dorch’s releases have often been to my taste.

As for going ahead and re-issuing titles that the e-tailers haven’t removed yet, seems like a friend of mine who does some direct to Kindle releases says Amazon sometimes will give an author trouble over publishing a book that appears to be “in print” by another author or publisher. I also know that many etailers take their own sweet time removing books from their catalogues despite repeated requests.

Wow. “Jana’s suppressions were overlooked.”

Still, how many dollars more does that mean for Dorchester?

Jana, thanks for letting us know of this. You can bet your bottom writing dollar that I’ll be researching publishing houses *very* carefully when it comes time.

Meghann

Wow, Jana - Dorchester rep had the audacity to come on here and make excuses? Wow. He should pay you for all the sales that happened after you got your rights back, in addition to what he owes you outstanding (if any). Now his excuse is that it’s up to the retailer? Bet they’re still up there for another month… and if so, then you know that he’s full of malarkey.

Disclaimer: Yes, I’m biased. 

FWIW, I still don’t have my rights back on anything, and I’m obviously also pissed at how the whole Dorchester thing has panned out.  However, I can tell you that Chris has tried to do right by his authors (the ones he edited and the ones who were unceremoniously dumped on him when Don and Leah were let go).  But not everything is in his power. 

Throwing Chris and Tim (it’s DeYoung, BTW) to the wolves in public may feel good to some of you.  Really, that’s a shame for everybody.  These are real people with real lives.  They might be on the front lines of this mess, but that doesn’t make them responsible for all company decisions or deserving of having their names torched on the Internet. 

All that said, I wish everybody the best.  May those who want or need new publishers and editors find them soon.

xo Liz Maverick

Chris:

Does this oversight mean that you will be paying these authors for Kindle versions of their books purchased after their rights reverted back to them? I bought three of Ms. DeLeon’s books (Kindle version) at their regular prices in late September. I’d feel better if I knew she would receive royalties on these sales. It’s not the money; it’s the principle.

Liz - since you’re engaged to him, yes you’re biased. And if business had been handled properly, I wouldn’t have been forced to take the steps I did.

Actually, Liz, the first person on this post to give names other than “Dorchester” was Chris himself.  No one attacked either one of them personally before he posted. 

I just thought that was important to note.

I am absolutely appalled by Dorchester’s behavior. I am so sorry that you have to go through this. I can only imagine how frustrated and irate I would be. I’ll help “make as much noise as possible!”

Hmmm, and I thought Dara Joy was batsh*! crazy with all her protests and legal wranglings with Dorchester years ago. Talk about a career that screeched to a halt. Looks like she was more of a bellweather, certainly seems proven right about not receiving proper accounting statements for her sales.

And if other authors have not received royalties for years - where’s the money? It is sounding more and more like the Bernie Madoff of publishing.

Sandra Hill announced that Avon has purchased her entire Viking backlist from Dorchester. She said Avon will be reissuing them with new covers. I don’t know about the digital rights. Her newsletter said she is going to rewrite one where a popular couple got killed and there will be new scenes in others. There are some popular authors who have backlists with DP, Christine Feehan comes to mind. I wonder if Avon would be interested in any other authors from DP.

I got 2 Avon books for my Love Spell bookclub selections this month, same pricing arrangement as before. I wonder who got the royalties.

The response from Chris seems in character with what I know of him. He always seemed to be interested in the authors and readers at RT. However his answer implys Dorchester was never contacted by these authors, and according to this post and comments requests to cease and desist were sent multiple times by a slew of different representatives.  So that’s a LOT of overlooked emails and letters and phone calls. How many people are left to staff Dorchester? Two?  pfft.

In other news, I have a wicked sore throat and am about to go curl up with a cuppa tea and a LIBRARY book. I know for sure somebody got paid for it at some point! lol Happy Reading!

My attitude is not altruistic. It’s a matter of recognizing what I can control and what I can’t and not letting what I can’t rule my life. I can’t change what’s happened and for readers not to buy books to punish Dorchester won’t make me happier about the situation. It’ll only mean I’ve truly lost 8 titles that meant a lot to me if no one ever reads them.

BTW, I’m not biased, not related or engaged to anyone at Dorchester. I was stunned and heartbroken when my editor there was let go, but I do believe Chris Keeslar is in a very difficult situation as the sole remaining editor. Many things are beyond his ability to control. Editors can’t cut a check.

I don’t know who is ultimately to blame for the whole debacle. All of publishing is in a state of flux right now. I don’t think there’s a publishing professional out there who wouldn’t like to turn back the clock to before the Andersen implosion.

Do I wish things were different? Of course. I also hope for better days for everyone involved.

Emily - who said this was ruining my life. This is BUSINESS and I’m handling it in the only way left to me. Apparently, I DO have some level of control as it worked, and you and every other Dorchester author who gets their rights reverted will likely benefit. I’d also like to point out that NOWHERE have I complained about money. That is SO not the issue. It is the principle of the matter. I could care less about money that I will never see. I agreed to write the final book in my series knowing full well I’d never see a single dime in royalties for any of the series. I DO care about my readers, and this entire exercise had nothing to do with money.

As a former CFO, I also know and recognize that if you are a figurehead for an organization, then you are called to answer for all their practices. I can’t even count the number of depositions or court cases I have attended. That is part of the job. I am not blaming any one individual, rather, a corporate policy of ignore then deny. Everyone with a bit of common sense can see that clearly.

