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The special tri-issue of my newsletter, Field Notes, went out this weekend with its new online format. The theme for summer is, of course, road tripping. Here's an excerpt:
Despite the rise in gas prices, Jason and I managed to drive or ride over four thousand miles during these past three months. In Florida, we saw Storm Troopers and Jedis, celebrated our ten year wedding anniversary, and became lost in the magic of Disney World. In Maryland, I reunited with family members and basked in the nostalgia of my childhood. And, in the Outer Banks, we discovered the beauty and renewal of the shore and just why the Wright brothers spent so much time there.
A little closer to home, we attended the 7th Annual WPF alumni retreat and writing conference at beloved Seton Hill University, where we reconnected with author pals, made many new acquaintances, and received our anticipated dose of motivation and inspiration.
We are always lucky to share these experiences with friends and family, and the memories and photos often keep us warm when the trees are bare and the wind chill makes our breath freeze once again.
If you would like to subscribe to Field Notes from Heidi Ruby Miller, please email heidirubymiller AT gmail DOT com.
~Heidi
Field Notes from Heidi Ruby Miller, Heidi Ruby Miller, newsletter, summer, roadtripping, Seton Hill Writers
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 Almost There Panel at WPF In Your Write Mind Retreat and Conference from L to R: Heidi Ruby Miller, J. A. Konrath, Uwe Stender of TriadaUS Literary Agency, Jason Jack Miller, and K. J. Howe
We had a full schedule of workshops and panels at the Seton Hill WPF In Your Write Mind Retreat and Conference, as well as thesis readings and graduation for the WPF Graduate Residency, which was running concurrently.
I moderated the "Almost There" panel about those of us in the middle stages of the novel publishing process: after the classes have been taken, the books have been written, and the queries sent out, how do you keep you keep up your momentum?
( See more photos from the residency and retreat behind the cut. )
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I received this recently via email from The Authors Guild:
"Internal e-mails, including an admission that Adams Media has "no system in place for tracking inbound Royalty Statements from translation rights deals," and a recent arbitrator's ruling in Massachusetts awarding $209,000 to an author raise serious questions about the accounting practices of F&W Publishing and Adams Media.
Authors Guild member Sherry Argov brought an arbitration more than four years ago against F&W Publishing and its subsidiary Adams Media regarding the payment of royalties for her book "Why Men Love Bitches." The arbitrator found that F&W had purposefully withheld documents needed by Ms. Argov to complete the royalty audit to which she was contractually entitled. This amounted to an "unfair and deceptive practice" under Massachusetts law, leading the arbitrator to award $209,000 to Ms. Argov. The arbitrator's review of the work done by F&W's outside expert, however, led the arbitrator to conclude that domestic sales had been properly accounted for.
Accounting for foreign editions and translations appears to be a particular problem for F&W and Adams Media. In a stunning e-mail dated October 18, 2006, an F&W employee admits, "We have no system in place for tracking inbound Royalty Statements from translation rights deals. We do not go looking for missing statements from our Translation rights customers. No one is responsible for the collections on either open contracts nor balances indicated on Royalty statements." Another employee adds, "in many cases, we have not received statements from the foreign publishers per the contracts (specifically, on Sherry's titles, but there are lots of others)."
The arbitrator didn't rule on foreign royalties. Instead, it urged F&W to report to Ms. Argov what amounts may be owed her for foreign editions, so the company could avoid arbitration on that issue.
For more information, please see the Publishers Weekly story or the arbitrator's ruling.
We'd like your help on this matter.
1. If you have knowledge of F&W or Adams Media's royalty accounting practices, please get in touch with the Authors Guild's legal department.
2. If you are an F&W or Adams Media author (whether you are a Guild member or not) and would like to be kept up to date on this matter, simply send us an e-mail.
3. Feel free to forward and post this alert in its entirety.
Contact: legalservices@authorsguild.org or 212-563-5904.
The Authors Guild (www.authorsguild.org) is the largest society of published book authors in the United States."
