Lee Goldberg

I Knew This Was Coming

by

Victoria Strauss reports that BookWise has gone — surprise! surprise! — into the vanity press business, a natural extension of their multi-level marketing scheme. They are charging gullible aspiring writers $6000 to "publish" their books and for "intensive training" at their WriteWise (aka PublishStupid) seminars taught by "Industry Experts" who, outside of BookWise founders author Richard Paul Evans and get-rich-quick huckster Robert G. Allen, have no actual industry experience.

Their "expert" faculty consists of the teacher of the Info-Preneuring Teleclass for the Enlightened Wealth Institute, a self-published cookbook author, and three authors who write fiction exclusively for the "LDS market"  ("work consistent with the standards and principles of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ").  I guess Lori Prokop, Michael Drew, and Brien Jones were unavailable.

You will also get such amazing benefits as "an official BookWise review" and your photograph taken  with BookWise founders Evans and Allen. Wow! Where do I sign up?

BookWise thinks that "anyone who is a serious writer" would gladly pay $20-30,000 for all of this,   so six grand is a bargain. But "serious" writers know better than to take seminars from vanity press publishers and industry know-nothings who have a clear profit motive and glaring conflict-of-interest behind their "teaching."

This is no ordinary vanity press scheme. To lure in as many suckers as possible, BookWise is offering a $1000 bounty for every paying sucker their multilevel marketing associates can bring in. Prepare to be spammed. But wait, there’s more, as Victoria reports:

There’s another twist to the story. For writers accepted into
WriteWise, Richard Paul Evans and Robert G. Allen will become their
literary agents, receiving, according to the WriteWise brochure, "the
standard agency fee [of] 15% of the royalties that an author receives
from the publisher." The brochure makes it clear, however, that not
every book will be shopped: "…depending upon circumstances, BookWise
Publishing may also present your book to other major publishers." In
this arrangement, most of the benefit is on the agents’ side: they
don’t actually have to do anything for you (unlike in a normal
author-agent relationship), but if they do, they get paid twice.

These guys are taking the vanity press scam to a whole new, and truly sleazy, level.

A New Approach to Fandom

by

Tennant_wideweb__470x2890
The Los Angeles Times reports today that DR. WHO executive producer Russell T. Davies is taking a new approach to fans. He’s completely ignoring them.

"I think we’re an unusual
science-fiction franchise in taking a very big step back from fandom
and having nothing to do with them. . . . Every program on the BBC has
a message board on the website. I forbid it to happen on ‘Doctor Who.’
I’m sorry to say this, all the science fiction producers making stuff
in America, they are way too engaged with their fandom. They all need
to step back."

His policy of ignoring the fans doesn’t seem to be hurting his show at all.  In fact, it may be helping by making his show more accessible to mainstream audiences worldwide.

It falls to
Davies "to keep balancing how much continuity there is, how many
stand-alone elements there are." Ever mindful of the shows’ "mainstream
audience" (meaning, not just sci-fi enthusiasts) and put off by
"exclusivity" in general, he said he is reticent of creating overly
inclusive stories dependent on viewers’ in-depth knowledge of ornate
histories.  This job is made easier by Davies’ policy of ignoring the voices of those most vigilant.

Is there a lesson to be learned here for showrunners?    

Behind the Cover of Beneaththecover.com

by

Book marketer/publicist Michael R. Drew has put together a site called beneaththecover.com under the guise of helping aspiring writers with expert advice…except all the "advice" is coming from publicists and self-publishers looking to sell their services to the unwary.

In an apparent bid to legitimize their effort, they have been reaching out to "hundreds" of authors, hoping to convince them to provide free content to the site. I’m one of the authors they contacted. Lehi Drew wrote, in part:

Just wanted to let you know about our trend-setting website. And I’m
hoping you’ll like it enough to accept our invitation to become a
contributor. You see, I’ve seen your blog site,A Writer’s Life, and I
think you’re a great writer..