And no other publishers that I am aware of are having these problems. I write for Harlequin and they are the height of professional. I LOVE writing for them.

Ultimately - the point was made. Things have been rectified, and God willing, no other authors will have to do this to get what they’re due.

I’m not an attorney but I an a professional writer who has been dealing with a publisher’s willful unwillingness to pay what he owes.
As far as what good it would do to sue—there’s is a very good chance that the actions of Dorchester’s executives amount to fraud, in which case a lawsuit could “pierce the corporate veil” and therefor be personally liable for damages.
Also, if they have any assets those can be seized and sold or distributed. And if Amazon, B&N< et al have been complicit in the copyright theft, they can be included in the suit (deep pockets).
Last, a court judgment could put you higher on the list of creditors in case of a bankruptcy (you’d also have the option of challenging the action in bankruptcy court, which may not require a lawyer.
Not pursuing available legal options is just unilateral surrender.

Dorchester Publication has shocked me with this behavior. A once-respected publisher stands now as nothing more than a common thief. To continue to publish work they no longer have the rights to, stealing the hard work of authors, and to use those funds to try and save a company that is clearly going under is reprehensible. I want to know where the law is that protects authors from this sort of back alley behavior.

No, the laws don’t need to be changed because there is already a civil remedy in place. It sucks, definitely, but that would be like saying all bankruptcy laws need to be changed because authors got sucked in to a terrible situation at Triskelion.

Actually, some of us at Triskelion were trying to do just that. Or rather, the attorneys we hired said that since this was the first time in the modern era that a significant publisher went bankrupt, there was an argument that was worth pursuing.

The bankruptcy clause in any author contract is useless. It’s signed under state law. Bankruptcy is a federal matter, and so the bankruptcy courts can ignore the author contracts, if they wish. And they will wish. Our contracts were frozen by the courts, and they can even backdate the reversions of rights, if they wish. Although when an author has received her rights, resold and had a new book come out, I do wonder about that one.

The bankruptcy people counted the author contracts as assets. Our argument was that without the goodwill of the author, the contracts are worth nothing, and therefore not assets. An author can put a disclaimer on her website, she can refuse to promote the book, she can produce a deal breaker book (Georgette Heyer did that, back in the day). She can fail to send in her edits, or any of the other things required in the contract, thus putting herself in breach.

A publisher can produce a book, can distribute it, but the value of the book is significantly reduced, and can prove a loss maker if the returns are high.

If the author contracts aren’t valued as assets, the bankruptcy courts can’t hold them to ransom.

As it happened, Siren bought all the contracts at auction and immediately reverted the rights to the authors. For which I will be eternally grateful.

But it does mean that particular argument about the value of contracts has never been tested in the courts, and no decision was made.

I’m one of those who downloaded Leslie’s ebook as a Kindle freebie a few weeks ago and now feel vaguely guilty about it.

But I can’t believe…I’m just stunned by the publisher’s post here.  Especially the implication that Sarah is the one who has acted with some impropriety here!?!?  Makes me think of those local news features where someone is scammed silly by a company whose personnel keep ignoring calls and complaints until the local news reporter shows up with a camera and then it’s all “Oh goodness gracious…really?  But of course we’ll make it right!”  Arrgghhh!!!

Authors who have lost out on what’s rightfully yours—I wish you the very best!

I agree with Manny. Dorchester may be broke but Amazon, B&N and Ingram aren’t. Sue EVERYONE and let the chips fall where they may.

Peggy, please do not feel even vaguely guilty!  And I was surprised at Chris’ response to Sarah.  I felt that it was defensive and unnecessary.

Lynne, I felt horrible for Triskelion authors.  I have a friend who was caught up in that mess.  Very honorable of Siren!  It’s actions like that that reminds us that most publishers do the right thing.

Chris from Dorchester is a total douche. Let’s have Dorchester withhold his paycheck for a few months then maybe he’ll have some credibility.

Since the rights have reverted back to the authors, and they have the documentation to back it up, why don’t they go ahead and put them up for sale at less than the publisher’s asking price.  That would solve the e-book problem.  They could also arrange a print POD through CreateSpace.  They could entice readers through BONUS content, maybe an original novella or a couple of short stories.

So if you buy a movie on DVD and burn a back-up copy, the FBI can break down your door, fine you $250K, and send you to prison for 5 years.  But if your publisher continues to sell your books with no right to them, you have to sue them or they get away with it?  WTF is up with that?

I realize that when a company is in bankruptcy there are bound to be things that “fall through the cracks,” but a cease-and-desist order isn’t something that you fail to implement and, when this is pointed out to you, just decide it can wait until the 15th of the next month.  Instead of spending his time composing a response (as a comment on a blog, for crissakes!), I think it would have behooved Chris from Dorchester to spend that time figuring out how to appropriately respond to a cease-and-desist order.

Chris should read the entire Cassie Edwards archive to grasp the power of the on-line Bitchery.

I just want to say a final thank you to Sarah, The Smart Bitch site and all of you who have posted on our behalf. You don’t know how much it means to us to have the support of the reading and writing community.

