Authors say they were misled by Baltimore book festival as event organizers promise refunds
This past weekend, a book festival in downtown Baltimore promised to be the perfect event for book lovers, but instead, it's being described as one of the worst events people have seen.
Accounts describing the A Million Lives Book Festival have gone viral on social media, especially on TikTok.
Authors and vendors WJZ spoke to say they feel misled by event organizers, and they say the event didn't feel put together at all.
The event, put on by Archer Management, was held on May 2 and May 3.
Authors feel lied to
Stephanie Combs's weekend at the Baltimore Convention Center was supposed to be a big one. The Maryland-based romantic fantasy author has been independently publishing books since 2023.
The A Million Lives Book Festival was going to be her first one attending as an author.
"That is one of my dreams, bucket goal lists," Combs said. "I wanna be invited as an author to an event like this. Where I get to meet readers and get to connect with other authors."
Leading up to the festival, Combs said communication from organizers was sparse. She and other authors say there weren't clear directions on how to enter and bring their products into the center.
There was even some confusion about whether authors and vendors would have their own tables.
However, Combs said she remained optimistic because she was informed that between 500 to 600 tickets were sold for the event.
On the first day, Combs estimates, around 20 to 30 people showed up. On the second day, close to 100 showed up.
Panels for the festival also didn't have chairs or tables in their rooms, forcing people to sit on the floor.
The festival closed out with the Lavender Romance Ball, which some paid $250 to attend. The event looked more like a high school cafeteria.
"As an author, I felt bad for inviting my readers to this event because they were promised this amazing, wonderful, fantasy-themed ball, and I felt like they didn't really get what they paid for," Combs said.
Archer Management posted a statement on social media Monday apologizing for how the festival went.
"We are currently processing refunds as fast as we can. All refunds will be processed by May 31," the statement reads.
Archer Management hasn't responded to requests for comment.
Vendors take financial hit
Author Perci Jay flew in from Texas to attend. Her videos about A Million Lives have garnered more than five million views on TikTok.
She said authors, especially new ones, can take on a big financial burden because of these events.
"Some of us went into debt to come to this event. Some of us took on expenses -- mitigating the risk of what we were promised -- and had to spend hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, shipping unsold product back home," Jay said.
Jay said she spent time at the festival encouraging new authors to keep going to these events.
Combs said this hasn't deterred her completely, but she's going to be cautious with brand-new events like this one.
"I know there's gonna be things that go wrong, it happens at every event, and I can be completely forgiving of that," Combs said. "It felt like in this case there were just a lot of excuses."
It's unclear if Archer Management will help cover any other costs that authors and vendors had related to the festival.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Sean 'Diddy' Combs trial updates: 'Jane' testifies more about 'hotel nights'
This story may contain accounts and descriptions of actual or alleged events that some readers may find disturbing. This is week five of testimony in the trial of Sean "Diddy" 9, 11:21 AM'I wanted to stop all of it': 'Jane' tells Combs she's 'tired' of 'hotel nights' in text messages By October 2023 "Jane" testified she needed a had texted her to 'call someone' for a 'hotel night,' telling her in a text, 'You're the only thing that's going to put me at peace.'"Jane" responded to the message, 'I'm not an animal. I'm not a porn star. These experiences are desensitizing sex for me.'"Jane" had seen Instagram posts of Combs with other Maurene Comey asked, 'What were you jealous of at this point in time?'"Jane" answered, 'I'm not really sure I was even jealous. I think I was really frustrated that there was more pressure on me, and more was asked of me than everyone else.'She sent a follow-up text to Combs: 'I'm not a porn star. I'm not an animal. I need a break. I don't want to do anything. I've hit a wall,' the message said. 'It's been three years of me having to f--- strangers. I'm tired.'Combs responded, 'So we're breaking up?'Comey asked, 'Had you been suggesting breaking up?'"Jane" told the court that she had not. 'I had been saying I wanted to stop all of it,' Jane testified. 'Having sex with other men.'"Jane" began to tear up and wail into the microphone as she read a subsequent text.'My spirit and my soul is tired. I need a break,' the message said. 'I can't be used like this anymore. I wanted to make you happy but it's creating a war inside me.' Jun 9, 11:14 AM'Jane' testifies she told Combs she doesn't want to be 'locked in a room to perform and fulfill your fantasies' Beginning a fifth week of testimony, Sean Combs' ex-girlfriend, appearing under the pseudonym 'Jane,' told the jury she once took a four-day trip to Miami with Combs, during which he allegedly promised to take her on a yacht following a 'hotel night.' "Jane" previously testified that "hotel night" was the phrase that she and Combs used to refer to their sexual encounters involving other Maurene Comey asked, 'Did you agree to do the hotel night?''Yes,' "Jane" testified in response, telling the court it lasted two days.'Did Sean take you on the yacht?' Comey asked.'No,' "Jane" home in Los Angeles, 'I noticed that on social media he had taken one of his girlfriends on the same yacht trip he had promised me,' "Jane" told the court that Combs told her the yacht trip with the other woman was nothing. However, "Jane" testified, a month later she saw an interview Combs gave to a podcast in which he bragged about having sex on the yacht and 'boasting they had sex for 48 hours.'The jury saw a text message she then sent to Combs: 'I don't want to be used and locked in a room to perform and fulfill your fantasies. Coming to the realization of what this is,' the message texted in response 'that was podcast talk' and then, in a subsequent message, said 'I'm tired of your false accusations.'By that point, "Jane" testified, Combs had been paying her $10,000 monthly rent for six months and she felt obligated to fulfill Combs' sexual desires."Jane" told the court that Combs then invited her to New York.'I remember he said that we would have alone time and we would do nice things in New York together,' "Jane" testified. 