Our website is dedicated to professionals of the book industry, and it’s called Beneath the Cover (www.beneaththecover.com).  It also has an associated blog site, Push the Key (www.pushthekey.com).

What’s in it for you? As a contributor, your name and blog site will be
constantly seen by hundreds and even thousands of book industry
visitors every day. At our site, we draw people from every level of the
book industry, including authors, writers, marketers, publishers,
editors, and agents.

Your Articles. As visitors see your articles on a regular basis and
enjoy your style and the substance of your expertise, they’ll become
familiar with your writing, your expert reputation, and your marketing
platform.

Wouldn’t it be great if you sent a manuscript to a publisher or an
agent and they responded with, “I’m familiar with your work on Beneath
the Cover, so I took the time to go over your manuscript. Let’s talk.”
Wow!

Wouldn’t be great if a publisher got my manuscript and said "Lee is so damn witty and good looking, we’ll give him a $1 million contract without reading a word!"  That’s about as likely to happen as the ridiculous fantasy Beneath the Cover is trying to entice me with. I ignored Lehi’s email. So, a week later, she tried again.

First, let me reassure you that this is not part
of a mass mailing from a list of names/sites that I bought or got from
someone else. I AM mailing to hundreds of writers like yourself, but I’ve been to each site personally.

So, it’s not a mass mailing, but they ARE contacting hundreds of writers. Hmmm. She went on to say:

You,
obviously, have had a lot of experience writing. I can see that, not
only by the fact that you’ve done screenwriting, but by the number of
books you have listed on your blog. I am confident that this shows that
you have great insight into how the book industry works. 

I would very much like for you to become a weekly contributor to Beneath the Cover. I
think that because you’re an experienced author, that you would have
advice for other authors trying to get published and writing.  I really
think that, plus your knowledge of the industry, would make you a good
fit with us and our other contributors.

I responded that if she really read my blog, she’d know that I wouldn’t be the least bit interested in lending my time, effort, or good name to help them sell promotional and self-publishing services to writers under the guise of offering "advice."  In fact, if anything, my advice would be to avoid their site. I also said:

Your site is an outgrowth of Michael Drew’s book promotion business and, not surprisingly, the majority of your contributors come from the self-publishing industry or are selling book promotion & marketing services…
which creates a real conflict-of-interest when it comes to the "advice"
they are giving.

Your contributors have something to sell, and so does
Drew. The only thing that I or any other published author would be
doing by contributing to your site would be lending our credibility to your underlying effort to advance the promotional and
self-publishing services your experts are selling.

I don’t see any published authors among their experts, so it  looks like their "not a mass mailing" to hundreds of authors hasn’t worked. I guess real authors are a lot smarter than the hucksters think we are.

UPDATE:  They also contacted my brother Tod, asking him to contribute to their site. He asked them what they pay…and they said not a dime because "Beneath the Cover is a cooperative venture for building marketing platforms of everyone involved." At least they were honest with him about their real motives (though it’s pretty obvious to anyone who visits their site). I’m surprised they haven’t brought in Lori Prokop  or the experts over at Airleaf  as contributors yet…

Who Needs Tums? Read My Books Instead

by

Cerritos_millennium_library_main_st
Today I was on a panel with Steve Cannell, Harley Jane Kozak, Dr. D.P. Lyle and my brother Tod at the spectacular Cerritos Library for their annual "Mystery on the Menu" program. It was my first time there and I was stunned by the library — it looks like Rick Caruso (developer of The Grove) and the Disney Imagineers teamed up to design the place. I have never seen anything like it, so rather than describe it, you can look at it for yourself here in 360 degree views. The visit to the library alone was well worth the trip. I had a great time, and caught up with Kirk Russell, Richard Greer, Patricia Smiley, Jerrilyn Farmer and Earlene Fowler, among other authors. 

