I was distressed to learn this week that Soul Mate Publishing is going out of business. If it weren’t for Debby Gilbert I might never have published a single book. The encouragement and coaching I got from Debby and my editor Tamus Bairen made all the difference in those early days. Their care for their authors is and was stellar. Their portfolio covered the gamut of romance subgenres from Action to Time Travel and a variety of other women’s fiction genres as well. They provided a secure, dependable, ethical platform for born digital publishing. The industry is much poorer with their departure from the scene.
With that sadness comes a challenge and perhaps an opportunity. Debby’s announcement included this:
All books will be removed from sale September 30, 2024…[but] we are not selling the business. The rights to your work(s) will be returned to you once we remove the books from sale
The opportunity would be to relaunch my earlier series, oerhaps with new covers for the Dangerous Series. Children of Empire just got new covers. Higher percentage of royalty for the author would be a plus.The challenge will be to do it carefully and perhaps slowly, with some of the books out of circulation for a brief period. I should probably start with a marketing plan. Given my year off, maybe it is time for a full relaunch of my brand. The thoughts of my readers on all of this would be welcome.
Meanwhile I’m still working on the Christmas story. But first, coffee!
I am so sorry.This has happened to many people I know. I hope you find a HEA for your books.