Corona/Samizdat discussion
The near future of corona/samizdat
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Great to read this, Rick. I'm looking forward to seeing the books.
I have some great concerns about this if Godine hasn't approved. The US court system IMO will shitcan whatever moral argument you might bring and side on what is strictly legal. They will---the United States is not Mr. Smith goes to Washington. Anyone who thinks it is is fucking nuts. That's the way it works--it's business and corporate friendly and from my very few personal glimpses of it the guy who usually gets pounded is the smallest guy. Even the Supreme Court--even RBG all corporate friendly as all get out. We've talked a bit about this Rick and neither of us has a legal background--we have no idea how much actual reach they have or who they might drag in--I have looked up what a copyrite infringement case might cost if you lose and it can go as high as $150K fine + you will pay for the entire court proceeding. Again to reach--emails, texts, posts on this blogsite even---can they get to them? Will your Google protect you? I seriously seriously doubt it. Another thing to consider is the US Postal Service that I use to work for--the USPS handles 48% of the world's mail in one way or another--if a judgement is made against you and you don't comply it's possible that one day Customs will go to USPS and shut down your American market altogether--as in confiscate all your packages.If you're determined to go ahead with your plan I would at least get some real legal advice and forget this real estate lawyer I know. He's not going to be interested in this kind of a battle. And if you're going ahead anyway flying blind--again there's no way I'm going to give approval---you're doing it on your own and god bless--we can still be friends---that's not a problem but again I'm not cashing any checks or any of that--I want to be separated out. Just put the money back into your business. If it does work----great--I was never all that worried about making much out of the project anyway and Arlt does need to be read.
Mod
I have written Godine's people of my intentions. Let's see if I hear back. In any case, remember I not in the United States, nor am I contracted to anyone in the United States, nor, at 61 am I going to live in fear of some corporate anti-literature, anti-Arlt entity. As for your own role in this, I can't see how if you have not signed anything with Godine they would have any quarrel with you. And of course this makes a great story. First, did Godine publish what they said they published? They published less than half a novel that any expert would know was not the full novel. Second, is the translation I have the same one, or have there been some changes? Third, I am publishing the totality of Arlt's novel, which has never been done before in English. Why would anyone oppose that? And if it came to Godine trying to stop it, who are they? They did not make a good faith effort to disseminate the work of Roberto Arlt. I am a mere lover of literature running a non-profit press who wants to see the real Arlt book in one volume for a change.
#4--as I've said you do what you think you need to do. I'd rather err on the side of caution and besides I don't want my wife keeping me up all night long for the next year or so complaining about it because it could happen and I wouldn't blame her at all if I happened to get dragged into it. The other thing is I know Naomi likes the idea a lot but she doesn't want to get sued either. She was explicit to me about that. It's not my way to tell people how to live their lives. I don't like Godine and I think the contract they have with Naomi is evil but I don't see any way they lose a lawsuit over this. You're telling them you're going to go ahead anyway I fear will be used against you and they will look to punish somebody if only to stop you from doing something similar again.
The half novel argument is not going to pass muster in a United States court. I don't think there's any chance a court anywhere buys any of your other arguments on it either. These people aren't book people--they are judges, lawyers and business people.
Mod
#7--Have you even talked to her about any of this? I'm thinking you haven't. Let me ask you--if her or my name does get attached to a lawsuit what are you as our so-called publisher going to do about it? You don't see why that would happen? Well our names are attached to your (not our) project. That does put us at risk of being sued and we're both fairly easily reachable. We'll be the ones who get to go to court--pay whatever fine--and include the lawyers on both sides and the court proceeding. You're fine and dandy in fucking Slovenia. This Uruguayan changing a few passages is bullshit if you're still attaching her name to it. It's just a stunt and is not going to fool anyone.
You're determined to go ahead anyway. Redact my name--not just from the title page but anywhere it appears in or on the book including your intro--including the cover. At least it would give me a plausible defense. I don't want my name attached to it because I don't approve and I sure as fuck don't want to get sued. If you do that--go ahead--you've got my blessing but you're on your own. I don't give a fuck whether you make money from it or not--just leave me out of it. It is way too shaky for me. I wouldn't be at all surprised if Naomi will feel somewhat the same.
Mod
I very much believe in running this press as I have been, and in trying to keep it open to the reading public. Some great ideas will arise and we will be the bettter for it. As a matter of fact, that has already been happening. More on this later, but I hope you like the cover of Arjun and the Good Snake as much as I do.
Now on to Arlt. Wicked circumstance may lead to mucked waters. To begin with, I have been in contact with Naomi Lindstrom, who translated The Seven Madmen into English before anyone else. She is tied into a wicked contract with Godine--til she's dead and for the next 75 years after that. The main problem with that is that there is no consideration for her and Arlt, only the money that was insufficient to keep the initial hardcover from being remaindered. My hope was to find a way to get past that contract given that it may not be legitimate in regard to the whole novel it is only the first part of.
