Iris Update

[erastes]

Well, things have moved along overnight. Just shows you what a little bit of Internet pressure will do. Kellie Lynch has paid R W Day her royalty via Paypal, which RW Day has blogged about here.

Kellie has also added an update on the Iris Print site confirming that the press is shutting down. She makes a very illuminating comment about kriko_moth's art which she admits she has not paid for, as she says that the contract had clauses written in that covered late delivery. A lesson to us all about deadlines! That being said, the artist said that there wasn't a contract.  And disputes that the art was late.

As for Queer Magic, well, I guess we'll just have to see about that. Whether the pre-payers get their copies, and whether the authors get paid for their stories. I'll be monitoring that.

I agree wholeheartedly with RW Day that the snide comments about Tina Anderson and her representative are unprofessional but then, we shouldn't be surprised as Ms Lynch hasn't been professional since "Connections" was published, as far as I can see. A boycott of the books is unfair? Well, that's certainly what we do over here in the UK if we are unhappy about something. Voting with your feet. Or in this case with your plastic.

However, the sentence of Kellie's which sums the whole debacle up is this:  it's a bit absurd seeing so many people so very, very upset about an eighty dollar check that nobody asked for.  It's patronising, flippant and proves that she has no idea, or doesn't care, that she's done anything wrong. Also - "most publishers pay royalties annually." Really? None of the many publishers I've worked with do, not even the big ones.

If this refers to RWD's payment then this is "absurd" in itself, for RW has been emailing and writing on a regular basis for about four months - at least one of the letters was registered, too.(ETA: RWD advises she didn't send a registered letter, that was sent by TA. So to say that nobody asked for it (unless every single email went missing over four months) is a big fat lie. And whether it was $80 or $800,000 or 80 CENTS, it makes no difference. If you are contracted to provide regular sales reports (she didn't) and pay royalties on TIME (she didn't) then that's what you DO.

Manners maketh the man as they say, and professionalism, honesty, clarity and politeness maketh the publisher, perhaps.

Comments

[lyras.livejournal.com]

I'm glad that at least there are signs of resolution here, and that RW Day has been paid. Fingers crossed that everyone else gets what's due to them, too.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Yes, it's an improvement, it's just galling that it took a public shaming to break the silence.

[zehavit-lamasu.livejournal.com]

I am a bit confused about the following ... rather unpleasant statement:

"Iris Print does not owe Tina Anderson a cent. If she wants to organize a boycott because I refuse to dignify her "lawyer" with a gmail address with a response, that's fine by me. The end result is the same: nobody's buying her book."

I would say BITCH PLZ KTHXBAI ... but that would reveal the bitch within which I rather only unleash on my LJ.

I would like to point out that since I buy Tina Anderson books (quite enthusiastically too - Thank you!) I must assume that she owes her AT LEAST a cent!!! ¬_¬

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Completely. I refuse to believe that NO-ONE is buying the book, so unless there's a contract clause which says "if you sell under 10, you money belongs to us, mwahahahaha" I find that rather unbelievable. But as TA hasn't even received any sales reports, it's tricky to discover.

"Only Words" has an Amazon sales rank in the 300,000's which means that SOMEONE is buying it.

Her whole tone is patronising and "why are you all being so MEEENE" which I saw far too much in fanfic to take seriously.

[upstart-crow.livejournal.com]

I can't believe no one is buying it either.

Howdy.

[ggymeta.wordpress.com (from livejournal.com)]

I highly suspected that we wouldn't make back our $200 advance in Quarter 1, but I didn't count on Ms. Lynch missing Yaoicon in Quarter 2 - that statement certainly reflected the fail there!

Quarter 3 came and went...Quarter 4--same thing, but I released novel and was getting feedback from readers who also bought the manga after reading the novel, and so I was curious about the statements for Q3.

I didn't a statement, didn't get an email from Iris. The Q4 arrived.

I talked to a girl who bought some books wholesale from Iris in January. Also watched Amazon close to see if the books were being restocked, because R.W. was upset because she could see that Thaw hadn't been.

So Caroline and I sold enough books to break even with our advance? Ok, this I beleive. YET, this would've been nice to know as it was happening, instead of over 5 months of silence. In place of communication, I get a bullshit response like 'I owe you nothing because your book isn't selling.' :/ Oh, and I'm told to look up the word boycott, which I did-- at RW's blog. She was too busy snipping at me to see where the 'movement' against her company actually started. (^_^)

On that note, my contract with Iris doesn't say she MUST mail me a royalty check--it says she's obligated to produce a statement showing me what sold and where. Is she suggesting that she owes me nothing because she's not moved one book since January? Sorry, I call bullshit. Even if we're $5 below our advance make-back, I wanted to see the numbers.

Re: Howdy.

