Things that make you go....
Now, on to some thoughts...
I can't really go into a whole lotta details about this situation to protect the other parties involved, but this has been really bothering me, and I'm curious.
Let's say you write a book. You're proud of this book. You sell the book, your second or third in this particular genre.
Then, things don't go as quickly as you'd like them to in the editing process, though they still move quicker than many other books. And you go online and hang out in some chat rooms and you hear some people gripe about your publisher.
And your editor suggests that you make some drastic changes in your book. And to meet printer deadlines, you have very little time to make them.
What do you do?
Do you:
A)Write an angry letter to the publishers telling them how crappy their company is and how they suck and you deserve more time because they fucked you over?
B)Refuse to make any changes to the book and stop answering any emails from anyone involved with the publisher?
C)Decide you don't want to write in that genre any more and close down your blog and your website and erase all evidence that this pseudonym existed?
D)Stop making any efforts to publicize your book?
E) Completely disassociate yourself with the book and your pseudonym and move into a whole new genre under a new name?
F) All of the above.
Because I recently heard of the situation where the author picked F. And I just don't get it... issues with the publisher or not (and whether they're true or just online rumours), would you be able to write a book and then pretend you have nothing to do with it?
No matter what, I don't think I could.
Could you?
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6 Comments:
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It all depends on the publisher, frankly. If it happened to be Publish America, I think I'd take F, too. If there's no way out of the contract, I'd want to distance myself from them, even if it meant never acknowledging my book.
By
If it was Random House...no. I'd be groveling at their inky little feet, knowing in the back of my head that they know a heck of a lot more than I do.
Thumper, at 11:06 p.m.
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Heh, ok, I agree with you there, but no, the publisher in question, while not quite as big and exciting as Random House, is still reputable and not on any "preditor" list. Definitely no scams here.
By Pink Pen, at 11:11 p.m.
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i have no clue.. honestly i come here to get more 'pink satisfaction'!!! i just love the looks of your blog!
By Jennifer, at 1:52 a.m.
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I think it all depends on what the changes are.
By
This reminds me of the movie "The Big Picture" starring Kevin Bacon. He was a writer trying desperately to get his first movie made. A studio took him on, changing things slowly but, ultimately wanting to change too much for it to be called Kevin's movie.
What I'm really trying to say is, yeah, it would piss me off too. Janet, at 4:16 p.m.
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Killired... I'm glad you love the look *grin*
By
Emma... totally! That's exactly where I'm coming from. X refused to buy out the contract and yes, X pretty much screwed itself in the industry. The publisher sure as heck won't work with X again, and I can't imagine that anyone who ever talks to this publisher would want to after hearing this story. And it totally sucks for X's fans.
Janet, the changes in question, while drastic, merely rearranged the sequence of events to make the climax stronger. It was still very much X's story. But I do agree that changing a story so much so that it becomes a different story is cause of being pissed off. But I'd say that happens more in the film industry than in fiction. Pink Pen, at 5:53 p.m.
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Maybe cutting losses is best? A tough spot as a writer but it looks like standing on integrity and thumbing nose at it both. There's got to be a more effective route.
By
, at 10:10 a.m.
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