Latest news with #JohnMitchinson
The Independent
22-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Writing a book was meant to be a dream – but publishing it turned into a nightmare
A s a new author, you tend to be warned by published friends that your publication day will feel like a letdown. In the case of my anthology about infertility grief, No One Talks About This Stuff , which was published a year ago yesterday, I wasn't prepared for just how much of a letdown it would become. That's because my cherished book was published by Unbound, the crowdfunding publisher founded in 2010 by John Mitchinson, Justin Pollard and Dan Kieran, which went into administration this week after months of unsettled payments. As one of its authors told me drily, 'It has at times felt to me like their royalty statements are just another of the many works of fiction they have published.' I launched the crowdfunding for No One Talks About This Stuff in mid-December 2021 and it was fully funded in April 2022. I was delighted to work with Unbound, whose authors include Terry Jones, Jonathan Meades, Jim Moir and Jackie Morris. It published Nikesh Shukla's 2016 anthology The Good Immigrant , which I had backed (and which received a five-star rave review in this very paper). I chose Unbound as my publisher, in part, because it had a spirited history of publishing niche work that might otherwise struggle to find a home in the traditional press. My book was a collection of new writing about infertility grief, from people from all backgrounds, parents and non-parents. I thought of it as a 'support group in a book' and it was directly inspired by the dull, unacknowledged pain that I felt as someone without children, following failed IVF. I was probably still mad with grief – what sane person crowdfunds £20,000 to publish a book, for heaven's sake? – but I really wanted to help people – and to fill a place on the bookshelf so that anyone suffering could walk into a shop and feel understood. And, by going with Unbound, I was free to include stories that hadn't been heard before rather than lean on the familiar names that a traditional publisher might require. Unbound's titles got good spots in bookshops and were shortlisted for prizes – one was even nominated for the Booker. All was as it should be. I threw a party for No One Talks About This Stuff , paid for and organised by me – as so many authors do, contrary to what we'd believe on Instagram. I ran an extra Instagram account to keep supporters engaged and used my social media accounts to keep the book current. I pitched to book festivals, features, and podcasts for coverage. Months previously, I had asked whether I should tee up a bookshop to sell my books at the launch, as is custom. Unbound told me, no, they would handle the sales, so we could 'keep more of the money'. Six minutes before the party was due to start – and I am not joking for emphasis, by the way, I checked – I got an email from Unbound saying they were unable to provide any books to sell at all. The author (back row, centre) and contributors to her anthology 'No One Talks About This Stuff' (Kat Brown) A junior staff member who had started at the company a few months earlier was the sole attendee from Unbound and had to give a speech about a book she knew nothing about to an author who was seething with frustration. With my other launch through a different publisher a month earlier, my editor, publicist and even the managing editor all came – as did the books. A week after the book-less launch party, I went on Woman's Hour with Dr Rageshri Dhairyawan, one of my excellent contributors. It was a specific invitation from Emma Barnett, who has been a great support both of me and the book, for her final episode. Yet there were no copies of my book available to order other than via Amazon. The then CEO, Wil Harris, had the gall to suggest to me that I should be glad my book was available on Amazon. Yet the point of going with Unbound was so that I didn't self-publish, and so people going through the horrors of infertility grief could find the bloody book in shops and feel a bit more dignified about the whole thing. I went with Unbound in good faith. Thanks to the more than 700 people who believed in the book, too, I crowdfunded more than £20,000 to make it happen and to help support others going through a horrific experience. Every other author did the same – yet the company has now gone into administration. Unbound has promised in a statement that 'all monies owed to authors by Unbound will be honoured by Boundless IP Limited' and blamed its financial difficulties on a 'substantial investment' falling through in December, in an email sent to contributors in January. However, I'm in a WhatsApp group now, filled with unhappy, unpaid Unbound authors. We feel it is Unbound in all but name and, by going into administration, apparently free of its financial commitments to authors and shareholders. It beggars belief. It also feels deeply unfair to those authors who will now no longer see their books published. As other Unbound authors have done, including Tom Cox, I am in the process of requesting my rights back from the publisher as I have no faith in them. Publishing is already a difficult game. I'm in no confusion about that. Perhaps the Unbound of a decade ago was naive in thinking it could disrupt the industry. For those authors working with vulnerable communities, it is sobering and deeply upsetting. It doesn't change the pride and esteem in which we hold our books: but my word, it leaves a nasty taste. I felt ashamed of not being able to have children. Making this book was my way of creating something good and useful out of a rotten situation. My experience with Unbound has resurrected those shameful feelings – and compounded them into something even more devastating. The Independent has approached Unbound for comment Kat Brown is a British journalist, author of the guide to adult ADHD, 'It's Not a Bloody Trend' , and editor of infertility anthology 'No One Talks About This Stuff'
