Little Book Series 3

[Marmaduke Grigsby]

OK, I just got a reply from Borderlands. I had asked if a display case is forthcoming for the Little Books Series III Volume 3. This is their response:

"Yes, we are awaiting a large re-supply very soon and will announce in the newsletter."

So, I guess they're having more of them made.

[Brian861]

I missed seeing any notice for the Series III case as well. Sometimes their newsletters aren't the best at pointing things out if you don't read through it well.

[Splync]

Series 4 is underway and the latest volume has perhaps Borderlands' worst mistake yet.

It's an Arthur Machen collection that says Robert W Chambers on the cover...

[RonClinton]

Series 4 is underway and the latest volume has perhaps Borderlands' worst mistake yet.

It's an Arthur Machen collection that says Robert W Chambers on the cover...

Good lord, is that right? Is that the promo page, or were books actually published and released that way?

I’m so glad I skipped this fourth set.

[Splync]

I haven't purchased the title myself, but here's a photo I stole off of Facebook, including the errata sheet that came with it. Sounds like they just copied and pasted the cover format from the previous title and completely forgot to change the author's name...

FB_IMG_1647662413728.jpg

[RonClinton]

Wow. Unbelievable. Contrary to what it says on the errata sheet, it seems to me their “usual diligence in proofing” was right on par, just a bit more obvious this time.

I had to chuckle a little bit when I see that even on their short errata correction slip that there is a punctuation error, the comma after the word “carton.” Obviously, not a big thing, but it just goes to show the utter systemic lack of attention to such things.

[Sock Monkey]

I hate to bring any negativity to the conversation as I feel that there is way too much of it online, but I have to voice my thoughts a little on this situation.

This error is unacceptable. Regardless of your size, as a publisher you should be able to ensure you have the right title and author on the front boards of your book. If this was a "one and done", I might be a little more forgiving, but this is actually just their lack of attention taken to the extreme. To say that they "employ diligence in proofreading" is stretching it a bit considering they have had formatting issues in books, books missing the final page of a story, a slew of typographical errors across multiple titles, and the wrong title of a book stamped on one of their slipcases. All of those errors, all that previous lack of attention, is what led to this situation.

I understand that reprinting the books may put their press in jeopardy--and I truly believe we need MORE small presses, not less--but to expect your customer to accept this type of error with the solution of a 25% discount on the next book you purchase doesn't sit well with me. It's putting the burden on your customers to accept this substandard product to keep your business afloat. It isn't the customer's responsibility to do that. I do not want to see Borderlands Press fail, nor to do I want to pile on them for what must be an absolutely mortifying situation, but to not take corrective action and to act that proofreading errors are not the norm, to not acknowledge that this has been a problem in the press, doesn't sit right with me.

[swintek]

I pretty much agree with all said above, Sock Monkey. Although I wasn't very happy with the way BP's quality and obvious lack of interest in cleaning up their proof reading or limitation standards in the previous series (not to mention the bait & switch of the "King" name to lure folks into committing to the whole series at launch) left me deciding not to commit to this new series, the fact that they went with the "classic" Weird Fiction line pulled me back in, as that is in my wheelhouse these days. When I got the Machen book the other day- I couldn't believe it. To me, the "errata" slip was insult to injury, and I'm seriously considering sending it back and cancelling my series number, despite how much I'd really like to have a full, uniform set of these particular stories. At some point, enough carelessness and a seeming lack of interest in the quality of their product is enough. It's probably time to vote with my patronage. Too bad as I go way back to the beginning with Tom and Elizabeth and I know they are good people. Their Small Book Press, these last few years, it must be said- is shoddy and uninspiring. That's the antithesis of what it should be. They needed to eat this book and send it back to the printer to get the correct damn author on the COVER to keep my respect.

[RonClinton]

I don’t disagree with anything you said, SM, and could not have phrased it better. The only thing I’d add is that the measure of a business — small-press or otherwise — is the quality of their product and how they answer the concerns of their customers. It’s clear Borderlands failed on both counts here, and, as you said, expected their customer to shoulder the burden of the press’ error, rather than hold themselves accountable. I understand the consequences of Doing the Right Thing could have had significant negative consequences for a self-claimed fragile company, but it is not the customer’s responsibility to prop up a shaky enterprise by accepting an item that was not as ordered and expected, and by all rights should have been instantly pulped. I have to think that this money-saving tactic lost them both face and immense customer goodwill, and may in fact turn out to be just as damaging to their bottom line as the reprinting would have been. Or perhaps folks are more forgiving than I imagine.

I wish Borderlands luck and only the best moving forward, but if this does turn out to be the last straw, they’ve only their own lackadaisical approach to fixing a well-known systemic pattern of problems to blame. In this day and age, you can’t continue to put out an inferior product, and be deaf to customer complaints, and expect to survive.

[Ben Staad]

Correct me if I'm wrong here but it looks like you can still purchase this book from the website. I'm assuming this is the misprinted book...Right? If so they haven't noted any issues on their order page. That says a lot in my opinion.

https://www.borderlandspress.com/sho...mited-edition/

[RonClinton]

Correct me if I'm wrong here but it looks like you can still purchase this book from the website. I'm assuming this is the misprinted book...Right? If so they haven't noted any issues on their order page. That says a lot in my opinion.

https://www.borderlandspress.com/sho...mited-edition/

I assume so, since they were clear in the errata slip that they couldn’t afford to correct and reprint.

And, yes, it does say a lot, if the errors are not highlighted.

[Sock Monkey]

Correct me if I'm wrong here but it looks like you can still purchase this book from the website. I'm assuming this is the misprinted book...Right? If so they haven't noted any issues on their order page. That says a lot in my opinion.

https://www.borderlandspress.com/sho...mited-edition/

Yeah, that's a bad look.

[TacomaDiver]

Wow. I don't have any other words. Wow.