I also want to make sure that everyone understands this is not personal. I do not and have never had a personal problem with any Dorchester employee. In fact, my experience on the editorial end of things (with editor Leah Hultenschmidt) was fantastic and she was a pleasure to work with. But business is business. It may seem tacky to some for an author to take this line, but it was the only way I thought I’d get a response as all others fell on deaf ears. Essentially, my inventory was being stolen and sold. It’s simply a shame that the law does not provide for a criminal offense for the theft of intellectual property. Then these “oversights” would be so critical, they probably wouldn’t happen.

I’ll leave everyone with two thoughts on the publishing industry that I’ve picked up from those far smarter than me:

A backlist is an author’s retirement plan.

Treat it like a hobby, you’ll make hobby money. Treat it like a business, you’ll make business money.

This is scary because I always figured them to be a reputable and fair publisher.  But after reading this I don’t know…

As somebody who has in the past wandered through the murky territory between blogging and journalism, I don’t have any problems with the way Sarah treated this issue. (I probably would have checked in with Dorchester if I were still at GalleyCat and writing about this situation, and of course I can see where Chris (who is NOT a douche, and really we can do better than that, people) is coming from, but Sarah’s frame—these former Dorchester authors have a major complaint, and their publisher sure seems to not be doing right by them—is perfectly reasonable given the information she had available. (Especially if you’re willing to consider a blog post as an invitation to discussion, rather than a definitive statement.)

Jana,
I’m so sorry this happened to you and the other authors who found themselves in this unimaginable situation. The dream coming true certainly shouldn’t end up like this. I echo everything you’ve said about Harlequin and its highly professional staff. I’ll look forward to checking out your Intrigues as well as your earlier books when they once again belong to you. Good luck to you and all the authors fighting for what belongs to them.
Marie

I have several friends who are having the EXACT same problem. It sucks the white wonger outloud (as my mom likes to say; yes, she’s a wonderfully crude broad *grin*).

Wonder. WONDER. Though “wonger” is certainly lewder, LOL!

Wow, Chris. I’d always had a serious amount of respect for you. No longer. GET YOUR SHIT IN ORDER. PAY the people you owe. STOP SELLING STUFF YOU HAVE NO LEGAL RIGHT SELL!!!

How fucking hard is that? If Amazon can take down a whole publisher in the blink of an eye (and we know they can) NO ONE believes that you can’t get this done as you are LEGALLY obligated to do.

I trust Jana’s integrity completely, and was ready to stop purchasing from Dorchester.  After I read Chris’s post, I was more determined than ever.  There is no excuse for not taking the time to be sure that you are in compliance with the law; the restructuring MIGHT excuse the royalty delays (I said MIGHT), but not the copyright violations. 

Until i hear from Jana, et all, that the issues have been resolved with Amazon and B&N, they won’t get any of my business, either.  I think it’s time to hold them accountable, as well. 

I’ll pass this information on to everyone I can!

This makes me heartsick!  I discovered Jana DeLeon’s books a few months ago and glommed them on my Kindle.  This is a sickening and horrible crime and the victims have limited or no real recourse.  I hope Dorchester suffers what they deserve for this, and I can categorically state that I will be avoiding purchasing ANYTHING with their name on it!  Thank you for posting this.

The acronym DP really caught my eye on this post, I guess because it seems so appropriate. It appears their authors are getting screwed at both ends…

(Oh, and my verification word is head84. Could it get any better?)

There is another option to selling reverted titles directly online—which is certainly a good option.  Reselling terminated and reverted books to other publishers.  I’m doing that for my clients and I would imagine other agents are as well.  There are a number of issues that haven’t been brought up like the differences between older and newer Dorchester contracts or what they are legally allowed to do in each case. Or what fair payment for e-book sales should actually be.  Or what our attorneys have advised us to do.  This isn’t the place to get into all these details.  And none of that allows Dorchester to sell reverted books as has been mentioned or books under contracts that never granted e-rights which has not been mentioned.  And for the record, we have not failed to receive royalties for years, although payments were often late for some time.  This year since May is a different story as Dorchester fell further into difficulties and stopped sending statements.  I am glad all of this is being discussed publicly but attacking Chris personally is hardly helpful or appropriate.

It occurred to me that I might mention that a client was a plaintiff in a class action suit against Leisure in which I participated and some of you authors might remember the clauses in their contracts requiring the release of specified reserves as a result of winning this suit for over a million dollars.  I’ve been involved in other successful class action suits.  If it were a reasonable thing to do in this situation, it would be happening. It isn’t.  If the reorganization succeeds, they might be in a position to pay royalties on the recent sales. Maybe that is a long shot and in the meantime agents do have to protect their clients to the extent possible.

I completely understand that there are difficulties involved with taking down a file spread across the internet—especially when you have little control over the people who need to be doing the taking down, and you have a thousand other things on your plate.

That being said, an appropriate way to deal with this—and one that doesn’t expose a company that is teetering on the edge to massive copyright liability—would have been to grant the reversion of rights, effective a few months in the future, so as to make sure that you weren’t, say, giving away thousands of electronic copies of a file when you didn’t have the rights to do so, and to inform the authors of the reason for the delay when the reversion was granted.

There are enough authors and books reported at stake here that this stupidity, with statutory damages, could cost millions, and the explanation here really doesn’t explain why on earth Dorchester would be that dumb.

I do feel for Chris, who essentially has to parrot the company line at a point when the company line appears to have been drawn in swiftly melting butter. That can’t be easy.

This is disgusting behavior on the part of Dorchester. Pay the authors what belongs to them!

