Let's talk about indie publishers...

When a really good thing goes wrong

I think we need to start this off on the right foot, so here’s something I’ve been saying for two decades: indie publishers are awesome. No, wait, let me say more! Of my five published books, four were with indie presses. Every anthology I have edited has been published by an indie press. I have been part of countless indie press anthologies, have blurbed more indie books than I can remember, and I’m still doing that as well as writing intros for novels from indie presses. I have bought, read, and reviewed indie press books for almost two decades. Why? Because indie publishers are amazing, necessary, and tend to publish some of the best stuff out there and take risks no one else will with new authors or with work that no one else knows what to do with. Yeah, I love indie publishers and have worked with them from day one and will continue to do so. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk about indie publishing’s problems.

No, this isn’t a piece on how working with indie publishers often means no advance, no marketing, and very limited distribution. Thankfully, those things have been slowly improving since my first book came out in 2012. Here, I want to talk about the many times in which indie publishers fail writers and readers, ghost those they’re supposed to support, and don’t respect contracts.

A few weeks ago, I started thinking about this piece and said so on social media, adding that my DMs were open to anyone who wanted to share their horror story. For four days, my DMs were swamped with folks telling me their indie presses messed around with their writing without their approval, never paid them, published their book and then folded, sent them a contract for a book and the book never came out, changed covers without telling them, etc. I knew a lot of stories already and had a few of my own, but spending so much time reading those awful stories was heartbreaking. The worst thing was that almost every story contained some version of “I haven’t said anything because I’m afraid of being seen as problematic.” That sucks, and it’s time we collectively make a statement and let writers know that calling out bullshit shouldn’t mean they will have to face retaliation. Also, publishers who drop the ball, break the law, or take advantage of writers and then try to retaliate when called out should be held accountable by all of us. Yes, believe it or not, writers should stick together. No matter how long you’ve been doing this or what press you’re working with, we’re in this thing together and must watch out and protect each other, especially from predators who want to profit off your work.

Listen, publishing isn’t easy. I’m not saying it is. I’m also not saying shit doesn’t happen. Sometimes you mean well and then life gets in the way. Family drama. Sickness. Losing your job. Too many responsibilities. I get it. That said, let’s be honest for a moment and break things down because I’m tired of seeing bullshit excuses online that want to minimize or completely erase bad behavior from publishers. Here are some important points I think we need to share with new writers and with folks thinking about becoming publishers:

• Money flows to the author. No! Don’t drop a comment disagreeing because I don’t give a fuck about your opinion on this. I pay my bills with my writing and hope everyone who aspires to that can eventually do it. If you’re one of those writers who wants to pay to get published, this isn’t for you, so go on doing your thing. Writers do the work and they should get paid for it. Period. No arguments. The day you can pay your bills with exposure, let me know and we can talk about this again. Until then, exposure is something you die from.

• Don't have money, don’t know how to get money, and hate crowdfunding? Maybe you shouldn’t be a publisher. Seriously. Charging writers to be in your anthology because that’s the only way you can pay to get it out there is not the answer.

• Don’t know how to edit? Learn. Publishing unedited manuscripts is a surefire way of getting a writer some 1-star reviews and and some angry readers. Want to save money by giving a book an AI cover? You shouldn’t be a publisher. Find an artist and do the right thing for the author. Don’t know anything about social media, booksellers, distribution, marketing, etc? Again, learn.

• Contracts are legally binding documents. Respect them or face the consequences. This one seems easy to understand, but even authors with contracts whose publishers did them dirty are afraid to talk. Yes, even with the law on their side. Why? Well, because folks don’t have money for lawyers or time for drama. Also, folks know the odds of finally getting paid are slim. Also, if you’re a writer, you should know that many organizations like the Horror Writers Association and others offer legal services. Look into them. Maybe I should write a post just with sources for that…

• Ghosting writers is never a valid solution. I know some publishers are a one-person show. Sometimes it’s two or three. That means ALL the work falls on them. Sucks, I know, but they picked this gig, so do it right or don’t do it. None of the stuff mentioned above—being sick, having some drama in your life, having a ton of stuff to do—gives you an excuse to ghost a writer for months. Reply while stuck in traffic or waiting for your coffee to be done or from the toilette, but get in touch.

I remember the first time I realized I wasn’t getting paid properly. I asked a friend who was published by the same publishers if he was getting paid. He said no…and then told me to stay quiet about it and “don’t rock the boat” because then other publishers would see me as problematic. Yeah, that was a few years ago, and I learned my lesson. I’m still emailing a publisher about money now. Rocking the boat? Good. Pay me or we’re all swimming with the sharks.

Talking about a problem is fine, but offering some solutions or help is even better. Here are some things I think writers should start doing. Hope these help many writers in the future:

• Know that you don’t have to accept contracts the way you get them. I suggest you change it up and include a clause that states that rights to your work immediately revert to you if your publishers fails to respond to communication attempts (you know, things like calls, emails, and social media) after three or four weeks. If you’re getting advance, put in there that you get to keep it. Oh, and make sure you keep all your receipts from those attempts to communicate.

• Ask questions. I’ve gotten dozens of emails and DMs from writers asking about a publisher. If I know them, I tell them what I think. If I don’t know them, I send them to authors who have published with them or dig around a little. One unhappy writer is no big deal because people will always be people. Three? Half a dozen? That’s the biggest red flag ever, and if you see that, that’s a publisher you should stay away from.

• Never. Fucking. Pay.

• Use your internet access. Type the publishers name on Google and on social media. See what people have been saying. Check their books out on Amazon. Do the books have decent pages with blurbs? Are their covers consistently good? All those little details can tell you a lot sometimes.

• Read your contract carefully and, again, ask questions. You see words like “in perpetuity” in a contract? Tell them you need more time and talk to someone who knows contracts. Contract says you have to buy X number of copies of your own book? Fuck them. Contract says you have to pay for your cover, ISBN number, layout, or editing? Fuck them. Contract says the publisher can hold your royalties and use them for “marketing purposes” instead of paying them to you? Fuck them.

• Here are a few more “fuck them,” and you should take these to social media without fear or retaliation:

  • Publisher changed your story and published it without checking with you first? Fuck them.

  • Publisher ghosting you after weeks and weeks of you reaching out but they had time to delete all their social media accounts? Fuck them.

  • Publisher says something racist, sexist, homophobic, or transphobic to you? Fuck them.

  • Publisher refuses to pay you on time and this goes on and on and on? Fuck them. Rock the fucking both. Reach out and we’ll help you.

Indie publishing is great. After wasting two years looking for an agent, my first book came out and I was happy. Three books later, I was still happy, but I had also started to see the cracks. Even pretty buildings full of comfortable apartments have roaches and rats and the occasional broken pipe. You deserve to be treated with respect and you deserve to work with professionals, so don’t hesitate to call out bad behavior. Everything I wrote about here has been happening for way too long and way too many writers have been hurt in the process. We work hard at getting racists and sexual predators out of the writing community; it’s time we do the same with unscrupulous, predatory, abusive publishers. Happy writing and happy publishing! Oh, and thanks for reading.