iUniverse Royalty Payout Breakdown

Last night I received a royalty check from iUniverse.  It was an actual, physical check, which is not what I signed up for, because I don’t want to be charged a fee, and I don’t want to wait until I make $25 or more before receiving payment. I like instant gratification, and the free kind is best.  I am subscribed for direct deposit so I pay no fees and get my payment no matter how small it may be.

I said, I would report anything I learned about iUniverse and try to be as unbiased as possible.  As such, I will only state the facts about this account for Be Still, since I have thus far received two royalty payments.  Keep in mind, the first installment I had just put the book out and only had a little over a month in that sales quarter.

Here are the results:

2nd quarter:

Books Sold: 12

Net sales: $62.68

Payable to me: $17.34

What I actually received: $12.29

3rd quarter

Books sold: 27

Net Sales: 112.59

Payable to me: $36.65

What I actually received: $26.49

I called iUniverse today to ask whyy my net payable is less than what I am receiving. I was told that I had not filled out my tax info, so a standard 28% was being withheld.  Okay, maybe that was my fault. I immediately went on the website and fixed that.

I only post to this for those authors who are thinking of using iUniverse to publish. I have stated that I liked them due to the fact that I didn’t have to do any of the work myself, and as a very busy single mother and employed as a full-time nurse, this was an area I didn’t have time to spend in. I have heard complaints about royalties not being paid, etc. In my opinion, my numbers look correct. I know I have about 20 more Kindle sales at the end of the 3rd quarter, but I also know they may not have been reported yet, so i’ll have to keep an eye out there.

All-in-all, the royalty pay out is crappy at best, but I haven’t encountered a problem in the numbers being wrong. I may have to look into small publishing houses for my next book, but we’ll see. I’m not thrilled with the idea of being paid nearly 40%, when I already paid out a small fortune to publish. I know they have to make their profit somewhere, because they are a business after all. I am grateful to all I have learned from this experience, but I work my behind off for this book, and would like to see a better return on my investment. Not sure I will use them again, but only because I’d like to see a better spending to profit margin.

Kirkus Review is Absolute Fail

While publishing my book Be Still, I was advised to purchase a trifecta package of reviews which was Kirkus, Blue Ink, and the last one I just don’t recall, but their big players.  Or so I am told. So I paid $1500 for all three reviews, and after six months I finally received my final review, which was from Kirkus, which in my opinion was an absolute fail, but I’ll get back to that.

First, my opinion on these high profile review houses: They aren’t worth the cost. seriously, I received better reviews on Goodreads, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble from readers. Now, I’m not saying because they all left 5 star reviews, because some left less than that. God bless the world that everyone is able to have an opinion, and diverse ones at that.  I’m saying that the reviews left by John Q. Public were far more poignant–whether good or bad–than any three of the review houses I dished out for.

Second, being somewhat wet behind the ear as far as reviews went, i was under the impression that getting a good review from Kirkus, Blue Ink, or the other was going to send my career skyrocketing.  Not so.  In fact, Blue Ink and the other gave me wonderful reviews and I was very happy.  But they really do nothing to boost sales.  What I have discovered is that John Q. Public looks at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Goodreads.  As do I.

Third, if I am going to dole out a small fortune, the least Kirkus can do is cite the correct book.  Their review states: Tania Ramos (not Tania L Ramos) author of When I Thought I was Tough 2011, writes about…. blah blah blah. And the review unfolds.  My vice: if I am paying you a month of my son’s tuition for school the least you can do is cite the correct book you are reviewing. For example, instead of speaking of When I Thought I Was Tough, 2011 you can cite the book you actually reviewed, Be Still, 2011. Am I wrong?

And my final rant about paid reviews: They spend an entire page giving a synopsis of the book (which is on the back of the book or inside jackets, by the way), and write a one sentenced opinion at the very end.  And sometimes the opinion is that of a fifth grader, “Two thumbs up.” Hmmmm. I paid for two thumbs up? Holy moly, that’s like $350 a word between three review houses.

Okay fellow readers and authors, this is what I ask of you: if you read a book, please leave a review on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Goodreads or anywhere else.  You all do a much better job at reviews than the paid for reviews. So what did Kirkus say? Well, after citing the incorrect book, they did a synopsis, and closed with “a heartfelt novel weighed down by melodrama.”

