Tuesday, March 19, 2013

My Thoughts On A Recent Post & The Resulting Reaction.

I read a few posts today that really disturbed me and I don't mean the blog posts by two very well known gay romance authors, RJ Scott and Amber Kell. I mean the resulting reaction posts that followed when RJ Scott and Amber Kell were well within their rights to request that their readers no longer purchase their books from the publisher that has not paid them their royalties in their entirety for almost a year now. 

There are people out there who should be ashamed of themselves. Not only because they're trying to bully someone into not pursuing what is their right to pursue, but trying to stifle they're freedom of speech. The internet has given everyone a new voice, something not many would have had in the past. It's also given authors like me a chance to succeed in the publishing world when we may not have done so before. But it is the right of Rj Scott and Amber Kell to say what they want, where they want to because it's called the First Amendment.

"The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances. - Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution "

It is not anyone's right to sit there and try to make them feel bad for asking THEIR READERS to stop purchasing THEIR BOOKS from a particular publisher. It is not anyone's right to try and stop them from speaking their mind or stifle their voice just because someone doesn't agree with it. There is enough drama, enough censure, enough hypocritical b.s. in our genre that I cannot see how anyone can feel right for adding to it.

The amount of money owed to these two ladies is astronomically out of the ballpark range of anything I can imagine sitting back and waiting this long to open my mouth or start legal proceedings. I am owed money by the same publisher, but I am supporting these two wonderful women in whatever they choose to do and anyone who isn't understanding of their situation, because you know if you were in their shoes you'd be just as upset, then you need to take a good long hard look at yourself and the values you hold for yourself. Oh and go back and read their posts again. Their posts clearly say they are not speaking for other authors at the company, they are speaking for themselves and their books.

*Applauds RJ and Amber* I wholeheartedly, 100% support you both. I sincerely hope you take the advice I posted on Facebook and on RJ's blog. Team up, get a lawyer, and go get what is yours. I will help however you need me to. Let those naysayers say what they want. They have the freedom to say it, but it doesn't mean they're right and your readers will still love you and still 'stalk' you!

This is me exercising my freedom of speech and posting my thoughts. This may not gain me any friends and may even lead some to hate me, but to me, hatred is a nasty emotion that if you waste your life on it, you're the biggest loser in the whole scheme of things, not me.

Thank you,

J.R.

15 comments:

  1. I might not make another comment about this subject because it is so volatile, but I do support RJ and Amber and all of us with this publisher who are just waiting to see what happens.

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  2. Here Here, J.R for saying it and I certainly support both Amber and R.J for their wise actions.

    No-one I know would would hesitate to tell family, friends and customers not to buy something from a dodgy web site that rips you off. This is the same difference only this time it's a trader (the book site) not paying a supplier (the authors). They are obtaining goods and retailing them for profit under false pretenses, thereby making financial gain from what is tantamount to theft.

    In my opinion, this company needs publicly naming and shaming in order to get them to do something about solving the problem rather than letting them get away with burying their heads in the sand and pretending it isn't their fault. The longer it is hidden away from the book buying readers the longer it will go on for. They will continue to rack up royalties for these 'stolen goods' (and I know these are not the only two authors to suffer)the worse it is going to get. They need to either sort it out correctly or be blackballed out of the industry once and for all!

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  3. I agree with you, Amber, and RJ 100%.

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  4. I appreciate your support JR.

    Thank you so much.

    RJX

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  5. It's amazing that anyone would have a problem with someone saying "I'm not being paid by so and so and I would appreciate it if you didn't purchase my products from them." Not being paid for your work is theft and RJ Scott, Amber Kell, and the other authors involved in this mess have every right to stand up and say this is not fair. I agree with them and support them wholeheartedly. They have spent countless hours working on their books and we, the readers, have spent hours enjoying them. We would never sit back and allow people to work hard teaching, building, etc... without being paid their fair share. We condemn those businesses and employers who steal from their employees and clients. We always talk about how brave it is to stand up for your rights. For anyone to suggest that these authors should not speak up is very much in the wrong and would NEVER allow someone to tell them not to say a word. I hope this situation is resolved and the authors get the money they deserve.

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    1. Thank you Jase... you always say the right thing... RJ X

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    2. Thank you, Jase. There were comments made about my post and an attempt to make me feel bad about posting my thoughts, but I refuse to feel bad or anyone to imply I am in the wrong for stating the truth and standing up for RJ and Amber. I am also an author from the same publishing company and would STILL do this no matter what amount of monies were owed to me. And I think RJ and Amber have been patient enough. In fact, I would stand up and say without a doubt that if RJ hadn't been the one to take the lead on demanding to have answers from Silver, there would be a whole hell of a lot of authors from Silver in the dark. She is the one who started the Silver Authors group on Facebook for support and the one who got the owner of Silver to admit the truth.

      So thank you, Jase. I really appreciate your comment and hope you will continue to support these as well as all Silver authors who are attempting to pick up the pieces.

      JR

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    3. I will always support you, RJ, Amber, and the other authors. All of you have given me so much enjoyment with your books! I wish all of you the best!

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  6. The 3 of you are absolutly right.
    If you work and don't get paid you bring hell to earth but because you're a writer you can't make any kind of protest? It's your right, if not you're duty, to say it. I any of you who have visibility protest what about the young writers that are not heard for so many?
    I agree 100%!

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    1. Thank you hun, for the support... Hugs RJ X

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  7. I am totally on your side here. Enough of the games, smoke and mirrors.

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  8. Great post, JR! I, too, support RJ and Amber fully. The other Silver authors who are attacking them reek of desperation - how ever will they get paid if readers don't send money? (Well, maybe SP can borrow some like a smart business would?) And if new authors get wind of Silver's shenanigans and don't sign up, how will SP keep its house of cards from collapsing? (By fulfilling its financial obligations instead of taking fancy business trips, maybe?) I'm done with Silver - there are only so many dollars I have to spend and so many choices out there. I'll go with the the publishers who send my money on to the authors I choose.

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