Re-Post on Why I Left Vanilla Heart Publishing

I have been asked to re-post this story about Vanilla Heart Publishing and their unethical business practices; so here it is.  If you are an author seeking a publisher or if you know of an author seeking representation, please read this and heed the warning.  Vanilla Heart is not the only small press publishing company guilty of these charges.  Do your homework before signing a contract with ANYONE.  Protect your rights and your work from scam artists and liars like Kimberlee Williams and Vanilla Heart Publishing.

In October 2010 I signed a contract with Vanilla Heart Publishing to publish my debut novel, No Easy Way, which was nominated for the 2010 Molly Award by the Heart of Denver Romance Writers. 

In August 2013, eight novels later, I terminated my relationship with Vanilla Heart Publishing on the grounds of a severe breach of contract, misrepresentation, fraud and theft pertaining specifically to Articles #5, #7, #10, and #11 of the contract.

During my stay at Vanilla Heart, I upheld my end of the agreement.  I continued to write novels, producing eight in less than three years.  I continued to submit my novels to Vanilla Heart first, as per our contract she was entitled to a thirty day right of first refusal on all Just Call Me Angel books.  I continued to blog, participate in blog tours, promote and market my work through book clubs, book signings, holding contests and networking via numerous social media outlets (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Pinterest, Goodreads, Instagram, etc.)  In return for my loyalty, I was lied to, manipulated and used.

Upon confronting Vanilla Heart Publishing with the breach of contract, misrepresentation and fraudulent activity, I was given no apology for wrongdoing nor was there an admission of remorse whatsoever.  Instead, I was sent a list of termination items wherein it was stated that I was “not to discuss the Author’s Group or any information from that group, or discuss Vanilla Heart Publishing, nor speak as an agent or former agent of the publisher, either by verbal, written, or electronic communication with any persons, groups, or agents.” It goes without saying that I did not agree to this and, per the advice of my attorney, informed Vanilla Heart that all statements that are factual, unbiased and can be proven with subpoenaed records, email correspondence or any other written form of communication do not fall into the category of slander or libel and are allowable for discussion in any setting, person-to-person, blog, group format or social media.   

My attorney is now in the process of reviewing back royalty statements from all of the distribution channels and thus far the information I have received from Vanilla Heart Publishing does not come close to matching the real reports in number of books sold nor in amount of money owed.  I sit amazed at how I have been ripped off for almost three years.  It saddens and angers me.

I requested royalty statements from Vanilla Heart at least eight documented times since October 2010.  Every statement was falsified.  Every paycheck came months late.  I never even received a statement for 2012 from Vanilla Heart and the check I received doesn’t match the distributor’s royalty records for the quarterly periods during that time.  Each time I requested a statement or a check I was promised it and then given an excuse as to why it would be late.  The excuses ranged from severe medical issues to a gardening accident and countless laptop crashes, an accountant who allegedly printed the reports too small to be read and the post office that lost checks or statements along the way.  Every excuse added to the sour pit growing in my stomach.  Still, I wanted to believe that everything was on the up-and-up; but, over time,  there were just too many red flags.

Little did I know, but several of the Vanilla Heart authors were experiencing the same frustrations I was.  No statements.  Late checks.  Excuses galore.  The problem was, for a long time, none of us communicated with one another.  We didn’t compare notes and that’s exactly how Vanilla Heart wanted it.  Manipulative phone calls from the Publisher psychologically pitted one author against another.  “She’s the next one I’m getting rid of,” was said to me on several occasions, referring to fellow Vanilla Heart authors.  The Publisher made a point to let everyone know who was in her “Core Group” and who was not.  I was in the Core Group and I think that was one of the reasons it never dawned on me that she might be breaching our contract at all, much less in so many ways.  I was made to feel “special” as if we had more than just a business relationship…as if we were “friends.”  Friends don’t steal from or lie to friends, my mind would justify… but the red flags waved.

It wasn’t until two of the Core Group authors left within a short period of time that I mustered up the courage to start asking questions and digging deeper into what was going on.  I dug out every contract, read through every email, analyzed my notes from phone calls, etc.  Every hour spent researching deepened the pit in my stomach and leant proof to the revelation I didn’t want to face:  Vanilla Heart was guilty.

Guilty of copyright infringement.

Guilty of breach of contract.

Guilty of misrepresentation of intent.

Guilty of fraud.

Guilty of theft. 

On August 10, 2013 under the guidance of my attorney, a termination letter was sent to Vanilla Heart Publishing.  A complaint was filed with the Washington Attorney General’s Office and DCMA Take Down Notices and Perjury Statements sent to every distributor that carried my books under the Vanilla Heart imprint.  All books in all formats were pulled from the market.  The distributors worked quickly to make this right, as their policy is first and foremost to protect the intellectual property of the author. 

I want to give a shout out to the employees at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, All Romance Ebooks/OmniLit and Payloadz who were amazing in getting my attorney the information we needed (and I deserved) and in helping to protect my intellectual property rights going forward.  These people were absolutely amazing and I am grateful to all of them. 