The Authors Guild, Heidi Ruby Miller, Adams Media, F&W Publishing, royalty statements, accounting practices, writing
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Derek Clendening interviews Seton Hill alum and my wonderful critique partner Mary SanGiovanni at Dark Scribe about Found You, her follow up to Bram Stoker Award-nominated debut novel, The Hollower.
Heidi Ruby Miller, Mary SanGiovanni, The Hollower, Found You, Dark Scribe, Derek Clendening, writing, author+interviews, Seton Hill Writers
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So far, the following agents will be at the 2009 Pennwriters Conference held in Pittsburgh during the weekend of May 15-17:
Uwe Stender from TriadaUS Literary
Alyssa Eisner Henkin from Trident Media Group
Lucienne Diver from Spectrum Literary Agency
Paige Wheeler from Folio Literary Management
The keynote speakers are Lisa Scottoline and Seton Hill Writer Timons Esaias.
2009 Pennwriters Conference, Heidi Ruby Miller, Lisa Scottoline, Timons Esaias, Uwe Stender, Lucienne Diver, Paige Wheeler, writing, Alyssa Eisner Henkin, Pennwriters, Seton Hill Writers
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| 2008-07-28 09:24 |
| Seton Hill Writers Book News |
| Public |
| christopher paul carey, dana marton, heidi ruby miller, katherine ivy, kimberley a. opatka-metzgar, lawrence c. connolly, michael a arnzen, nica berry, seton hill writers, susan mallery, timons easais |
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This Seton Hill Writers Update is a long one, so behind the cut you'll find book news on:
Lawrence C. Connolly
Christopher Paul Carey
Susan Mallery
Kimberley A. Opatka-Metzgar
Nica Berry
Katherine Ivy
Timons Esaias
Dana Marton
Michael A. Arnzen
( Get the details. )
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#1: The anthology He Is Legend: An Anthology Celebrating Richard Matheson from Gauntlet Press features three stories from Seton Hill Writers: Michael A. Arnzen's "She Screech Like Me", Gary A. Braunbeck's "Everything of Beauty Taken from You in This Life Remains Forever", and Thomas F. Monteleone's "The Diary of Louise Carey".
#2: "Heavenly Bodies", a short story by Renae Johnson is part of the Going Up, Going Down anthology from Loose Id.
#3: Tobias Buckell co-authored the story "Mitigation" with Karl Schroeder: It will appear in the Fast Forward 2 anthology by Lou Anders.
Heidi Ruby Miller, short stories, Michael A. Arnzen, Gary Braunbeck, Thomas F. Monteleone, Renae Johnson, writing, Tobias Buckell, Seton Hill Writers
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The announcement about Farmercon 90 and Farmerphile 13 is up at The Official Jose Farmer Home Page. Issue thirteen contains my bibliophile on Farmer's novel The Tongues of the Moon. I wrote it from an anthropologist's perspective.
Also featured in the issue is fellow Seton Hill Writer Christopher Paul Carey and fellow Magic River blogger Win Scott Eckert.
More on The Magic River to come. Until then, it is syndicated here on Live Journal.
Heidi Ruby Miller, Philip Jose Farmer, The Tongues of the Moon, Farmercon 90, Farmerphile, The Magic River, writing, Christopher Paul Carey, Win Scott Eckert, Seton Hill Writers
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#1: My poem "Misplaced my keys" is in the March/April issue of Star*Line.
 Star*Line March/April 2008 Issue
Also, in that same issue was Fairytale Graveyard, a gift booklet of horror poetry from the SFPA for World Horror Con 2008. Among the contributors was Seton Hill's own Michael A. Arnzen with his poem "The Fall Down the Stairs of the House of Usher."
#2: In other SFPA news, K. Ceres Wright's poem "Doomed" was nominated for a 2008 Rhysling Award and is part of The 2008 Rhysling Anthology.
#3: Rachael Pruitt's poem "Merlin" is in Issue 12 of Paradox: The Magazine of Historical and Speculative Fiction.
Heidi Ruby Miller, SFPA, The 2008 Rhysling Anthology, Paradox, Misplaced my keys, writing, Michael A. Arnzen, K. Ceres Wright, Rachael Pruitt, poetry, Star*Line, Seton Hill Writers
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I sent out the May issue of Field Notes and am happy to report that I've gained subscribers since launching the new format last month.