Like I said, I don’t mind the review not being the best, but that was a lot of money for a one sentence bottom-line review.  I will never pay for another big name review again. Opinions on this? Is there really a reason to pay for these big reviews?

My Cat Trained Me For Rejection!

October, a.k.a “I keel you”

I’m thinking quite a few cat owners–and feline haters–can sympathize with this after a brief explanation.  Meet my kitty cat, Tober (aka; October [official name of birth], Toby, Toby Woby, Tobies, Evil Kitty and Psycho Cat).  The phrase, “I heard a strange noise and all of a sudden my face was bleeding,” has been heard a time or two.  No my house is not haunted with evil-doing poltergeists from a secret Indian burial site under my home…that’s just the rumor we tell people who are attacked lest the local animal authorities be called in.

What does this have to do with being trained for rejection? I’ll get there. So my bipolar cat does not like to be picked up, held, patted, or anything else she has not previously approved of.  And even when she gets into her strange “polar” moods, I pat her with extreme caution (and sometimes were leather work gloves).  She’s like the Sour Patch Kids commercial…first their sour then their sweet, except she is the opposite: sweet then sour. Or attack!

I have had to work for the love of this cat, all six bittersweet years.  For the most part anytime I pat her she attacks my hand–while purring! It is all quite strange, yet everyday I stop to give her a 15 second cuddle (all she allows for before glistening claws emerge).  I don’t argue with the claws, but occasionally and quite infrequently she will give off a soft pur and look at me through contented eyes and let me have a 20 second cuddle. I cherish these times, yet I have had to endure years of prissy, diabolic feline rejection to be ecstatic during the times of momentary cuddly bliss and the feel of a cold, wet nose nudging against my cheek–without being impaled after.

My point! Because I do have one in a round-about-kind-of-way.  Today I received a letter from Iuniverse stating Barnes & Noble turned down (a more polite way of saying, “REJECTED”) the opportunity to place, “Be Still,” in their actual physical stores. Talk about major bummer and suffering through a metaphorical hanging of my psyche.  This has been my greatest fear, the biggest road block keeping me from publishing all these years: Rejection. It sucks. I’m no Patterson, Rice, or Wilde but dadgum I don’t deserve to be tossed in the rejection pile, and for what? “A narrow market,” according to them.  Sigh.

Guess you’re wondering how my cat ties in? Well, as I was reading this declination email first thing in the morning, I was feeling pretty bummed. Not a whole bunch of depression or self-defeat; nothing like that, but kind of upset nonetheless.  As I was thinking what I should do next, avoiding that pesky little word “loser” that kept trying to creep into my forefront thought, what to my wondering eyes should appear? Tobers, my bipolar, wound inflicting, cat jumped into my window and leapt onto my bed, then crawled on my belly and my rubbed against my chin.  I hesitated to pat her–you would too–but she just purred and poked her cold nose on my forehead. And I thought: Hell, if I could survive six years of rejection from own my kitty cat then I could push past this minor inconvenience.  Besides, after six years she finally came to me looking for a little attention and so will those opportunities, someday. Then she bit my nose and I felt all was right with world once again.

Dedicated to October who has a quirk for putting things in perspective. I’ve also decided to start a feline-rejection program for future authors. If you fear rejection, if rejection is holding you back, then contact me for your free two week trial of the feline-rejection program where you will be sent one evil kitty for a two week trial so you to can learn to accept rejection. (hospital bills, cat scratch fever, depression, desolation, and the fear of sleeping in the same room with this cat may occur as a result of use…just saying).