The "Murder on the Menu" program is a lot like the "Men of Mystery" event…each author is at a table with ten guests and does a "table talk" at lunch, giving the attendees a chance to get up-close-and-personal with the authors. I had some really interesting discussions with a lot of bright and creative people. But I also had more than my share of strange encounters.

"I love your books," one woman said.

"Thank you," I replied.

"They are so relaxing," she said. "And they really help my digestion."

I think I am going to put that on the cover of my next book. It’s the best comment I’ve had since the San Francisco Chronicle called my book UNSOLD TV PILOTS "The best bathroom reading ever."

Another woman picked up one of my books and asked:

"Is this one good?"

"No," I said. "It’s awful. I wrote it while I was trying to kick my heroin addiction."Exterior1

"Really?"

"No."

"Then why did you say that?"

"What did you expect me to say?" I replied. "Of course I think it’s good. I wrote it."

"Well," she said. "I was hoping for your honest opinion."

Not one minute later, another woman (the audience was 99 % women) picked up one of my books and asked me:

"How much did it cost you to publish this?"

"Nothing," I said.

"Really?" she asked. "What about the other authors? What did they pay?"

"Nothing," I said. "We all got paid to write our books."

"Is that something new?"

"No," I said.

"I thought everybody had to pay," she said.

"No," I said. "That’s not the way it works."

"That’s not what I’ve heard," she said.

I quickly educated her in how  the business works. And after my long speech, she nodded and asked.

"How much did it cost you to get an agent?"

A woman at my able bought Doug Lyle’s excellent FORENSICS FOR DUMMIES book and asked me:

"You’re friends with Dr. Lyle, aren’t you?"

"Yes, I am," I said. "He’s also my doctor."

"How did he get away with calling his book FORENSICS FOR DUMMIES without getting sued by the DUMMIES people?"

"They were the ones who hired him to write the book," I said.

"Really?" she said. "So that’s how you do it."

But I think the best question I got asked came from a woman at my table who said she’d been writing novels for years but hadn’t had any luck getting them published and wanted my advice.

"I write them by hand in spiral-bound notebooks," she said. "I have written a dozen novels."

"And then what do you do with them?"

"I put them in a box in my attic," she said.

I looked at her. "You haven’t sent them to any publishers?"

She shook her head.

"You haven’t written any query letters to agents or publishers?"

She shook her head again.

"So how do you expect them to get published?"

She shrugged.

"Did you think someone was just going to knock on your door one day and ask if you have any novels written on spiral notebooks that he can read?"

She shrugged again. "That’s the part I was hoping you could clear up for me."

I haven’t compared notes yet with Tod to see what strange conversations he had, but I’m sure he’ll blog about it if he had any…

Can Barnaby Jones Save The Human Race?

by

51qbuacoikl_ss500_
I’ve stumbled on something extraordinary … a BARNABY JONES novel written by Buddy Ebsen with Darlene Quinn and "published" by Authorhouse, the print-on-demand vanity press. I couldn’t resist buying the  $4.95 ebook version. What’s interesting about SIZZLING COLD CASE is that it was published in 2006, three years after Ebsen’s death, and is copyrighted by Ebsen & Quinn, even though they don’t own the copyright to the TV series its based on.

In other words, it’s fanfiction…and it’s being sold on Amazon and on Authorhouse’s site.  That’s a big no-no, as Lori Jareo could tell you. She wrote her own unlicensed STAR WARS novel and sold it on Amazon…and was promptly slapped down by Lucasfilm.

But this blatant violation of copyright isn’t likely to turn Quinn into another Jareo, mainly because BARNABY JONES isn’t a huge media property like STAR WARS, isn’t protected by lawyers as vigilant as those at LucasFilm, and is based on notes from Ebsen, who played Barnaby Jones, the elderly private eye. That doesn’t mean Ebsen actually owns the character…but hiding behind Ebsen’s ghost and his heirs will probably protect Quinn from a cease-and-desist letter.  Besides, it’s not like anybody gives a damn about BARNABY JONES…and that probably includes the studio that owns the property. Can you imagine any studio suing Buddy Ebsen’s family for publishing and selling "Barnaby Jones" fanfic? I can’t.  Even so, publishing the book and copyrighting the character of Barnaby Jones as if it was their own was a pretty ballsy thing for Quinn and the Ebsen estate to do. 