This is a sticky situation and although it seems action is being taken, it turns my stomach to think of something like this happening to ANYONE. As an author and as a person, I know what this feels like. Not this scope or magnitude, but the gut-wrenching, heart-clawing feeling is still the same at the end of the day,

Hang in there authors, please, and don’t get discouraged. Crap like this is painful and lesser individuals would have already crumbled under the harrowing stress. I would hate to think of anyone, much less some of the talented individuals mentioned, giving up on their writing after something like this.

IMO, people who are engaged to people don’t need to be taking sides. Just makes everyone involved on that “side” look like a jackass.

I guarantee you, if this Chris hadn’t been paid for his work and no one was listening to him for weeks and months, he’d be raising as big a stink as this if not bigger. Makes a big difference when it’s YOUR money, doesn’t it?

One damn things for sure, as a reader, I won’t be buying from publishers who can’t even bother to listen to or even friggin’ pay their authors. Not to mention, someone who tries to admonish the writer they haven’t paid for wanting to be friggin’ paid (I wish the blogger had come to me first for a comment - REALLY? I bet the author wishes you had PAID her first before she had to raise a stink. Ever think about that one?).

Seriously, I’m in an entirely different field, but I cannot friggin’ stand when people are screwed out of their money and then the corporate wankers act all offended when someone calls them out on their BS.

Wow, this situation makes me so mad.
Shame on you Dorchester and also amazon and all the other places that still sell the books.
It’s clear that it’s all about money and that they couldn’t care less about the authors. Makes me wonder if I should find another place to buy my books.

Word for the day is Copyright Infringement.  Since Dorchester doesn’t own the rights to these books, every copy is an infringement of copyright, and Amazon is also liable.  (If you remember the retroactive removal of 1984 from Kindles some time ago, that was the result of messed up copyright issues.)

This is a nice and clean case.  Send a formal (registered) letter to Amazon, requesting that they remove these items, with a copy of your reversion statement, and stating that if they do not do so, they are violating copyright, and willfully so.  Watch them scramble to remove the infringing product from their shelves. 

FYI, the liability PER COPY is up to $150,000 if the copyright is registered.  If you have not yet registered your copyright, I highly recommend that you do so ASAP.  It’s cheap and easy via the copyright office:  copyright.gov

I would offer to assist (why yes, I am an intellectual property attorney) but I cannot help with contacting Amazon.  But if you want an informal review of a letter, let me know.

HI :)
I will never buy a Dorchester book again.
And really, aren’t we all smart enough to see the post from Dorchester for what it is?
Double-speak damage control not worth the time it took to read it.
Seriously.
And some people I respect (Ron Hogan) defend it.
Blah.
When the author copies are made available I will BUY them, thus redressing (in a very small part) the injustice done to the authors. I think everyone who commented here in support of author rights should do the same.
All the best,
RKCharron

I’m only a reader and customer, but I sent an email to Amazon about this outrage telling them how they are harming themselves in the writing community.  It’s only one raindrop, but enough can make a flood.  So sorry for the authors who are losing out.

Holy cow!  How did a seemingly logical discussion turn into personal mud slinging?

First of all, I sympathize with all those Dorchester authors who are suffering, but please note that not all of us have been left hanging.  Yes, Avon bought my backlist but when I requested the rights back to three of my novellas they granted them, in record time.  And like Natasha Kern said, not all authors have been unpaid for years.  Did I receive everything I should?  Probably not.  Am I still owed money?  Probably.  But I hate seeing people make blanket statements about all Dorchester authors.

Second, it’s not Tim DeLong, it’s Tim DeYoung.

Third, Chris Keesler is not the villain in this mess.  Just because he is visible should not make him the target.
Chris doesn’t need me to defend him, but he is a good
man caught in an untenable situation, imo.  It is not
Chris who is withholding paychecks.

Fourth, I hate to see any publishing company fold, and Dorchester did a lot of good for a lot of authors over the years.  They built careers.  Gave some superstars a
start when no one else would buy their books.  They
had better distribution for midlist authors than any
other publisher.  And their cover art for the most part
was outstanding.  (even my infamous finger cover)

Fifth, I don’t blame anyone for going public with their personal gripes against Dorchester, and obviously a lot of people are affected.  I do sympathize.  Their biggest sin, imo, is not having a spokesman for the company out there who can honestly speak about what is happening behind the scenes.  My husband is in sales (a stock broker) and he always says the worst thing a person can do is avoid giving people bad news.  Customers much prefer honesty over avoidance.

I’m sure I will be flamed for this, but honestly, folks, mudslinging accomplishes nothing.

Sandra Hill

I agree about Chris. I don’t think he should have commented, but he’s stuck in the middle and most likely will lose his job when Dorchester files for bankruptcy.

And for Chris’s bosses to expect him to talk about the issue is wrong. He’s only an editor, not a lawyer, or talking head.

For the record, I did not mudsling or call names, and I have repeatedly said this is not about money and it’s not personal. I reported the details of contact as it was made and the details of my contract. Period. Those facts alone are enough for people to know that what happened isn’t right.

Since my agent’s repeated attempts for an answer have been met with stone-cold silence, but yet this post got action in a matter of hours, that tells me all I needed to know. Again - this is BUSINESS. I am a company and most companies do not take kindly to theft.

As I said before, perhaps if the copyright laws were more stringent, the penalties would be so harsh that this form of “oversight” would never occur.