[cynbaby.livejournal.com]

I know that people are buying it. People have read the review on BND, then told us they ran out and got the book because of the review. Now that we've got the Amazon.com sales thingie, we can even TRACK who buys stuff through us. I'll holler if I see any movement on your books.

She's full of utter and complete bullshit.

Re: Howdy.

[ggymeta.wordpress.com (from livejournal.com)]

You notice she chose her words carefully though in 'additional': "2008 First Quarter." I release Gadarene during what would be 2nd quarter...that statement date came and went. I could care less if we made just enough to make back our advance and she owes us zilch--but I want to see my statements.

To be honest, I don't even trust those anymore--not after talking to Livvy-- she was the one Kellie is talking about with the missed deadline. There's more to that story than meets the eye!

Re: Howdy.

[cynbaby.livejournal.com]

Livvy is one of the most professional people I know.

Kellie screwed her and Camilla over, end of story.

[alankria.livejournal.com]

"it's a bit absurd seeing so many people so very, very upset about an eighty dollar check that nobody asked for."

I want to know what cheques she's referring to with that line. Royalty cheques? The authors shouldn't have to ask for those, they should just receive them (or the statement of sales, if they're not yet receiving royalties) on schedule, as per their contract.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

I think she's referring to RWD's royalty - and yes - that's completely the point. It's like she thinks she's been a bit absent minded and that it doesn't matter.

[rwday.livejournal.com]

Just a clarification, I didn't send the registered letter - that was Tina. It was my next step, but Kellie emailed me back before I had to do it.

Thank you so much for your support.

xxx

[erastes.livejournal.com]

But to say that "no-one had asked for it" is a complete and utter lie, all the same.

You are welcome, let's hope we can get the other people paid too.

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[rwday.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes. Plenty of people asked. I just wanted to say publicly that I didn't do the registered letter thing, so that Kellie can't come back at you for posting inaccurate information.

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[erastes.livejournal.com]

I'll ETA the info.

[ggymeta.wordpress.com (from livejournal.com)]

To clarify further, the letter was sent the first time she pulled her MIA nonsense, in Quarter 2...then she made an announcement in January, only after I bitched at my blog. :/ Seems to be quite formula at this point.

I think what she's referring to in the 'no one asked' thing, is Mia and Chrissy. Basically they've just decided to cut their losses and move on. Mia in particular; after the BL Twist thing--she was demoralized.

I think R.W. mention in Dear Author is what got her the check this time around--and then Kellie went and stuck her head back in the sand; unfortunately I blogged, and so THERE B DRAMA and here she is...right on time.

[aigooism.livejournal.com]

Bleh. I will never understand people.

A little more detail would be helpful

[cbpotts.livejournal.com]

Kellie's statements were certainly very revealing, shedding a lot of light into the mindset of this purported professional. What they aren't is helpful: there's no date when Iris is closing, thereby releasing all of Iris' creators from their contracts. At a minimum, they're stuck until July 30 -- and if Queer Magic is further 'delayed' at that point, what happens? Is Iris still a going concern?

I have never, ever, ever heard of a publisher paying royalties annually. They pay quarterly. That's the standard, and it has been the standard for decades, if not centuries.

And scoffing at the size of the check! First, it speaks volumes to Iris' promotional and marketing abilities: somewhere along the way, it is a publisher's job to sell books. Second, that's the nature of publishing: some authors do get one or two huge checks to keep their career going -- but the vast majority of writers make it on a sea of multiple small checks.

This line from her statement: I would appreciate if folks stopped wagging fingers at the con organizers because of my absent-mindedness. about Y Jam is an epic case of missing the point. It's not about Kellie at this point. It's about Y Jam and due diligence and professionalism. If Y Jam is really about yaoi fans, you'd think they'd make at least a minimal effort to select vendors who aren't ripping off their creators and customer base.

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[alankria.livejournal.com]

At least some of the big NY houses pay bi-annually, actually. (Roc, of Penguin; Bantam/Specta, of Random House; Tor)

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[cbpotts.livejournal.com]

This I did not know. The majority of my books are non-fiction, and we've been paid quarterly.

That being said, Kellie's contracts specifically say she'll pay quarterly. This she did not do.

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[upstart-crow.livejournal.com]

Torquere has paid my royalties for Sleeping Beauty, Indeed quarterly, and Sam's Dot pays me quarterly for Ossuary, too. Every publisher I've dealt with has done this as well. It doesn't mean the standard can't be different with others (especially the big NY houses), but if your contract says you'll be paid quarterly (as it seems Iris' did?), then it's bizarre to think that you wouldn't be paid quarterly.

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's exactly it. It's not good whining and saying "I didn't have to pay quarterly, you know" because 1. No she didn't but she chose to do so ergo 2. She should have done so or given explanations why she didn't.