I must confess that I haven’t bothered reading the book. I couldn’t get past Quinn’s fan lyrics to the "Barnaby Jones" theme in the opening pages. I was laughing too hard:

Though many dangers now surround you
And evil lurks beneath the night
One man will fight the wrong around you
And strike a blow to make it right
When naked terror rides the highways
And sudden death waits in the street,
one man alone will roam the byways
confronting crime he must defeat
Barnaby, Barnaby — what driving force has set your pace?
Barnaby, Barnaby — can one man save the human race?

You can sing along with this:

Rowling Protects Her Copyright

by

When the Harry Potter Lexicon website announced plans last fall to publish a book based on their fan-written content, JK Rowling and Warner Brothers sued for copyright infringement.  A Federal judge halted the planned November publication of the book while the lawsuit plays out. Now Tim Wu at Slate argues that Rowling has gone too far.

Are fan guides actually illegal? As sympathetic as I am to Rowling and her rights as an author, the answer is no. There is a necessary and healthy line between what the initial author
owns and what follow-on, or "secondary," authors get to do, and Rowling
is running over that line like the Hogwarts Express. The creators of
H.P. Lexicon may not be as creative as Rowling, but they are authors,
too, and deserve a little respect from the law.

[…] Rowling takes the position that she, as the original author, has the
right to block the publication of any such guide. In her words:
"However much an individual claims to love somebody else’s work, it
does not become theirs to sell." But Rowling is overstepping her bounds.

It appears he is wrong, at least from a legal standpoint. A reader on Rebecca Blood’s site refers to previous court precedents that support Rowling’s claim:

Castle Rock Entertainment, Inc. v. Carol Publ. Group, 150 F.3d 132 (2d
Cir. 1998), aka, the Seinfeld Trivia case. Someone created and
published an unlicensed book of Seinfeld trivia, with details about
characters and lines in the show, arguing that doing so was fair use
and merely a compilation of facts. The court held that the facts about
the show weren’t really facts, but rather expressions of the creators’
imaginations, and the most important fair use factor of effect on the
market was in Seinfeld’s favor since they had plans for their own
derivative books based on the show. See also Twin Peaks v. Publications
Int’l, Ltd. 996 F.2d 1366 (2d Cir. 1993), which was plot summaries and
quotations from the TV show Twin Peaks – again, the court held that the
amount of material taken from the original was substantial and
adversely affected the market for authorized books about the show, and
so denied a fair use defense to copyright infringement."

Variety reports that Rowling is taking action because interferes with her plans to do her own compendium.

"I cannot, therefore, approve of ‘companion books’ or ‘encyclopedias’
that seek to preempt my definitive Potter reference book for their
authors’ own personal gain," Rowling said in a statement, released by
Warner Brothers.

[…]The lawsuit doesn’t seek action against the Web version of the Lexicon,
but criticizes it for numerous sections it said "regurgitate Ms.
Rowling’s original creative expression with minimal additional
commentary."

The CBC reports that Rowling isn’t happy about having to take the fans to court.

Rowling had been a supporter of the website and in a statement
released on her website, Rowling admitted she took "no pleasure" in
launching the lawsuit.

"I feel massively disappointed that this matter had to come to court
at all," the statement said. "Given my past good relations with the
Lexicon fan site, I can only feel sad and disillusioned that this is
where we have ended up."

The outcome of this case, if it goes to trial, could have far-reaching impact on how far fans can take their so-called derivative work and claim it as their own.

(Thanks to "Calistoy" for the heads-up).