The Guardian
18-03-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Authors await overdue payments as publisher Unbound goes into administration
Authors have been left unsure whether their books will be published and when they will receive outstanding payments after crowdfunding publisher Unbound went into administration last week. The unique selling point of the publisher, launched in 2011 by QI researchers John Mitchinson and Justin Pollard, and Crap Towns author Dan Kieran, was that it allowed writers to pitch ideas online directly to readers. If enough people pledged financial support, the author would write the book, with supporters receiving various perks, such as early access to the book or a special edition. Unbound confirmed last week that the business had been acquired by the newly-formed Boundless Publishing Group. A statement on its website said 'Boundless will be moving forward with the majority of the Unbound projects', instructing readers who have made pledges to 'check back at the end of March when our new website will be live and you will have access to your account and order status'. Boundless will be led by Archna Sharma, who was appointed as Unbound's new CEO in January, with Mitchinson as a director. 'This is the beginning of a bold new era,' said Sharma in a statement. 'Boundless looks forward to forging exciting new connections between authors and readers.' Author Tom Cox, whose latest book Everything Will Swallow You was due to come out this Thursday, became suspicious after months of not having received payments he was owed. That combined with the publisher's failure to confirm that his new book would definitely come out on the proposed date, after the time it was originally due to be printed, led him to ask for the reversion of the rights he had sold to the publisher. He is now trying to personally sell the 5,342 copies of his books that Unbound sent to his house after the rights were transferred back to him. Cox, who has published seven books with Unbound and whose 2017 book 21st-Century Yokel was the publisher's fastest-ever crowdfunded title, is not sure exactly how much he is currently owed but believes it is 'a five-figure sum'. He is in a WhatsApp group with other authors waiting for payments. They have been receiving 'update after update,' from the publisher, but 'the update is we'll have another update soon'. Though Unbound has promised in a statement that 'all monies owed to authors by Unbound will be honoured by Boundless IP Limited,' Cox said he and other authors have been told they will receive what they are owed via 'a payment plan'. 'That immediately sort of rings the alarm bells with me,' he said. 'Is it going to be like a mortgage? Perhaps the payment plan is going to be over 25 years … I'm a bit cynical about it at this stage because the earliest money that I'm owed from them dates back to May last year.' Cox is also concerned about the readers who paid into the crowdfunder for his new book. He was initially told by Unbound that all of his supporters would be refunded, which he communicated to his readers. 'And then we find out last week that they are not going to refund them. They've just taken all that money that I've worked so hard to raise, and my readers have given in trust and in support of me, and now they're not going to give it them back. Well, I just think it is shocking behaviour.' According to a spokesperson from Unbound, new company Boundless 'has no obligation to pay any of Unbound's creditors, but has undertaken to pay in full the money owed to Unbound's authors and to fulfil the orders for books that have transferred from Unbound. It will not be fulfilling orders or offering refunds for books that haven't transferred.' Letters of Note author Shaun Usher said he is 'deeply disappointed by Unbound's collapse'. Though none of his books are still under contract with Unbound, he and his wife invested 'a substantial amount of money in the company' in 2014. 'Losing that money is crushing, and frankly, it's not something we can afford.' Sign up to Bookmarks Discover new books and learn more about your favourite authors with our expert reviews, interviews and news stories. Literary delights delivered direct to you after newsletter promotion 'But my situation pales in comparison to the authors whose books have been derailed by this,' Usher added. 'All that said, I know and admire John Mitchinson, and I trust that he'll do his best to ensure affected authors are treated fairly.' Cox, too, still has respect for many of Unbound's employees: 'My editor was utterly brilliant on my latest book … there are lots of really great people involved but it's just unfortunately the money side of it, they just haven't been able to make it work.' Anna Ganley, chief executive of the Society of Authors, the UK's largest writers' body, said it is 'very disappointing to hear that, after keeping authors in limbo for so long, and owing a number of authors considerable sums of money, and while promising that it was 'business as usual', Unbound has now gone into administration'. 'We appreciate the situation is frustrating and stressful for authors and we urge members to get in touch with the Society of Authors to seek advice and support,' Ganley added. 'Authors need to carefully check their contracts as the Society of Authors does not believe, based on the paperwork we have seen so far, that any author will be compelled to sign up with Boundless unless they choose to do so.'
