Contract for publication

[penhobby]

I received a contract for publication from a company caled New Concepts Publishing, has anyone ever heard of them? I sent my manuscript to them along with a zillion others seven months ago. I have looked at the contract and it looks okay I guess. I am not required to pay them to publish the book, which is good right? Do I take the contract to an attorney? I have a lot of questions and I'm not sure whom to ask.

[Cogito]

If you have any questions whatsoever about the contract, you should seek advice from a lawyer!

Given the number of less than reputable publishers out there, I don't think I would sign any publishing contract without running it by a lawyer.

Disclaimer: I have never published, so I don't have firsthand experience with this. But I have heard horror stories, and I listen.

[Lucy E.]

As Cog said, run it by a lawyer or agent.
Here's the New Concepts Publishing website: http://www.newconceptspublishing.com/

[Torana]

It might be good to talk to maia about this. Send her an email with your questions, she is extremely knowledgable on this side of things and would give you some very valuable information, that I do know.

[TWErvin2]

Here is a link to some information on NCP. Some good and some bad info, but a place to start a little more research before signing anything.

http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24170

Terry

[penhobby]

Thanks Ervin, the link was helpful. A friend came over and looked over the contract and said it was strait forward. I am to receive royalties twice a year, and other NCP authors I just spoke to say they have never had problems receiving their checks, when promised. They did admit that NCP is slow in responding by e-mail. Also the editor informed me that some editing was done to the manuscript, but I would have the opportunity to look over it. So I don't think they've quit editing. Anyway, I'm still deciding.

[Howard]

Yeh i would run it by a Lawyer just to be sure, your mate or whoever may say it looks ok but it's always best to consult a professional.

[mammamaia]

i've checked them out and replied to pen's email, but for the record here, i'd have to say after reading the feedback on aw and from what i saw on the publisher's website, i wouldn't recommend them... and if you did decide to go with them, having a literary attorney look over the contract before signing, is always a good idea...

besides which, having your book put out by an e-publisher of this ilk, won't make you a 'published author' to most of the 'offline' literary world... and, judging from the books i saw on their site, being among the authors of those generally substandard works [imo] might not fit what you want your image to be as a writer...

[penhobby]

Thanks for the info Maia. That's a lot to take in. But I'm still working on it.

[NaCl]

...being among the authors of those generally substandard works [imo] might not fit what you want your image to be as a writer...

There is an excellent article in the August edition of Writer's Digest regarding the impact of "niche" writing on your future attempts to attract interest from the bigger publishing houses. Its under the "Inkwell" section and written by Jenna Glatzer. The article identifies the problems and possible steps a "niche writer" can use to make the transition. The importance of this article to you is that mammamaia may have identified the greatest threat you face from "publishing" with NCP...it is clearly a "niche" market publishing company.

.....NaCl

[jim90]

I've always been advised never ever send a manuscript to a publisher until they agree on final publication, also probably use recommended ones if in doubt. (I wish i could get published but no one will read my books and tell me if they're publish-able quality).

[mammamaia]

I've always been advised never ever send a manuscript to a publisher until they agree on final publication,

sorry, but you must have misunderstood, as that makes no sense whatsoever... how can a publisher agree to publish something they haven't seen?... the usual valid advice is to never send a ms untill it's been requested... that is, after you query the publisher or agent, if they reply to your query letter, asking to see the ms or sample chapters, that's when you send them...


also probably use recommended ones if in doubt.

that should depend on who's doing the recommending... you'll find plenty of people recommending publish america and poetry.com, when both of those scam outfits are strongly NOT recommended by most knowledgeable folks... with both agents and publishers, it's best to check them out on your own, starting by looking them up on preditors & editors... then take a good look at their website and submission guidelines, finally doing a google search for feedback from happy or disgruntled clients/writers...


(I wish i could get published but no one will read by books and tell me if they're publish-able quality).

that's exactly what i do, all day, every day... so, if you want to send me a brief synopsis and first chapter of what you think is your very best, i'll be happy to give you some neutral feedback...

love and hugs, maia
maia3maia@hotmail.com

[penhobby]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I made a decision just this morning, but only after an exhaustive investigation of NCP. And yes, I did discus it with an attorney, and the contract itself is good. I can honestly say that I could not have made up my mind without this forum’s completely unbiased opinion of the publishing company in question.
By the way, if anyone would like in depth information on NCP, send me a PM. I will respond when I can, but unfortunately I will not be on the forum for a while. Cheers everyone. ;)

[penhobby]

I wanted to update this. I recently discovered some new information about NCP and I'm so thankful, I did not sign that bloody contract. I strongly urge anyone considering publishing with them, to google NCP + complaints.

I was able to contact several of their authors directly and their complaints were scathing. There is quite a bit of author bullying and late royalties. And I was dead wrong, they have stopped all editing, except for line editing, which is nothing. One author actually told me to stay as far from NCP as possible. This is from their own authors!

By far, the nastiest thing I discovered, was the outright plagiarism of an author's contracted, but unfinished work. NCP had another author finish the work and then published it as an anthology. To be frank, I am disgusted.

There are many of us out there whose dream is to be published one day, but this is not the way. I'm so pissed right now I could hit something. (*sighs* and takes a very deep breath.) Okay I'm done with this now and sincerely hope I never hear of NCP again.

[NaCl]

Thank you so much for this followup. First, I am glad you were able to complete your investigation before committing too far. Second, by sharing this with all the aspiring writers on this forum, you provide a great role model of doing one's homework before signing a contract. Again, thanks.

[penhobby]

I received another contract a couple days ago from a print publisher. It was for the same manuscript. I just cringe, when I think how close I came to losing my rights to it.

[TWErvin2]

Penhobby,

I received another contract a couple days ago from a print publisher. It was for the same manuscript. I just cringe, when I think how close I came to losing my rights to it.

That is good news, again maybe. Same vetting process to make sure it's where you really want your work to be published.

Good luck and hoping this turns out much better!

Terry

[mammamaia]

which publisher did the new contract come from?... and how did they come to send it to you?... had you queried them and had subsequent discussions, after sending the ms?... or did it come out of the blue?...

i'm asking, because only the scammers will just send a contract, without having discussed publication with you, first...

[penhobby]

Let me be emphatic this. I have signed nothing for anyone and never will, not without doing my homework. You wouldn't believe what you can discover by simply asking the right person. If anything, NCP has made me wary of any contract that comes my way. After the last three weeks though, I can't help but see that as a good thing.

[penhobby]

I have been in contact with them over the last year, only once or twice, but I didn't think anything would come of it. The editor insisted the book needed an enormous amount of work, though she didn't get specific. She said to clean it up and resubmit, but it was a vague response I thought.

To be honest, the book did need allot of work. I have spent an unbelievable amount of time working on this stupid thing, to the point where I never want to see it again. I even paid an editor to work with me, which cost a bloody fortune.

I sent in the revised copy to them about the same time I sent it to NCP and gave up. Oh it's Dorchester and they have some complaints as well, but I have just started this process ...again. we'll see.

[TWErvin2]

Penhobby,

Dorchester doesn't publish what I write, so I've not really looked into them, but on the other hand, I've not heard anything negative about them, other than they sometimes take a long time to respond...know a writer who submitted once and it took a while for them to respond (a little over a year before rejection, but that's part of the business...waiting).

Hope your research turns up only good, the contract is acceptable, and your book goes to print and does very well. Keep ups up to date!

Terry

[mammamaia]

there's no warning about them on p&e, but i'd still do a google search for feedback... they're mostly known for romance, but also handle westerns and horror...

good thing is they've been around for over 3 decades, so can't be too bad...