Aspen Mountain Press pay me monthly for Chiaroscuro, and they have many many many authors and they manage to pay me very small sums each month, regular as clockwork via paypal.

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[vashtan.livejournal.com]

In Germany, many publishers pay royalties every year.

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[erastes.livejournal.com]

I should have included the reply from Y Jam in the update, and forgot but they said that it was possibly unethical for them to refuse a vendor entry but they didn't thin they were coming anyway.

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[rwday.livejournal.com]

What bothered me most about those statements was how little responsibility she took. When you screw up, just say so and apologize. Don't give lists of reasons (statements are late because they take so much time, I only owe under $200, bookkeeping errors, blah, blah). They come off as excuses.

This one in particular, I think, sums up part of what the problem here is:

it takes a lot of time and sifting through records to create the statements, and I've had a lot of other things on my list of priorities lately, especially considering the small amounts of money we're dealing with.

My grandmother always said that if you take care of the pennies, the dollars will watch out for themselves. Small amounts of money, over time, with proper handling, can grow into large ones. That her priorities did not include tracking sales, thus allowing her to target promotions, advertising, etc., may indicate why the venture failed. Plus, the cavalier attitude towards other people's money really yanks my chain. I serve as treasurer for our local SCA group and I am MORE careful with those funds than with my own.

/rant

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[upstart-crow.livejournal.com]

Exactly. And for all she new that 'insignificant' amount of money could have been the difference between you or Tina making your rent that month, or being able to pay for health insurance. This irresponsibility disgusts me.

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[upstart-crow.livejournal.com]

all she knew, even. :x

Re: A little more detail would be helpful

[foxrafer.livejournal.com]

I've just discovered this issue and discussion and your comment was exactly what struck me about her response. If you don't pay attention to sales enough to keep your records current so statements can be produced at a moment's notice, you're not actually doing anything to work on promotions or find ways to boost sales if they start to dip. Playing at publishing hurts too many people, but I guess if she and hubby can swan off and buy fancy gadgets they don't really care.

[dea-liberty.livejournal.com]

The woman sounds like she has cotton candy for brains. Jesus, what a disgrace. I'm glad something's happening at least.

[livvydarling.livejournal.com]

Actually, I'm pretty sure she's refering to me about the unpaid art.
But it's funny how she's refering to a contract that was never signed by both parties and sent back to us (me and Camilla Bruce), and final pages that were not delivered due to lack of communication.

I don't want to add to the drama, but that's the short version of it.

[cynbaby.livejournal.com]

Christ on a cracker, I knew that she had contracted you to do some stuff and I was really looking forward to seeing what you and Camilla were going to come up with.

Thanks for weighing in on this.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Ah interesting. Another unpaid person! I'm sorry about that.

[livvydarling.livejournal.com]

The payment was due upon completion and delivery of the final pages. But the lack of communication simply made it impossible to finish the pages on time. So in the end I simply stopped working on the comic. The contract was never signed on her part and returned to us and then Kellie went MIA.

Never really cared about the money(since I obviously did not deliver the pages), but it was a huge dissapointment to be kept in the dark about everything. So there's no real drama on my part just lots and lots of pent up frustration about spending time on yet another doomed publishing project.

[kd-lynch.livejournal.com]

She makes a very illuminating comment about kriko_moth's art which she admits she has not paid for, as she says that the contract had clauses written in that covered late delivery.

Kiriko Moth was not the artist I was referring to. I am contacting Kiriko privately about her work.

A boycott of the books is unfair?

When did I ever say it was unfair?

If this refers to RWD's payment then this is "absurd" in itself,

It does not. It refers to the payment for the one book whose royalties have not been paid, and whose creators have not contacted me. Hence a check that "nobody asked for."

I would like to point out, once again, that I was never trying to excuse the late royalty statements, and I said as much. Be as angry as you like about the lateness; I pretty much deserve it.

[rwday.livejournal.com]

It does not. It refers to the payment for the one book whose royalties have not been paid, and whose creators have not contacted me. Hence a check that "nobody asked for."

Kellie, thank you for clarifying that. I admit that I thought you were referring to my payment too, as the amounts are very similar.

[kiri-moth.livejournal.com]

Just to clarify - Kellie's post on her blog was not in reference to my cover artwork, which was delivered on time (it was due by June 30th 2007, and delivered on June 17th) and was not under formal contract. Terms were stated in emails, though.

As for the comic art that I inked, I first received word of it in July, and work was delayed due to the author not having the scripts. The inking actually began September 16th when I received the pencil art and my deadline was September 30th. I delivered the final inked pages on that day.
Anything else regarding the comic (including the contract) was out of my hands and I was not informed whether the final product was turned in past deadline.
I have emails saved to verify the dates of delivery on everything.