And now that everyone will be watching, it’s not likely to happen to other authors, which is the bonus.

I wanted to second everything Sandra Hill said. 

It’s a terrible situation all the way around, but personal attacks won’t make anything better for anyone.

Readers and writers gravitate toward Dorchester books - romance, horror, suspense, and westerns - because they push the boundaries of genre while continuing to exemplify it.  And that evolving voice of genre fiction is brought to the marketplace by an editorial staff with an eye for discovering talent.  Chris Keeslar is not the villain here. 

Writers who have been negatively affected by this situation have the right to speak up, and certainly should be paid for their work. 

I hope everything works out for everyone as soon as possible.

I must applaud the authors who stepped up to speak out about their situation with Dorchester.  It’s obvious not all the authors were having problems.  However, the ones that did needed to come forward, ESPECIALLY, after they and their agents tried contacting the publisher multiple times and never received a response.  No response from the sellers is just as bad.

I also want to say that Jana has rather gracefully defended herself and other authors and been more polite than most would in her same situation.

I hope all the authors affected by Dorchester’s problems come out ahead.  I look forward to seeing your books available in the future in a manner that will ensure you get paid for your hard work.

Good luck, Authors.

And one final thank you to Sarah and the SB site. You ladies are why I still have hope for romance and publishing.

/salute

While waiting for the legal wheels to turn, every author should make digital copies of their own books to which they hold rights and sell them from their own Web sites. If you have rights, it is also legal for you to go ahead and put up your won copies for sale at Amazon, B&N and Smashwords. You will still lose revenue but at least you have a place to send all the new readers. Good luck.

Scott Nicholson

I understand there are limitations to pursuing intellectual property theft, copyright infringement, etc.  However, has anyone called the Attorney General’s office or the ACLU to report Dorchester and the others?  No one likes to fight for the little guy more than the ACLU (although they can go a little overboard) and I can’t think of anyone a business or attorneys handling the affairs of a company in bankruptcy would like to get a call from less than the Attorney General’s office.  No one wants the AG taking a look at their business practices.  Just a few suggestions.

Good luck to all!  Fight the good fight and, if that fails, kick ‘em where it counts - in the pocketbook!

Jana,

I’m 100% sympathetic to your cause. However, I’m really not sure what else you want copyright law to do.

Assuming the requisite mental state can be proven, what you have described here already appears to be a criminal offense under 17 USC s. 506(a)(1)(A), punishable by up to 5 years in prison. Of course, you actually need to report the crime, and see if the feds are willing to go after the person—just like if someone steals my stereo and I fail to report to the police, I can’t complain if they’re never punished. You might also consider reporting the crime to your Congressperson, to see if they can help get the wheels moving there.

You are already eligible for at last half a million dollars in statutory damages, if not substantially more. If you chose to file a civil suit over this, and pursued it, you could probably force Dorchester into bankruptcy.

(Actually, you could probably force Dorchester into bankruptcy even without filing a copyright claim.)

The problem you have is that the government is unlikely to go after Dorchester as a copyright infringer because it will be hard to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the infringement was willful and not inadvertent, and that Dorchester, having no money, cannot be pressured with threats to try to take away more.

I can’t imagine any reasonable penalty you could attach to copyright law that would possibly make your untenable situation any better. Sometimes, someone does something bad and it just sucks.

Courtney - I know it’s not reasonable, but I was thinking arrested and put in jail would work for me. :)

Thanks so much for the information. I completely understand the futility of the situation, unfortunately. Let’s just hope that other authors will not have to endure this not that it’s out in the open.

Also, I should add, since I was writing with a purely lawyer hat on: I do not, in fact, actually endorse or support the notion of putting anyone from Dorchester in prison.

That would be a really, really shitty thing to do.

Just one overnight…..one 12-hour period. Really? In the drunk tank, maybe? :)

No. I don’t want anyone going to prison and I don’t want to force them into bankruptcy. I do hold out some hope that if they can pull off their new business model, authors may see money someday. There are many authors and authors’ families in dire straights right now that could really use the money due to them. I hope they get relief soon.

Just to clarify, RKCharron (and thanks for the respect), I wasn’t defending anything Chris Keeslar said about Dorchester’s business practices in his comment.

I was saying that (a) I could see where he was coming from with respect to wanting to be contacted before this story ran—although I also made it quite clear I didn’t believe there was any actual problem with how Sarah handled the story—and (b) Chris isn’t a douche, and that as much as we care about this serious issue, we can do MUCH better than calling him one.

@Ron - The problem is that Dorchester was contacted by Jana AND her Agent, multiple times.  Her agent even contacted them to warn them about SBSarah’s post.  They did not contact her in return until after the news broke.  Thus, Chris’s comment about not being contacted was false unless he meant himself personally and not Dorchester in general.

A note from Jana’s Agent: http://pubrants.blogspot.com/2010/10/taking-it-public.html

I’m not trying to vilify Dorchester, I can understand that individuals are under a lot of strain because of what is happening to the business.  But denial is not a good thing for PR.  Perhaps Chris simply doesn’t know all the details, which is fine, but he should not have stated they were never contacted if that wasn’t the truth and he didn’t have all the facts.

Sarah - I was just responding to Courtney’s explanation of remedies under the copyright law. Quite frankly, if I were going to pursue that it would be directed at the resellers who refused to pull the books despite DMCA notices.