The O.T.W. Wants Your Copyright

by

Novelist and First Amendment attorney Julie Hilden argues that authors and rights holders should be very concerned about the Organization for Transformative Work’s proposal to extend copyright  protection to fan fiction. She writes, in part:

Does fan fiction deserve to share the same
respect as original work, for copyright purposes? The OTW’s proposal
suggests so. Recognizing fan fiction as "legal and transformative"
would put it on a par at least with "fair uses" of original works, and
perhaps also with the works themselves. And the recognition of fan
fiction as "legitimate creative activity" seems to put it on, or close
to, the level of original works. But is that the fair or right level
for fan fiction to occupy?

Hilden doesn’t think so. She believes if copyright protection is extended to "fannish works," the original authors or rights holders will suffer a very real, detrimental impact with far-reaching implications.

the OTW is not asking for a fixed, low
royalty rate for fan fiction; rather, it is trying to destroy original
authors’ ability to both silence fan fiction and require
royalties for it. Thus, the OTW has bypassed the more moderate solution
of a low, fixed, statutorily-mandated royalty rate for fan fiction that
effectively sets that rate at zero.
Does that matter?
Absolutely. Even those who strongly value fan fiction may worry about
maintaining authors’ incentives to create the original works that feed
it.

 

The OTW’s proposal is a complete abrogation of
control with no compensation for taking away rights, or any
substitution of rights (for instance, switching a right to refuse to
license fan fiction with a right to charge a low, statutorily-mandated
royalty.) In this sense, it is the most extreme proposal possible.

And one not likely to succeed, if the OTW is foolish enough to pursue it.  It would poke the studios, publishers, and authors right in the blind eye that they’ve been regarding fanfiction with for years. That should have fanficcers very worried. All it will take is one court challenge by the O.T.W for that blind eye to open and view the entirety of fan fiction with a very hostile gaze.

The studios, publishers, and authors aren’t about to sit back and allow such an outrageous rights grab…nor,  Bilden argues, should they. She believes that copyright law is rightfully tipped in favor of original creators:

Our Constitution’s Copyright Clause has always
seen original authors as far more important than derivative users.
However, especially in light of the Internet’s influence, many have
taken issue with that hierachy – even to the extreme of ignoring
original authors’ interests.

[…]not only does the Copyright Clause in fact
privilege these creators over derivative users, but that hierachy may
be the right one, from the standpoint of policy: Original work may
actually be more worthy, in that it brings something genuinely fresh
and innovative into the world, representing a creative leap and not
just an incremental extension.

But, incredibly, the O.T.W. believes that Harry Potter slash fic is on equal footing with J.K. Rowling’s books and deserves the same protections as her work…more over, that it deserves to be protected specifically from her.  And they don’t understand why authors might have a problem with this…

The Mail I Get

by

I got this email today:

Why are you so hard on print-on-demand publishers? It’s the wave of the future. You seem to think if a publisher is strictly POD that they are a scam.

You are mixing two different thoughts…publishing and technology. Let’s deal with the "publishing" aspect first.

Being a POD press, in and of itself, doesn’t mean
that they are dishonest. But the likelihood of you selling many books, or
getting any critical notice, when going with a POD press are extraordinarily slim.
POD presses are notoriously
fly-by-night and financially unstable.  Why? Because anybody with a credit card can start a POD press and call
themselves a publisher, whether or not they have any experience at editing, distribution, promotion, or running a business. So the quality of the editing, cover art, and
professionalism is often iffy at best. Most POD presses are launched by
aspiring authors who want to publish their own work and, sadly, many are also started by scammers who prey on the gullibility and desperation of wannabe writers.

As  for the print-on-demand technology, I don’t know whether it is the "wave of the future" but it is being embraced by more and more real publishers for printing galleys and keeping their backlist alive (which presents challenging issues for authors  in dealing with publishers, who can use POD to claim their books are never "out of print" and the rights never revert back). Whether POD will ever replace traditional off-set printing of trade paperbacks…well, that’s yet to be seen.

