This quote by
James D. Macdonald is demonstrative evidence of why every author needs to become a skeptic and why you need to utilize the
C.R.A.P test. C.R.A.P. is an acronym for Currency, Reliability, Authority and Purpose and Point of View.
There are a couple of things here to take issue with. Did Publish America really miss an opportunity with
Atlanta Nights (the book)? Not really. The book has a current Amazon Sales Ranking of 657,661. Few people (authors) are purchasing the book which is intended to assist the SFWA’s
Emergency Medical Fund. This book will never appeal to the general public and is nothing more than a self-serving endeavor and a pitiable literary masturbation get-together by it creators. Also, the funding for
Atlanta Nights (the movie)
failed to reach its goal. FACT: They were $18,702 shy of reaching their funding support. Also noteworthy,
James D. Macdonald and his accomplices failed to publically contribute any financial support to this film project. However, Macdonald,
Victoria Strauss and
Ann “A.C.” Crispin all have heavily promoted the project. They all want the limelight but can’t kick in one shekel to support the efforts (Rachael Saltzman, filmmaker, are you feeling used yet?). This project has resulted in an epoch failure. The producers are scrambling and have had little to say on their website or Facebook page. Without the necessary “errors and omissions” insurance this project is tantamount to lawsuit bait.
While “
Uncle Jim” [
James D. Macdonald] claims that Publish America “can’t sell” an author’s book(s), his own Amazon Sales Rankings currently range from 50,962 – 7,572,732. Can you say
chutzpah! Frankly, after a quick review, Publish America authors are kicking his New Hampshire-based
toches. Many of whom have rankings as high as 32,016; 18,946 points ahead of
James D. Macdonald. (Have you seen a
James D. Macdonald book in a store?)
Authors don’t be fooled by this misleading propaganda.
James D. Macdonald, in spite of his numerous published titles, is neither a house-hold name nor a New York Times best-selling author. Moreover, like his contemporaries,
Ann Crispin and
Victoria Strauss,
James D. Macdonald relies on
you to purchase his books and
t-shirts. In addition,
Yog’s Law, that
James D. Macdonald authored, has created
false expectations for new authors and is bursting with fallacies. These self-promotion efforts are off the chart and they exceed what one would normally expect from a “watchdog.” Have you noticed that on the
Writer Beware site that
Victoria Strauss and
Ann Crispin both have links for you to purchase their books? (See the links on the right.) This site is “sponsored by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America with additional support from the Mystery Writers of America,” both non-profit organizations. Can you say
inurement?
Chutzpah, Simply
Chutzpah!
References
“Making Light.” Patrick & Teresa Nielsen Hayden. 29 May 2011. Web. 30 May 2011. <http://nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/>.