Getting word out to authors is important. Everyone should go into publishing having all the facts. I’m hoping all this prevents it from happening to other authors who receive their rights back.

Heidi - you are correct. My agent did warn them ahead of time that I would go public if they didn’t act, and they did not respond.

Barnes & Noble has now taken Jana DeLeon’s e-books down.

http://productsearch.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?store=EBOOK&WRD=jana+deleon

@Heidi: I was speaking ONLY to the context in which Chris said that he wished SARAH had asked him/Dorchester for comment before writing and running the piece, which is not the same thing as Jana’s agent telling (threatening?) Dorchester there was going to be a post about all this.

That said, I repeat, in case I was unclear: I don’t have any issue with the way Sarah chose to write about the frustration that these authors feel at the way Dorchester has been treating them, and detailing the causes for that frustration.

For the record, though, THIS is just sad:

“Regarding the free e-book giveaways: those programs were put in place by the marketing department long before the reversion requests came in, and I believed the authors were notified before reversion that they couldn’t be taken down without damaging ongoing relationships.”

How hard can it possibly be to go to Amazon and say, “Hey, those books we were planning to give away? We don’t actually have the rights to them any more. How about we pick some new ones?”

So what I’m getting from his impassioned plea about the greater good is that Chris Keeslar thinks he’s Batman.

Ron - not only is it sad, but it’s not true, either. One of my books was scheduled for that marketing game, and I pitched a fit as rights were scheduled to revert prior to it happening. My agent notified them to remove our books from that offer. Mine made it out, but Leslie’s did not. So yes, it is a lie. Leslie’s book could have been pulled as mine was.

@Ron - Sarah already explained why she didn’t and in my opinion (because that all ANY of this is, opinions), she didn’t need to because Dorchester already made it clear they weren’t going to respond.  As she said, she’s not a reporter, she’s a blogger.

Your insinuation of a threat is pretty telling on how you feel about the situation.  However Jana’s Agent went about it, Dorchester should have responded LONG before this came about.  They ignored communications repeatedly.  That the Agent even bothered to inform them of the article was honestly a courtesy on her part and they STILL didn’t respond until the article went public and it looked like they’d be losing sales because of the post.

I do agree about the e-book giveaway nonsense.  The whole situation is sad and frustrating for all sides I’m sure.

As it is, however, civility should be maintained regardless of who said what, it should continue to be a civil discourse.  Nothing is gained by degrading anyone.

Back to a tangent way upthread, just to clear up a common misunderstanding regarding Amazon DTP:

If Amazon’s web crawlers find a lower list price anywhere else (and they will find it if there is one), they will discount to match. If you’ve selected the old 35% royalty option, even if Amazon discounts to ZERO, you still receive 35% of the sales price you set. Only with the conditions of the 70% royalty option can discounts screw you.

Amazon also has real-time sales reports and pays like clockwork.

Thanks, Kerry. That was my understanding of the policy.

Terrible situation and totally disrespectful of authors. Jana is a great person always willing to help others, and I hate to see her (and Dorchester’s other writers) hurt in this way. Hopefully the negative buzz will force Dorchester to do the right thing.

FWIW, I sent an email to Amazon letting them know that word is getting out about this to readers/customers/authors.  They responded with info for authors/publishers on the process to resport violations.  I tried to send a copy to their copyright dept, but it bounced. Then I clicked on the NO button when the form asked if the response was helpful.  I received a phone call from a real person who promised to forward the info.  Yeah, well, the book is still up there.  Maybe if Amazon gets enough complaints, they will do something about it.  I guess dead white guys (George Orwell/1984) have more clout than living authors.

It’s not about dead white guys v. live authors, it’s about receiving a formal DMCA takedown notice/copyright violation notice from the copyright holder.  The authors have to initiate this process, and hopefully they have/will.

Thalia - I did. Twice already.

Sarah, thanks for the blog post.

I hope that those whose books are still being sold without seeing a penny for their work will get satisfaction sooner than later.

Jana:  I sent you a contact ping via your website.

I would say ‘a pox on Dorchester,’ but that would apparently be a redundancy, as they have already brought one on themselves. I will, however, say ‘Brava!’ to Jana and Leslie for taking a stand—and hopefully, wiping the floor with Dorchester.

@Heidi: If you had been reading the words that I actually wrote, and have now explained on multiple occasions, you would have seen that I have no problem with the way Sarah wrote her post, so telling me that it’s wrong of me to have a problem, and then explaining to me why it isn’t a problem, is really just a waste of your time as well as mine.

“Your insinuation of a threat is pretty telling on how you feel about the situation.”

Actually, you’re completely wrong about that, too. A threat is a perfectly useful negotiation tool, especially when dealing with a recalcitrant party. It can demonstrate your seriousness… but only if you follow through on it. And kudos to Jana and Kristin for standing their ground. (And, too, thanks for that additional info on the handling of the promotional giveaways.)

Which, I suppose, in the immortal words of Kevin Costner, makes it not a threat, but a promise.

The whole thing is entirely deplorable, but I saw something today that might give Leslie Langtry a direction to go in.

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20101021/10481211524/comic-book-pirated-on-4chan-author-joins-discussion-watches-sales-soar.shtml

Here’s an author in a similar situation that turned it to his own profit. Leslie might consider offering her books on her own - I bet even if she charges a couple of dollars, a lot of people will buy that instead of the free version, if they know what’s going on.