Socializing and stuff

by

I’ve run into a lot of old friends on the picket line and it has been great catching up with them. It’s made me wonder why it took a strike for me to finally see them again. So one of my new year’s resolutions is to stay in better touch with my friends.

The day before going to NY last week, I had breakfast with actors Erin Cahill and Maurice Roeves from my movie FAST TRACK (not that I had lost touch with them) and then lunch with Javier Grill0-Marxuach, best known for his work on LOST.  I enjoyed hearing about his terrific experience shooting his pilot THE MIDDLEMAN and recalling our time together on SEAQUEST. It’s nice to see that he’s every bit as boyishly enthusiastic about the biz as he was when we first met.

Today I got a 24-hour reprieve from jury duty, so I was able to grab lunch with Terry Winter, best known for his work on THE SOPRANOS, who had me laughing so hard with anecdotes and stories that I nearly choked on my club sandwich more than once.  And tonight I had dinner with Carl Strueck, our stunt coordinator from FAST TRACK, who is visiting L.A. with his lovely wife.

Seeing more of  my friends has nothing to do with "networking" and everything to do with simply staying connected to people whose company I enjoy…especially those who, with the exception of a few email exchanges and occasional phone calls, I haven’t actually seen in a while. 

I’ve also been doing a lot of writing (nothing for studios or networks, of course!). Mostly I have been working on my books. But  I optioned an Edgar-nominated crime novel a year ago and the strike has given me the opportunity (and the time) to finally write the script. I know many other writers who have used the "down time" to write that personal "passion project" that they haven’t had time to get around to….until now.  I’m sure that once the strike is over, Hollywood will probably be flooded with fresh material. I hope mine won’t get lost in the script tsunami.

Things have been hectic at home. My daughter got a 3-month old puppy from the pound and it’s like having a baby in the house again. Our nights are, to put it mildly, a challenge lately. But the puppy is adorable and sweet and learning fast.

Tomorrow I am free from jury duty again…but tomorrow I have to call in again and see if I am needed to bring justice to the lawless west.

 

New York, NY

by

My Dell laptop crashed on my first night in NY…this is the second time this has happened, and I had to spend 2 1/2 hours on the phone with Dell before they, too, were convinced that my computer had, indeed, crashed again (this brings my total time spent on the phone to customer support to seven hours since I bought this computer). So they are sending a guy out to my house next week to replace the motherboard and the hard disc, which means I can’t do any writing this weekend (I am posting this on the hotel computer).

I spent Friday walking all over Manhattan, first to The Strand to browse the used books, and then to lunch with my editor, publisher and agent. I am pleased to report that the MONK books are doing very, very well and that there will likely be more to come after my current contract ends this Spring.  They are also very excited about the BURN NOTICE books from my brother Tod and the PSYCH novels from my writing partner Bill Rabkin. This time next year, Tod, Bill and I will be doing lots of signings together to promote our new books.

After the meeting, I went to a few more bookstores…and stumbled into a sale at Taschen, where I bought lots of big, heavy books that I had to lug around to Partners & Crime, which hosted a signing party for all the MWA Board members in town. I caught up with Joseph Finder, Lee Child, Harlan  Coben, Harry Hunsicker, Les Klinger, Louise Ure, Charles Todd and many more folks.  Everyone was very excited about the list of Edgar nominees that was announced yesterday and there was lots of discussion about the WGA strike. I got the latest on Lee, Joseph and Harlan’s pre-strike Hollywood adventures.

The party soon moved to a Chinese restaurant, where we gorged ourselves for a few more hours before Les and I decided to walk the 40 blocks back to our hotel. All in all, a long, fun, and exhausting day.

Today I won’t be getting nearly as much exercise. I’ll be locked in a board meeting all day and then tonight it’s another big dinner with the Board….and then tomorrow I return to L.A.