Fantasy Anthology Open Call

[williamkooiker]

A good friend of mine is part of this project, so I thought I'd pass it along.

http://home.graffiti.net/gallerysevenbooks/fantasy.html

It doesn't pay much, but if you're simply looking to get something out there (or for those who aren’t considering writing as a profession, but might enjoy the experience of writing up a good fantasy tale), it's a great opportunity.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Call me an old fussy pants, but I find it damned unprofessional when any self-claimed business can't even be bothered to put up a website on their own domain.

Doesn't have to be a great looking website - but with domains at under $10 per year, plus decent hosting for $5, any business that doesn't even invest in these is going to fail to project a professional image, IMO.

 

[williamkooiker]

Yes, you are being a little over-fussy. These guys aren't doing it to make a bunch of money. They got together for the sole purpose of doing something they'd enjoy, and help out fellow authors (who wish to particpate) as well. Sometimes, looking at everything from a business venture makes you miss the true point.

There are plenty of quality writers out there who have hopes of seeing their work in print without spending any money themselves. There's no harm in offering that opportunity.

 

[the_faery_queen]

sorry,i think i agree with I,brian here. even if you're not doing it for money, just for a hobby, or because you believe in the project, you need to make it look proffessional if you're appealing to wrtiers beyond your circle of friends.

i mean, the website doesn't give any information. where will the book be published(how?) where will it be onsale? why should i give them my story, just to be in a book, when i could send it to a magazine, have a small payment (even 5 bux) and know that it will at least be sold online, or to these shops, or whatever. and by at least having a decent website, with some information on it, i will know that the publisher is taking it seriously. that they will do things with my story, that i haven't just wasted it. after all, if i wanted to get that story printed again, it would be considered a reprint, so the market would be limited.

i agree, there is no harm in offering the opportunity to be in print, and it's good that you're supporting your friends, i just think that if the website had more info and was more proffessional looking, it would look more reliable and peopel would be more inclined to send their work in.

i mean, my friend gathered stories for an anthology he wanted to do. i would have happily given him a story for free (if i had one that fitted) because he was a friend, and i believed in his project. but he also had a proper website, a community on lj, that sort of thing, to promote and encourage it. he took it seriously, and just having a website that doesn't look proffessional makes it look as though they're not serious.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Yes, you are being a little over-fussy. These guys aren't doing it to make a bunch of money. They got together for the sole purpose of doing something they'd enjoy, and help out fellow authors (who wish to particpate) as well. Sometimes, looking at everything from a business venture makes you miss the true point.

There are plenty of quality writers out there who have hopes of seeing their work in print without spending any money themselves. There's no harm in offering that opportunity.

Come on, William - they aren't going to be helping anybody if they can't even be bothered to make a half-decent effort.

And payment is a book?? Come on - everything about this project stinks of rank unprofessionalism that isn't going to help anyone.

In fact, it could end up hurting those "quality writers" by effectively signing away their publishing rights. Your friends have heard of professionally written contracts, haven't they?

Also - please don't post this across multiple boards as we regard that as spamming. I'm being pretty lenient as it is allowing this thread to be moved to the Press Releases section.

 

[williamkooiker]

I'm being pretty lenient as it is allowing this thread to be moved to the Press Releases section.

I've obviously unknowingly done something that rubbed you the wrong way. Thank you for your needles disparagement. You're incredibly thoughtful and kind.

Who are you to tell others what these guys are like? Have you met them? Saying it reeks of unprofessionalism is like saying every self-published author reeks of unprofessionalism because they didn't get a publishing deal. This type of arrogance is . . . well, it's a perfect example of a stereotypical "elitist reader/writer." Like "Comic Book Guy" from The Simpsons, you have your opinions and likes, and apparently anyone who doesn't know as much about the subject as you, or has a differing opinion, is just wrong.

Nothing like striking something down before you've even seen the final product. I can say for a fact that my friend an extreme perfectionist, and this project, I assure you, will be very professional. In fact, they've already secured several authors beforehand, but wished to make an open call to others who might be interested. Geez . . .

As for the payment . . . well . . . no one is pointing a gun to your head to participate. And you said they're, "signing away their publishing rights." Are you serious? Did you even read it? It specifically states that all authors that send in stories will retain all rights to their creation. I suppose they're just lying.

I'm really not trying to be nasty here. But this guy is a very good friend of mine who's a really nice guy and VERY serious about this project. I feel like I need to defend him because I know him very well. The product will not be shoddy. Ahhh . . . whatever.

 

[scalem X]

My view:
In general I think the initiative is a good one and well it looks fun. It looks like self publishing without actually having to selfpublish. I get one novel and it costs say 6 euro to get me another one; well I buy like 40 more and ask my friends if they want to support me and buy the book (signed by me) for 8 euro.
In general it gives me 8O euro for the story which is nice and okay and it makes me feel good.

You see the problem is that I don't have the following information;
How many stories in a novel, what kind of paper and so on, what sort of cover, can I reread the other stories/speak with the other authors before I fully give away my story. How about reprints, can I ask for more copies and how much will they cost me, do I get a percentage on reprints that are made/requested by the other authors?

I believe that's the thing brian and also the faery queen are talking about.
I think that in general you might want to inform your friends who are setting up this thing, that they should calculate first and then put all detailed information on a site. If they stick to this model they might have endless e-mails from people who are asking things and will in the end retract their stories as they disagree with the "contracts" offered.

conclusion: the initiative looks nice, but it might be nice for some more details to be put up on the site.

 

[Pointfinder]

Doesn't look any different than scores of ezines that writers submit to every day. If you have a cool story and want to see it in print I say go for it. If you're at a level where publishers regularly pay for your work then its obviously not worth your time. If you have questions concerning the contract specifics they list an email address for you to contact them and ask. Just my thoughts.

 

[williamkooiker]

scalem X, I appreciate the less aggressive post (actually, the_faery_queen's wasn't all that nasty either). Thank you. I don't respond well to venom and I'm not all that pleased with the way I came across in that previous post.

Your questions are very legitamite, and I can bring them up with Harpreet (my friend) - especially concerning how many stories will be involved. Personally speaking, I've never seen an open call where the cover art was already finished before the stories were gathered, and as for paper, I guess I don't see how that makes a difference.

Harpreet is the kind of guy that would give the shirt off his back, so I can't imagine him getting irritated by e-mails asking questions (reprints, etc.). He wants to pull as much interest as he can. I'd answer your questions myself, but I don't know the answers. It never hurts to send Gallery Seven an email and ask, however.

I'm sure he'd be more than happy to e-mail the addresses of other participants if he was asked. I have them myself and have spoken to a few (I committed to the project when he asked me).

The whole website, (etc.) is brand new and I doubt that any of them are master web-designers. I still think that the fantasy open-call page looks more professional than some open-calls I've seen across the internet. Regardless, questions are meant to be answered. They'll take e-mails, and I'll make him aware of some of the issues brought up in this thread.

Is this helping at all, or am I making things worse?

 

[jackokent]

Is this helping at all, or am I making things worse?

"Worse? how could it be worse? Jehova Jehova Jehova !!!"

Sorry mate, just going off on one there. I thought it was helpful