Here's an excerpt from the Research section:
After my husband and I got married in 1998, we had to decide if we would apply to the anthropology graduate program at the University of Pittsburgh or move to Orlando to work at Walt Disney World. We had an intense interest in Mayan archaeology, and the faculty at Pitt aligned with our interests. But in the end, "the mouse" won, and we enjoyed an extended honeymoon at the happiest place on Earth. However, we remain avid Mayaphiles and keep up with the current research in the field.
Our fascination with this culture has served us well and provided a backdrop for a novel a piece. Most recently, I have gone back through our collection of Mayan-related books to write a SAT passage about epigraphy, the science of translating ancient hieroglyphics. The artistry is breathtaking, but the complex form of writing is amazing...
If you would like to subscribe to Field Notes from Heidi Ruby Miller, please email me at heidirubymiller AT gmail DOT com.
~Heidi
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My April newsletter is finally finished, a few days late.
I've reformatted it and given it a new name Field Notes.
Here's an excerpt from the introductory letter for April's issue titled Pride of Place: Loving Where You Live:
Field Notes allows me to express the many facets of my life rather than limiting me to speculative fiction. The concept comes from my undergrad days studying anthropology and geography, as well as my love for traveling and adventure.
Each issue will revolve around a central theme, while still sharing news of my latest releases, appearances, and projects-in-progress. I'll also feature writerly friends and keep you up-to-date on my latest author interviews.
In this issue I look at Southwestern Pennsylvania as my home and playground. The natural beauty rivals only the historic and cultural richness of the area. From the mansions of Uniontown's millionaire coal baron days to Ohiopyle State Park's whitewater rapids and hiking trails, I continue to explore this region in all its forms, seeing it with the eyes of a former anthropologist, but the heart of a native. It is the best of both worlds.
If you'd like to receive a copy, please email me at heidirubymiller AT gmail DOT com.
I'll have more updates here a bit later.
Cheers,
Heidi
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I got this message over the weekend in my email from The Authors Guild:
Last week Amazon announced that it would be requiring that all books that it sells that are produced through on-demand means be printed by BookSurge, their in-house on-demand printer/publisher. Amazon pitched this as a customer service matter, a means for more speedily delivering print-on-demand books and allowing for the bundling of shipments with other items purchased at the same time from Amazon. It also put a bit of an environmental spin on the move -- claiming less transportation fuel is used (this is unlikely, but that's another story) when all items are shipped directly from Amazon.
We, and many others, think something else is afoot. Ingram Industries' Lightning Source is currently the dominant printer for on-demand titles, and they appear to be quite efficient at their task. They ship on-demand titles shortly after they are ordered through Amazon directly to the customer. It's a nice business for Ingram, since they get a percentage of the sales and a printing fee for every on-demand book they ship. Amazon would be foolish not to covet that business.
What's the rub? Once Amazon owns the supply chain, it has effective control of much of the "long tail" of publishing -- the enormous number of titles that sell in low volumes but which, in aggregate, make a lot of money for the aggregator. Since Amazon has a firm grip on the retailing of these books (it's uneconomic for physical book stores to stock many of these titles), owning the supply chain would allow it to easily increase its profit margins on these books: it need only insist on buying at a deeper discount -- or it can choose to charge more for its printing of the books -- to increase its profits. Most publishers could do little but grumble and comply.
We suspect this maneuver by Amazon is far more about profit margin than it is about customer service or fossil fuels. The potential big losers (other than Ingram) if Amazon does impose greater discounts on the industry, are authors -- since many are paid for on-demand sales based on the publisher's gross revenues -- and publishers.
We're reviewing the antitrust and other legal implications of Amazon's bold move. If you have any information on this matter that you think could be helpful to us, please call us at (212) 563-5904 and ask for the legal services department, or send an e-mail to staff@authorsguild.org.
The Authors Guild, Heidi Ruby Miller, Amazon, Ingram, Lightning Source, BookSurge, POD, writing
Feel free to post or forward this message in its entirety.
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