I’ve been mostly silent since the link to this blog post landed in my inbox.  I’ve been reading the comment string with interest, sometimes nodding in agreement, and sometimes shaking my head.

I am a Dorchester author.  I am among those who have been questioning things for quite some time.  I am among those who are owed royalty statements and answers regarding compensation and contracts.  Chris has been my editor from the beginning of my relationship with Dorchester, and I feel compelled to say that he is certainly not a “douche” as someone so eloquently described. 

I have not decided whether my relationship with Dorchester will continue, but I am willing to give them a chance to come up to scratch with the new business model.  Separate from that entirely is my professional relationship with Chris Keeslar, who has never been anything other than responsive and supportive.  The fact that he took the time to respond here underscores that.

I wish the best for everyone involved.

deneane elise

I hate to say this, but being a published author means BUSINESS.  Not touchy feeling type stuff, meaning you shouldn’t feel bad going straight to the source—such as Chris, his boss, etc.  I don’t feel sorry for them.  They know what’s going on within the Dorchester closet.  This is when you ask them, “Where’s the integrity?”   

These authors deserve their pay, not bullshit.

Bravo to the ladies, bringing this to light.

Oh my Oz, that’s awful. I rarely pay much attention go the publisher but I might start now.

More power to you, dear authors!

Looks like just one of Jana Deleon’s books (Unlucky) is still for sale in the Kindle store.

I have emailed Chris and Amazon with regards to the Kindle edition of LOVE IN A BOTTLE.  Hopefully, this will all be settled soon.  Thanks for bringing this to everyone’s attention!

What a mess! I am so sorry for the authors caught up in this.

I don’t think I have enough adjectives to describe how upset things like this make me. I am glad that this blog post got you some sort of response, and I hope that there will be tangible actions taken to rectify the situation.

I also agree that name-calling has no place in an intelligent debate. The arguments stand well enough on their own.

I would like to say that the Bitchery has some of the most intelligent and well written comments on the internet.

I am among those who are owed royalty statements and answers regarding compensation and contracts.

I have not decided whether my relationship with Dorchester will continue, but I am willing to give them a chance to come up to scratch with the new business model.

How many times do you have to be shafted before you decide enough’s enough? They’re not paying you properly *now*. They’re screwing over other authors *now*. ‘Jam tomorrow’ is fine if they’ve giving you bread today, but they’re not.

It’s incredibly frustrating to watch apparently intelligent people act so blindly against their own best interests. If you can sell to Dorchester, you can sell elsewhere - so get out now.

MeowMix, you said everything I was thinking.

What’s happening here is whoever owns Dorchester, along with the execs, are PAYING THEMSELVES FIRST and screwing everyone else.

If you work there and take a salary you are being paid with other people’s money.

If I were you Chris, I’d shut my mouth, take a huge pay cut, and look for a job with morals.

I’m sorry, but “limited staff” is not an excuse for this publisher’s behavior to its authors. 

As if authors who request their rights back after Dorchester changes their model mid-stream with no forewarning is the REASON for all the other issues Dorchester has.

That is unacceptable and unethical behavior for any business.

Wowzers. I guess I’m glad Dorchester dumped me when they did. I’m really sorry for everyone embroiled in this fiasco—although I think it’s dipped from fiasco into legal muck. I love Chris like a son, but I must tell you guys that being ignored by him is nothing new. When he was my editor, he routinely ignored my e-mails, even when I was desperately attempting to tell him that one of my books had been given the EXACT same cover as another of my books (if you look it up on Amazon or B&N, you’ll still see the incorrect cover art). He said he hadn’t responded because he knew I was “cranky” sometimes. And I still like him. Go figure. As for Dorchester, they’ve been screwing their authors from time immemorial. This is a dirtier trick than their usual, but it’s not all that UNusual. Too bad we authors are generally so desperate to get published, we’ll put up with crap in order to do it.

Wow. I’m astounded at this—and not in a good way. It’s one thing if Dorchester is withholding payments from authors due to their financial situation, it’s quite another if they’re flagrantly pulling off these stunts.

Very good article.

This may have already occured to all you former DP authors, but why don’t you join toghether, write revised editions of your best books that you have rights to and publish them yourselves on a joint “we were burned by DP” website that explains all of the above as part of the site.  By offering additional content your readers for get value for the re-purchases.  You could link your personal websites to each other and the “DP burned” site creating business for each other.  I would bet that your readers will follow you and would rather buy from you directly than a retailer.  Just a loyal reader’s thought…

Well, thank God I got the rights to all my Emma Craig books back a few years ago, and I’ve already put them all up on Kindle and Smashwords. At least if somebody buys them there, I’ll get paid! I know lots of current Dorchester authors who are going through hell getting their rights back. Not fair and, unfortunately, not unusual. Once I had to threaten legal action when Dorchester kept publishing e-books of my Emma Craig books after my rights were returned. They finally capitulated & gave it up, but it was no darned fun, especially if, like me, you’re not normally an assertive type.

I think the idea of a group web page is a great idea. Know I would love to buy direct from the author. I would also help promote the site as well.

This is going to sound like a stupid idea, but I would definitely suggest you try to change it through your author central page management tools on Amazon.

I know you are not supposed to be able to change core catalog stuff there, but you actually can. I have done it.

