{"id":5097,"date":"2011-10-22T04:00:25","date_gmt":"2011-10-22T10:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/?p=5097"},"modified":"2011-10-23T22:52:23","modified_gmt":"2011-10-24T04:52:23","slug":"fitzhenry-whiteside-writer-beware-qa-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2011\/10\/22\/fitzhenry-whiteside-writer-beware-qa-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Fitzhenry & Whiteside: Writer Beware Q&A #2.5"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"DunWhat’s that, you say?\u00a0 Aren’t you keeping us up to date any longer here on WordPlay?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Just as soon as I get back from twelve hours of agility trialing for two days with the Beagles. \u00a0 8)<\/strong><\/p>\n

#FreeDLJ!<\/strong>
\nAnd writers, take a look before submitting your work.\u00a0 Knowledge is power…<\/p>\n

======================
\nThis is a vastly updated version of Q&A #1.\u00a0 It’s lots different, though–I just didn’t want to stick a second post in this space to clutter things up.<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you haven’t seen the BoingBoing post<\/a>\u2014<\/strong>or read Cory Doctorow’s wonderfully concise and clear comments regarding the nature of regular trade channels\u2014you might find it of some interest. Not everyone there thinks I’ve got my head screwed on straight, of course.<\/p>\n

In response to the most common point I see being addressed in comments here and there:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes, in a perfect world, the contract reversion clause would have been more tightly negotiated–<\/strong>but we had to fight tooth and nail to get what we got.\u00a0 Going forward on those terms was a decision I made on the basis of significant mitigating circumstances–my agent responds with a little more detail in the original post comments<\/a>. By all means, learn from this situation.\u00a0 But the main point here is how this publisher has behaved for the past eighteen months.\u00a0 Learn from that, too.<\/p>\n

The Original Post
\n<\/a>The Timeline<\/a><\/strong>
\nThe BoingBoing Post
\n<\/a>The Writer Beware Post<\/a>
\nWriterBeware Comments Further<\/a> <\/strong>(scroll down!)
\n<\/em>Twitter #FreeDLJ<\/strong><\/p>\n


\nRegarding my awareness that this is a Canadian publisher\u2014yes, I know that.<\/strong>\u00a0 It’s been taken into account with regards to the distribution conversation, as has the industry standard meaning for “regular trade channels.”<\/p>\n

But delayed, limited online availability<\/strong> doesn’t constitute regular trade channels.\u00a0 And even this (Tuesday) evening, a search on Indigo.ca of all the Chapters, Coles, and Indigo bookstores in Victoria, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, and Toronto has revealed DLJ to have one copy on the shelves at one store.<\/p>\n

I’ve said elsewhere (I haven’t the faintest idea where.\u00a0 It’s been a crazy couple of days)<\/strong> that I have no delusions that this book should be a best-seller.\u00a0 It’s a 17yo title which sold modestly the first time.\u00a0 The first edition copies are regularly priced at sums that startle me, but it can also sometimes be found at your basic used-book price (note:\u00a0 it’s easier to find a used copy of the first edition than it is to find the reprint under discussion–I signed three of them at the last convention, after which they went back in their plastic protective sleeves).\u00a0 To some extent, conversational threads that go in that direction–my unreasonable expectations or some failure to understand the modest nature of the book–are only misdirection.\u00a0 To the contrary, I have a very good (and realistic!) idea of what this book could be selling.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, I’ve left a comment here and there,<\/strong> but I haven’t engaged in any significant conversations outside this blog.\u00a0 I’m aware of what’s being said about me, and…well, I disagree.\u00a0 Let’s leave it at that.<\/p>\n

I admit it. This is not my strength.<\/strong> I’m not someone who enjoys a good rousing argument or is invigorated by social conflict. Mainly, I’m doing my best with something I feel needs to be done. Probably that means it could be done better, but you know…here I am, and here it is, and so be it.\u00a0 I mainly hope the word of this publisher’s behavior over the past 18 months is reaching agents and authors who are considering submission plans.<\/strong><\/p>\n

PS<\/strong>: First-time posters on this blog pass through moderation before posting, and always have.\u00a0 This is a Zone of Thoughtful Discourse, whether you agree or disagree with me.\u00a0 Visitors here should feel safe to post, either way.\u00a0 Visitors of Virulence will receive the Mighty Click of Moderation.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n


\n<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What’s that, you say?\u00a0 Aren’t you keeping us up to date any longer here on WordPlay? Just as soon as I get back from twelve hours of agility trialing for two days with the Beagles. \u00a0 8) #FreeDLJ! And writers, … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[80,155],"tags":[157,72,57,32],"class_list":["post-5097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-behind-the-scenes","category-writing","tag-behind-the-scenes","tag-opinionated","tag-ouch","tag-writing"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pb2lc3-1kd","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1800,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2010\/07\/07\/behind-the-scenes-deep-river-reckoning\/","url_meta":{"origin":5097,"position":0},"title":"Behind the Scenes: Deep River Reckoning","author":"Doranna","date":"1007.07","format":false,"excerpt":"...Wednesday Deep River Reckoning Deep River Reckoning is a Reckoners short story newly available on Kindle: the journey of a woman recently passed strikes close to home for Garrie and Trevarr, as living and dead clash over the mysteriously damaged spirits of the Rio Grande. 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