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End of a Dusty Trail my book arrives, but it's not my book

July 27, 1999: Today my book arrived. I got two cases of them, about 30 copies of iMac Fast and Easy. I cut it open and pulled one out. The cover said Jan L. Harrington with Bryan Walls. My name was on the cover and the title page, but that's all. Well, quite a few of the screen shots, the general outline, and a good part of an Appendix were mine, too. There was quite a bit of new material, and lots of rewriting of text. But nothing in the Dedication, Acknowledgement, or About the Author sections. And none of my personality left. Left: The cover of the book, "with BRYAN WALLS". I wasn't happy about the "with", but there is even less sign of me inside. Credit: Prima Tech Publishing It started back in September of 1998. Paul Robichaux, a guy who posts on a local Huntsville news group, had been offered the opportunity to write a book about Apple's new personal computer, the iMac. He didn't have time, and asked on the newsgroup if anyone new about macs, could at least halfway write, and might be interested. I said I was, and he gave me the e-mail of the Acquisitions Editor at Prima Publishing. Sign up for our EXPRESS bwalls news delivery It was a learning experience. Prima Tech, the publishing company, was in a big hurry to get the book out ­ but very slow about actually getting the paperwork done. So, once the contract was in place by mid-November, they wanted the book really quickly. I pretty much put my social life on hold, except that I had already planned a long Christmas break. My feedback was mostly that what I was turning in was fine. The editor that hired me left the company at the end of November, and the new editor almost killed the contract in early January, but I worked like a madman to catch up, and they let me keep going. I finished the writing in February (one Appendix eeked into March), and started working on author review on the chapters coming back from the editors ­ I basically had finished writing the whole book before getting anything except the introductory chapter back to review. Toward the end of March I got a letter from the editor telling me to quit working on the book, that they were giving the rest of my pay to another author because I wasn't giving them what they wanted. And so my work ended. The book I received today was the final outcome.

Writing was rather fun, though hard work. I feel like Prima did a crumy job of managing me as a new author, and a poor job of supporting my content editor, who was also new. And the way they ended my involvement in the book was both unprofessional and just plain shabby (Paul commented, "sounds like a typically skanky business practice for them"). If you want to see the book, it will likely show up at the big bookstores, and possibly Best Buy and such outlets. You can see the links below for some online sources. Web Links Prima-Tech Publishing -- Prima-Tech is a division of Prima Publishing. Not in my best favor. iMac Fast & Easy -- The Prima-Tech blurb actually has my bio and sounds like I'm a co-author. Price Scan -- The way to buy books. Price Scan compares prices from multiple stores to find the best price, including shipping cost. Amazon Books -- They had the Author as Bryan Wells (sic) until the book actually came out, and then all trace of me disappeared. However, if you buy through this link, I get a 15% kickback from Amazon. I'm not really suggesting you buy it. I don't get any money from the sales, and I don't plan to have anything to do with Prima again. If you want one because you like me, or because you're getting an iMac (which really is a nice little home computer), let me know. It looks like a decent book, and I can't fault the replacement author (who also probably isn't getting a royalty), even if I'm not happy with the publisher. I can probably beat, or at least match the bookstore price, plus I'll have the gratification of knowing someone bought what is at least slightly my book. And I won't have all these books lying around the house.

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