There was an oversight with the way my books were titled on Amazon, and my publisher was having a hard time getting through the bureacracy to change it, or I don’t know what, it was apparently this huge complex thing to change something to central on Amazon as a title once it was up, so for the heck of it, I tried that using my author central tools, and my request had to be vetted by whoever, but then it was corrected in 2 days. I think that department is smaller and more responsive. I was shocked it worked. So was my agent.

Good luck you guys. My heart goes out to yo.

Here is my supposition as to why the Amazon books & other retailers haven’t taken down the books.  Theretailers have a contract with the publisher.  Violating that contract has potential legal problems.  Confronted with a DMCA takedown notice that is contrary to that contract likely necessitates the etailers contacting the parties that to the contract to get a response.  Clearly Dorchester is not super responsive to inquiries and thus the delay.

Good idea, Carolyn. The book came out in 2001, but what the heck. It would be nice to have the correct cover art on Amazon :)

Those of us at Red Rose who have been dealing with that fiasco have created a second Yahoo loop called Bogus Publishers Beware.  If any of you at Dorchester would like to join us for support and information on how to proceed, we’re here for you. Our link is: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BogusPublishersBeware/?yguid=145986201 .

Mighty hot in here. And I understand completely. Look, if you all want to go and burn down the accounting offices of Dorchester, I’m with ya. I do angry mob just fine.  And I’ll sit in a jail cell with you gals any day. Solidarity, sistas. But SPARE THE EDITOR AND HIS LOVED ONES, please. This thread has already generated results. So, while I’m painting my face with combat camo and strapping on my special ops heels, I’d just like to remind you that our war, as Jana pointed out, is not about any one individual. Anyone manned a sinking ship lately? Deadlines get missed, I assure you. Not because you’re a ‘douche’, but because you’re the only one with the friggin’ bucket. Let’s all remember, for one misty moment, the human being Chris Keeslar, who has been with us for years and years, starting the careers of so many and bringing the books we’ve loved to the market. If we can’t show just a little compassion for the guys clinging to the deck right now (along with some very insistent, no-backing-down nudging on what still needs to be done for Jana and others—-thank you, Sarah) then I think we risk becoming something we’re not, like stupid, maybe. It’s just my opinion. Torch it, and me, and my house, and my dog, if you like. I’ll still borrow bail money from my parents to spring you, when the time comes.

FYI - to Thalia and any others that contacted me through my website, if I did not respond to you, then I did not receive your message. My mail kinda filled up before I could get it cleared. I promise I am not ignoring anyone, so please email me again if you have not yet received a response.

Thanks to all who sent personal commiserations and support!

Bogus Publishers Beware is there for authors, editors and cover artists who are having problems getting rights or royalties from publishers who are less than honest.

We’re not going after publishers who are honestly having difficulties and come forward and saying, “Hey guys, we’re having problems, we have to close and we may not be able to pay you all the money you have coming.  We’re really sorry and we’ll pay you what we can. Here are your rights back, best of luck.”  My first publisher did that and since she did the cover work herself she gave us permission to use that and I will always be grateful to Inara Press and Dawn Seewer.

But I was an editor at Mardi Gras and both an editor and author at Red Rose and it’s the Wendi Felters and Dorchesters of the world we’re going after.  If you’re holding the bucket and trying to do right by your authors, fine.  But if you’re selling books after authors have pulled them and they’re not getting their royalties, they can come to us.  We’re fighting the good fight at Red Rose and we’ll be happy to help you fight the good fight whereever you happen to be. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BogusPublishersBeware/members?o=6&yguid=145986201

Honestly, it’s hard to judge not knowing both sides of the story.

The Mystery Writers of America has de-listed Dorchester. The MWA statement is below.

The National Board of Mystery Writers of America voted unanimously on October 6, 2010 to remove Dorchester Publishing from our list of Approved Publishers, effective immediately, primarily because the company no longer meets two of our key criteria.

First, the initial print run by the publisher for a book-length work of fiction or nonfiction must be at least 500 copies and must be widely available in brick-and-mortar stores (not “special order” titles). In other words, print-on-demand publishers and Internet-only publishers do not qualify.

Second, the publisher must not wrongfully withhold or delay royalty payments to authors. We have been hearing an unusually high number of reports from our members of unpaid advances and withheld royalties on their Dorchester books.

Dorchester titles will no longer be eligible for Edgar® Award consideration nor will its authors be eligible for Active Status membership for any books published after October 6, 2010. The board made it clear to Dorchester that it is welcome to re-apply once these problems have been cleared up.

Question:

If Amazon (or any retailer) has an author’s book up in digital format & has been told that the entity who offered said digital book does not have the rights to issue that book,

Does the author & ‘rights holder’ of that book have the right to sue Amazon (or any retailer) for the royalties for the digital book, even if the book was offered for free?

In other words, Can an author claim royalties from a retailer for books sold/given when they didn’t give permission for the book to be released in that manner?

Sue, those of us at Bogus Publishers Beware aren’t lawyers, but we’ve found that third-party retailers are often somewhat slow in putting our books up and slightly slow in pulling them down.  You can, I suppose file for your royalties in small claims court, but since they would have sent your royalties to your publisher, they are the ones against whom you would need to file a lawsuit, or whatever other legal action you may deem appropriate.  Also, if your publisher is filing for bankruptcy, your copyrights will probably be tied up as company assets for at least six months until the bankruptcy is discharged.  I wish you folks luck.