My publisher used to call Amazon “Damazon” and always told me how slow and non-responsive they were.  That must have been a lie too…because after this experience, I would dub them “Amaz(ing)on.”

So, why am I writing this blog?  Because I feel a moral obligation to warn other writers who are as naïve as I was and can become easy prey.  The warning signs were there, but I didn’t see them…or I choose to look the other way.  Don’t make the same mistake I did.  

As an author, you deserve to have your books registered with the U.S. Copyright office.  You deserve a signed contract on every book.  You deserve to have timely statements and timely royalty payments and those statements and payments should match down to the penny.  You deserve a publisher who will protect your rights and who will not breach your contract.  You deserve a publisher who will conduct business in an ethical and moral manner, not hide behind excuses and outright lies.  You deserve better than Vanilla Heart Publishing.

In the past two months, seven authors have left Vanilla Heart… all of which were a part of the “Core Group.”  Some of us have found other publishers who have picked up our work.  I’ve signed with Global Publishing Group and my books will be back on the market in all formats by the end of the week. Others have decided to self-publish and still others are so shell-shocked they haven’t decided what to do.  What happened to us wasn’t fair and it wasn’t right, but we are all dedicated writers and will come out on top.

The moral of the story is:  Stay away from Vanilla Heart Publishing.

~

Isn't It Ironic

Isn’t it ironic that the people living a lie are always the ones adamantly proclaiming to know the truth?   

 

Isn’t it funny how a person can believe in something like psychic ability, but denounce the prospect of demonic  or angelic activity?  How does one choose the spot in which to draw the line?

Isn’t it strange that people can accept something as real if it happens to them, but dismiss something that happens to another person as an exaggeration or an outright lie?  Are we all that jaded that it is easier to proclaim someone a liar than to accept the possibility that a reality exists beyond our own perspective of personal experience?

 

Isn’t it odd how the most closed minded people are the ones who claim to be open and accepting?

Isn’t it weird that we have a propensity to deny what we don’t understand instead of taking the time to look deeper?

 

Isn’t it ironic how the people who claim to be the hardest working are usually the laziest while the workaholics deny that they have a problem?

 

Isn't it crazy how the feeble-minded believe they are solid while it is the solid thinkers who seek more information so not to become feeble?

Doesn’t it strike you as odd that some people will believe nothing and yet fall for everything?

Isn’t it ironic that trust promotes both the feeling of vulnerability and of strength?

 

Isn’t it amazing how some of the people with the strongest personalities also have the softest hearts?  That the seemingly tough ones are usually the most tender underneath.

Doesn’t it seem strange that in weakness there is strength and in strength there is weakness?

Isn’t it funny how those who pretend to be something they are not often accuse others of not being something that they really are?

Isn’t it odd how some of the people who laugh the loudest often cry the hardest?

Isn’t it comical how a big fish in a small pond is arrogant and the same size fish in a bigger pond is humble?  Can they not see that they are the same?

Isn’t it ironic that some of the most beautiful individuals externally have nothing to offer internally and some of the cosmetically challenged radiate absolute beauty from within?

Isn’t it interesting that the extrovert can be a true introvert in disguise and vice versa?

 

Isn’t it funny how those who are spoon fed information think they know everything, when they have merely tasted only a small portion of knowledge?  From where does such arrogance stem?

Isn’t it ironic…  ~

 

Preachers That Piss Me Off !!

We’ve all heard what happened at the elementary school in Connecticut… there are no words that can describe it.  It’s every parent’s worst nightmare and it is unbearable agony. 

When a spouse loses their partner, they are called a widow or widower.  When a child loses their parents they are called an orphan.  But there is no term for when a parent loses a child.  It is un-natural.  It isn’t supposed to happen and it certainly isn’t supposed to happen like this.

Parents lose children to illness and to accidents.  That is brutal enough.  But to lose them because a mentally ill adult attacks and murders them is … well… there are no words to describe it.  It is more than injustice.  It is more than wrong.  It is more than evil.

 

My heart breaks for everyone who has lost children and loved ones in this tragedy.  I am praying for them and for the children, teachers and families who survived but will be forever scarred by what happened. 

 

That being said…

I have already heard something disturbing….something I knew would eventually be verbalized but thought people would have the decency to wait until the mourning process was over and there was at least some inkling of healing in sight.  Of course, these people don’t wait… they want to voice their ever-judgmental opinion with cold immediacy.  They want to strike while the iron is hot, thinking it will in some way have a greater effect. 

Well, it had an affect… it pissed me off!

I won’t name specific names (yet) but several preachers have come forward claiming that this tragedy occurred because “we, as a nation, have taken God out of our schools.” 

To that I say:  BULLSHIT!

To these preachers, I ask this:  Who are you that you think you have the power to take God out of anything or anywhere?  You arrogant son-of-a-bitch!  You’re talking about the Almighty Jehovah God; all-powerful, all-knowing, omnipotent.  You nor I have the power to remove Him.  He doesn’t reside in buildings or in systems of government or programs.  He isn’t something you can vote in or out.  God dwells in the hearts of people.