'We would go to dinner, go shopping and have a proper New York trip. He mentioned no hotel nights.'On the flight to New York, 'I remember on this flight that I received a message from Sean that made me a little upset,' "Jane" testified. 'I just remember just taking a deep breath and kind of feeling upset and a little disappointed, a little defeated.'The jury saw the text in question from Combs, which read: 'I have a surprise if that's ok. Just one.'"Jane" began to cry as she told the jury that she understood from the text that 'he was going to introduce me to somebody new.'On that New York trip, in September 2023, "Jane" testified that Combs infected her with the COVID-19 virus. Jun 9, 8:56 AM'Jane' to return to the witness stand as fifth week of testimony begins An ex-girlfriend of Sean Combs, testifying under the pseudonym 'Jane,' will retake the witness stand Monday as the fifth week of testimony begins in Combs' federal racketeering and sex trafficking trial."Jane" previously told the jury about a pattern of alleged drug-fueled sex encounters with male prostitutes that she testified she was afraid to discontinue once Combs started paying her rent and funding other expenses in her began paying her $10,000 monthly rent in 2023 and still pays it, "Jane" testified.'I felt that at any given opportunity Sean was just hovering the house over my head, like just really always brought it up in so many ways that he was paying for it and it just always felt like he wanted me to know that he was doing this for me all the time,' she told the testimony last week of a different witness, Bryana Bongolan, prompted the defense to seek a attorney Alexandra Shapiro argued that federal prosecutors knowingly introduced what she said was false testimony that Combs dangled Bongolan from a balcony at former girlfriend Cassie Ventura's Los Angeles apartment. Shapiro said hotel receipts show Combs was in New York at the time the alleged incident prosecutors said they planned to respond to the defense motion for a mistrial later today. Judge Arun Subramanian said he would take up the motion on Tuesday. Jun 9, 8:56 AMRead Week 4 trial testimony updates Week 4 of the Sean "Diddy" Combs trial wrapped up with testimony from "Jane," the second ex-girlfriend of Combs to testify following Cassie Ventura."Jane" is expected to return to the stand on about what happened last week during the trial. Click here to read the rest of the blog.
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Sioux City Art Center to host opening reception for new art exhibition
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU) — The Sioux City Art Center will host an opening reception for a new art exhibition. The display comes from Iowa-born, Rhode Island-based artist Duane Slick. It is titled 'A Certain Cadence of Night,' and includes new and recent paintings, silkscreen prints, and a video installation produced in collaboration with Martin Smick. Puzzles, games, D&D: Sioux City Public Library hosting youth, adult reading programs Slick has served as the Professor of Painting and Printmaking at the Rhode Island School of Design since 1995. He earned his BFA in Painting from the University of Northern Iowa and his MFA in Painting from the University of California, Davis. The opening reception is set for 5-7 p.m. on Thursday, June 12. At 6 p.m., the artist will give a talk in the Art Center's Lecture Hall. The event is free to attend and open to the public. The exhibition will remain on display during the Art Center's normal business hours through Sunday, October 12. For more information, you can visit the Art Center online here, or call (712) 279-6272, ext. 200. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Newsweek
39 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Moment Woman Realizes Pug Has Been 'Emotionally Manipulating' Her
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A woman concerned her dog may be sick decided to give him the ultimate test to make sure he wasn't "manipulating" her. Turns out, he was. Maia McCann lives in New York with her pug, Smokey, who has developed a taste for the finer things in life. McCann, who works in the media industry, told Newsweek: "Smokey is 11. I've raised him in the city and I think he's really grown fond of New York's café culture and seems to think that he should get a pastry on every walk!" In a clip to her TikTok page @smokeyandmaia on March 28, McCann held Smokey up to the camera and declared she was about to play a game: "Is Smokey sick, or is he emotionally manipulating me so that I'll take him for cheesy bread?" She explained the pug had refused to eat breakfast, but had recently been tricking her in order to get the food he really wants. So, before taking him to the vet, she put him to the test, and walked with him down the street towards their regular café—and the closer they got, the more Smokey pulled on the leash. "It is looking pretty likely Smokey was faking sick to emotionally manipulate me into going and getting him a cheesy bread," McCann said as they got closer to the café. And once inside, Smokey began licking his lips in anticipation—and eagerly snapped up the treat. "It is such a miracle that you made a full recovery," she said sarcastically as Smokey tucked in. "We must have discovered the cure for the cheesy bread disease, thank goodness. "Didn't even have to pay the vet to tell me you're just smarter than you look sometimes." In a caption to the video, McCann described this manipulation as "the only trick Smokey knows." TikTok users had a big reaction, awarding the video more than 270,000 likes, as one commenter joked Smokey was saying: "I guess I'll try and force down a little cheesy bread to settle my stomach." "He was sick," another wrote. "Of not having cheesy bread." Maia McCann holds Smokey to the camera before checking whether he really has no appetite. Maia McCann holds Smokey to the camera before checking whether he really has no appetite. TikTok @smokeyandmaia "He didn't want to spoil his appetite," another suggested, as another shared: "My dog limps aggressively when he wants cookies." And as one commenter declared: "He was sick and then healed by cheesy bread." Dogs can fake injuries or illness, and it may stem from reinforced behavior. If a dog notices they get extra attention or treats when they're sick or injured, they may act the same way later to get the same result, according to Nutri-Paw. Owners should take their pets to the veterinarian to be sure, but signs the dog may be faking include the symptoms only being present when you're nearby, or the symptoms disappearing when the dog is distracted or excited. Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@ with some details about your best friend and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.