Thank you for indulging my insanity.

~~~~~~~~written by, Tania L Ramos, author of When I Thought I Was Tough &  Be Still.

http://www.TaniaLRamos.com

Iuniverse Comes Through

After several phone calls and speaking to a multitude of people, Iuniverse finally connected me to the right person who did a full investigation of my problem with the book shipment.  In case you don’t know what I am talking about click here for my previous post on Iuniverse Where Art Thou.

The simple catch up is: Iuniverse sent me the wrong order and charged me all wrong.  I was over charged aprox $350 for books I did not ask for and never received books I did ask for, but instead received a bunch of paperback books.  I sent frequent emails in which I was told someone would contact me within 48 hours, but it never happened and follow-up emails were never returned.  I was upset and starting to believe all those rumors going around about this company.  I was devastated in thinking I had been duped.

Two weeks ago I started making phone calls to Iuniverse on my lunch breaks.  I received quite the run around and several, “let me look into this.” But one woman finally called me back and asked what had happened and for the fifth time I gave her my predicament.  She was confused as she went through my purchase history and said it didn’t make much sense.  Again, I heard the words, “Let me look into this and get back to you.”

Sigh. Biting lip.  ”Okay.”

Two days later she called and said my purchase order was written as 150 softcover books at 45% discount with 15 softcovers free and 25 hardcovers at 35% discount is what I asked for.  I agreed.  She asked what I actually received and I told her 180 softcover books: 150 at 45% discount and 30 at 35% discount.  She said she would call me back.  Thirty minutes later she called back and said the woman in charge of my purchase screwed up and that when several emails were sent to her and my PSA that the PSA forwarded the emails to a higher up.  My sales rep was summarily removed from her position for retraining but no one thought to fix the problem.

So this new woman who has been looking into it apologized for the inconvenience and said she was working on a solution and would call me back.  An hour later she called back and said she put in a rush order for 25 hardcover books and added another 10 softcover books for my troubles.  The shipping would be free and I would not be asked to pay the difference in the charges for the hardcover (apparently I was billed less for the softcovers originally since softcovers were $17.95 and hardcovers were $27.95) which was a savings of over $100 and Iuniverse had to take the loss in cost and in shipping the new books along with giving me 10 more for free which comes to a total savings of nearly $300.

I have to admit my faith was quickly dwindling and I was set to give a negative blog feedback, but in the right hands this problem was solved and Iuniverse admitted they were in error AND FIXED IT! That was all I wanted after all.  So big thanks to Iuniverse, who has just been sold to Penguin, a subsidiary of Pearse, for coming through. I received my shipment two days ago and it was sent express.

Now to sell all these books!

 

Tania L Ramos is the author of When I Thought I Was Tough and Be Still. She has received to awards for Be Still, published by Iuniverse and available on Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Nook, Kindle, and Ibook.  Currently working on a program to help new authors avoid the Big 3 point of view mistakes editors frown on.

See the author interview here: YouTube

Iuniverse, where art thou?

I have encountered my first problem with Iuniverse.  This comes months after starting the process and two months after my book went to print, or “live.”  I’m not saying this is a common problem or isolated case, and can not yet tell you the outcome as it is unresolved at this time.

problem: Billed incorrectly for author purchased books

I was told, as part of the special promo going in June, that I would receive free soft covers depending on how many books I ordered.  I was also told I would be given a discount of some hardcover books.  What I received were my purchased books plus the softcovers that were free.  No hardcover books were in my delivered order.  I was also billed for the “free” softcovers at 35% discount, and billed for my 150 books at 40% discount.  It made no sense to me and so I’m not sure how it made any sense to the person punching in the oder and numbers.

Problem: I sent an email and was told someone would respond to me within 48hrs.  That was on June 26, 2012. I’m a nice person so I gave them a cushion for response. None.

So I sent out another email last night asking for a full refund on the softcover books they sent that were supposed to be free.  I also said I no longer needed the hardcovers since my book selling dates have all passed, except one this Sunday and I’m sure the books would not be here by then.

I have yet to receive a response.  This is my only complaint so far. I have enjoyed their service.  It is great but not fantastic and they do tend to get pushy on the sales end for selling extra parts of a package.  But overall I have loved their work.  My best advice would to have an outsider do your editing.  My book was edited 3 times and still has mistakes I would think a lay editor would find.  Also, don’t rely on their artwork. Send in the cover as you want it unless you absolutely have no choice but to use them, and in that case be very specific about what you want.

They have come through with everything they say they will on my end, but I wouldn’t call of it five star quality work.  They deliver, but if you want complete quality you have to be the one to demand it and go over everything with a fine toothed comb. Do not add extras you can do yourself for cheaper.

Would I recommend Iuniverse at this point? Yes, but with the cautions I have stated above. I have yet to see a royalty statement or book sales tally, so I can not comment there. Do I love my book? Yes.  Would I do it different? Yes. I would have hired an outside editor to do a final review.

I will let you know the outcome of the book charges and incorrect book order when I hear something from them. Soon, I hope.

You can find my book published by Iuniverse at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Also available on Nook, Kindle, and Itunes bookstore.  ”Be Still,” by Tania L Ramos is a second novel.