Promotional image for the Black Hare Press anthology “Lockdown Sci-Fi #3”
Remember this? I announced that my short story “The Apollo Containment” was to be published in the Black Hare Press anthology Lockdown Sci-Fi #3. I’ve even got my signed copy of the contract to prove it.
However, last night when I happened across the publisher’s Facebook page promoting Lockdown Sci-Fi #4 including a list of stories and their authors (and I wasn’t on the list), I asked about it. I got a rather terse response like “Where did you hear that? No story is accepted until we announce it here.” I immediately deleted my FB comment. They also mentioned something about stories being shuffled around, so maybe “Apollo” will still see the light of day, but who knows?
It was a freebee, so it’s not like I’m losing money on the deal, but I still thought it was a cool story and wanted to see it in print.
This isn’t the first time I received notice of an acceptance and then the publisher (not Black Hare) reversed themselves. This is the problem dealing with indie publishers. Most are pretty good and behave professionally, but occasionally, a dodgy one accepts your story then disappears down the rabbit hole never to be heard from again (with your story).
That doesn’t include the many submissions I’ve made over the past several years and then never heard back from the publisher, even after repeated emails.
You see, this is what gives me trust issues.
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Of what value, then, is your signed contract? What precisely does that contract guarantee or stipulate? What penalties apply to the publisher in the event of their default?
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Probably not much, but I’d have to read it again. They’ve been putting out a ton of these “Lockdown” anthologies, so I suspect their organizational skills aren’t the best.
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