And the Ellora’s Cave Debacle continues. Although RWA helps authors in many ways, as an organization it does not seem to have the teeth need to defend the rights of those authors. I’m not sure who does.
Ann Jacobs is already pursuing a class action suit. Anything like that takes time and money. So many of these authors have neither.
EC is not the first and probably won’t be the last of small presses to crumble but EC is doing it in a most spectacular way. Authors who trust this publisher will probably not trust another publisher. Many just want their books.
If you’re not a writer, you do not know how much time and effort goes into writing a book. You sign a contract with a publisher you think will honor it. Then you discover that if the book sells, you will not get your royalties. All that time and effort is lost and the publisher will not give you your rights back.
Could this be one of the reasons behind the growth of indie publishing?
I have friends who’ve published with EC; I just keep hoping that this mess is resolved in their favor. For EC and it’s owners, I could care less. Get your egos in check.
Recent Romance Writers of America Letter Regarding Ellora’s Cave
(Permission received to post here)
Allison Kelley, CAE | Executive Director
Allison.kelley@rwa.org
RWA has no standing in relation to contracts between authors and Ellora’s Cave. Therefore, RWA’s role is limited to advocating for fair treatment of authors, and RWA has been in correspondence with Ellora’s Cave, repeatedly, regarding allegations that Ellora’s Cave has failed to make payments due and failed to revert rights to authors.
Contracts offered by Ellora’s Cave Publishing state “Publisher shall pay Author royalties in accordance with a schedule to be determined at Publisher’s discretion but in no event shall payment be made less frequently than three (3) calendar months.” The problem with this clause is the lack of specified period for which royalties will be paid. RWA continues to receive complaints from authors who report they have not received royalty statements or payments for many months.
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Mitzi Flyte 