Don’t you dare tell these devastated parents that God wasn’t there because our nation removed Him.  God WAS there.  He IS there.  He promised to always be there.  He didn’t say bad things wouldn’t happen… He said when they happen He will never leave us alone.  He will never leave us nor forsake us.

This didn’t happen because God wasn’t in that school…this didn't happen because someone voted to take prayer out of school systems... it happened because of a mentally ill individual.  That mentally ill man would have walked into that school regardless of whether a law allowed public prayer or not.

 

You like to take tragic events, be they man-made or forces of nature, and use them to beat the living crap out of people.... to scare them into accepting some unfounded belief about God. 

You are the people who think the Joplin, Missouri tornado was "God's punishment for abortion."  You are not only ridiculous, you are deceivers and manipulators of God's Word.  Shame on you.

I can tell you this:  I am a Believer.  I am a Christian.  I love Jesus with all of my heart.  My children go to public school and God IS with them every minute of every day.  It doesn’t matter if they are publically allowed to pray in school; they are praying quietly in their hearts anyway.  Regardless of what a law says, there is prayer in school because prayer is generated from the hearts of people; not some mandated law.

Would I like prayer to be publically allowed in schools… yes.  But laws don’t keep God out.  Laws don’t stop prayer.  God doesn't punish His own children because someone else voted to take prayer out.  It doesn't work that way. 

Laws don’t control the Almighty. Period. And here's a newsflash for you.... YOU don't control the Almighty either.

So if this is the kind of right-wing, bullshit message you’re going to send hurting parents, then it would be more beneficial for you to go stick your head back up your ass and stop spreading lies in the name of God.

I don’t claim to know everything about the Lord.  I wish I knew Him better, but what I do know is that YOU are not a representation of HIM.  Not even close.  You are a sham, a fraud, a fake and I am ashamed to have to share the title of “Christian” with the likes of you.

God is everywhere, all of the time.  Period.

What I’m realizing is that what should be voted out or disallowed in our society are preachers like you, who twist and taint the Word of God for your own gain; who use fear-tactics and I-told-you-so’s to your own advantage and represent God in a condemning, judgmental way.  You make me sick.

You suffer from "ass-holism" and you spread your disease every time you open your mouth.  Instead of being concerned about God in our schools, why don't you look at your own church, because based on your teachings I'd say God isn't anywhere near your church. 

You are mis-leading and deceiving people.... and if I were you I'd be afraid because I don't think God's going to put up with your bullshit for much longer. ~

Bickle Lies in Letter to Other Leaders

Below is a letter the International House of Prayer founder, Mike Bickle, sent to other IHOP locations and leaders.  It was then forwarded to associated groups by Gary Wiens, IHOPNW.


Dear Friends of the International House of Prayer,

Mike Bickle, Director of IHOP-Kansas City, sent out this note today, and it's important for all to see. Thanks and blessings,

Gary Wiens, IHOPNW

Mike Bickle's letter begins here:
Friends,

This is a tragic and bizarre situation that is all over the media in KC. We have received sad and sobering news today from the Jackson County Sheriff's Office regarding the death of Bethany Deaton, who was originally believed to have committed suicide on Oct 30. A tight knit religious group of about 15 young people moved to IHOPU from Texas with the specific goal of infiltrating us and even taking over IHOPU. They were a close knit group for several years before moving to KC together (under a cloak of secrecy to try to get involved in IHOP and get into positions of influence etc.) Authorities notified us yesterday that an IHOPU student, who knew Bethany since their college days and is a member of a Texas-based religious group who has recently come to IHOPU, has been charged with her murder. We are passionate that this group's secrecy and religious practices are exposed.

There is an ongoing investigation and we ask you to join us in praying for Bethany's family and all those involved in this tragic situation. We all want to join the IHOPU faculty and student body as they grieve together with the family of Bethany Deaton and all who are involved.

Note also: The guy who confessed to murder told this to the police. He said they cursed the IHOPU leadership and sought to take it over. They were together for several years before all moving together to KC. They have very perverse sexual practices and believe their leader is a chief apostle, etc.

Please pray for us.

Mike Bickle

End of letter.

It never ceases to amaze me how cult groups, such as the International House of Prayer, play the victim.  Bickle states that this group from Texas came to IHOPU with the express purpose of infiltrating them and even taking over.  This is ludicrous.  And, let it be noted that Tyler Deaton was a Division leader in IHOP, not in IHOPU. 

It is time to call a spade, a spade.  It is time to look at the tree that is bearing the bad fruit and cut it down.

There are inside sources at IHOP-KC and they will continue to leak truth to the media and to those who stand against this cult group.  Bickle and others in leadership will undoubtedly continue to scramble, change their stories and lie; but eventually those lies will run dry.

Bethany's family, and the families of every person involved in IHOP and its many branches, deserve to know the truth.