Iris Woes, Again

I’ve been really circumspect in what I’ve said regarding the whole Iris Print situation – I’ve expressed frustration, yes, but have held back from really getting into this subject because I felt that Kellie was doing the best she could and I didn’t want to add to her problems by blackening her name or that of the press on the Internet. Unfortunately, that has to change now.

The royalty check I received last week was returned by my bank for insufficient funds. I wrote Kellie yesterday, asking her to make good via Paypal, and have heard nothing. Honestly, I’d rather she not have paid me at all rather than sending me a bad check. I get ‘I can’t afford to pay you right now.’ I’ve been there – living from hand to mouth, paycheck to paycheck. What I don’t get and can’t accept is no apology, no attempt thus far to make restitution, no word at all. Even if she hasn’t got my email, I’m pretty sure her bank will have informed her of that her check was dishonored, if, of course, she didn’t know it from the start.

I’ve bounced checks before, back in the day. As soon as I knew the check wasn’t good, usually because I can’t add or subtract worth crap, I’d contact the merchant and do whatever I needed to do to make it right. That’s what I expect.

So here’s what it comes down to – I wrote Kellie probably 4 times in April and May and finally, on May 22, got an answer that said that she was shutting Iris down and would be announcing that officially ‘next week.’ It’s now mid-June and there’s been nothing official. My rights, such as they are, are in limbo until she does something, and now I’m not even being paid royalties on the books that are selling through Iris’s site (or wherever – not Amazon or B&N as they’re not being restocked).

At this point, I feel that I have no choice but to officially ask people not to buy new copies of Thaw. I hate to do that, as I want my book read, but a writer is entitled to a reasonable royalty on the sale of her work, and until this situation is resolved, I can’t support Iris’s efforts in any way.

My contract has provision for the return of my rights if Iris goes out of business, and the minute she officially announces, I will be seeking a new publisher. Preferably one with a proven track record.