However, the fear of Godine (say that out loud just once to bring into your epiderm the absurdity: "the fear of Godine") has prevented me from being able to proceed with this project. Unfortunately Larry did not check with me before he wrote here. There is a lot he did not know, but if nothing else, my press is an imprint of the oldest private publisher in Slovenia (which is not itself so old) and I can publish nothing without the approval of that press. So if there was danger on them Arltonian shoals, I would not have been able to proceed.
To be fair to Larry, I have not explained much about this process because there could be no forward movement without more knowledge of the legal circumstances in Slovenia. He should have known better than to fear that I would somehow endanger him aned Naomi, but fear of Godine is absurd enough a concept that we understand of such are nightmares oft made.
Universe, please know here and now that I have already twice now, including today as Naomi wrote me again, assured Naomi that she will not unwittingly be sued because of anything I do. And of course the project is off as long as Larry and Naomi fear being credited for their work. I am no Magus, and I cannot make this project happen as easily as I apparently seemed to suggest.
There is a bright spot: any monies that would have gone to a fat pocket Arlt will go to a living writer.
It's a shame that such nonsense prevents beautiful art from being disseminated to a wide audience of eager readers. And by 'nonsense' I mean the intrusion of the pencil-pushers and bean counters. I was so looking forward to reading it.
Mod
At any rate #11, #12, currenlty River Boat Books has both books so you can still read it. I don't recall the reason behind the books being published separately, but if all involved want to put it in one volume, the problem is solved...The beginning of this deal approached me, and so if it is resolved elsewhere, I will be happy.
For what it's worth I'm not the nicest person in the world and I think what Rick is doing with Corona Samizdat is a very, very good thing. The real assholes of assholes here to my mind are Godine--I'm secondary to them. This deal they have with Naomi as I understand it is for her lifetime + 75 years after she's died. They then buried her work for over 30 years after one short print run and even chased off two small publishers who wanted to reissue. When I brought up in this group a combined issue I did not know what their deal with Naomi was but it seems to me the kind of mind that would draw up that kind of deal is a very controlling, grasping mind who would go to great lengths to protect his/her interests. The agreement I and my wife have to even do this with Riverboat Books is we step on no toes--that there are no lawsuits. Both Rick and I understand Arlt as not only a great writer who inspired us both a lot but also a criminally neglected one and the other translation of the Seven Madmen (by Nick Caistor who otherwise is an excellent translator IMO) is underwhelming to say the least. It's a source of frustration both to Rick and myself and it can get me heated up and I do have a bad temper and too often can go too far so I apologize to Rick and to the people in this group for that. I'm not an academic--I'm a retired graveyards worker and it is too easy sometimes for me to revert to jerk.
1. Arjun and the Good Snake, an Ophidiological Account of Six Weeks in India without Alcohol. This is the version of a book published twice in Slovenia--English and Slovene--that Jim Gauer of Zerogram loved, bought, and guided to the point it's at, yet did not buy for reasons he and I will one day mutually understand. There are things in this book I want no one to know, but writing it was a necessary step towards becoming someone who could put his worst on display.
Two copies will be artfully covered with cobra skin, crafted by an artisan in Izola. A lot of old mariners of ex-Yugoslavia live around here and a long tranned snake skin was brought back several decades ago and given to me. I have the thing, and the idea was put to me, and it seems too good not to do it. The prime, probably autioned copy, will have the cobra's classic hood on the front of the book.
2. Jeff Bursey's Unidentified Man at Left of Photo will have a Llama cover, but just the photo, of llamas looking off toward their left, no doubt where the eponymous stranges leans against a tree. Steven Moore has called this Bursey's most entertaining novel.
3. Bori Praper's Cynicism Management, a fat satirical romp with music to match, very smart and very funny.
4. Roberto Arlt's The Seven Madmen/The Flamethrowers, a novel. This will be the first time that an English translation of his major work is actually sold as one novel as it should be. Godine owns the work of one translator, and it is her work I have, and I have sought their permission for this venture and they have refused. I responded that I was informing them as a courtesy of my intentions and that the book would be published in any case in September. Her contract was for her lifetime plus 75 years, I have been told, but what they have done with it is unspeakable. They, first of all, merely published it once and quickly remaindered it, and subsequently only allowed River Boat Books to us it, which is how I got my hands on it. The problem is that a press with interest in literature should not have stopped with the publication of less than half a novel and ditched it, clinging to the contract like an outsized epiphyte. They should have pursued, paid this translator, Naomi Lindstrom, the rest of the work and taken on whatever costs to bring all of the novel into publication. If money, though, is the main consideration, then they have no need to hold her to her contract. They made nothing of her work, and are not making anything off River Boat, and will not make any off mine, even if I were willing for some bizarre reason to include them in this venture.
5&6. Novels by WD Clarke and David Vardeman.
-2. I am running out of copies of Eddie Vegas and have run out of copies of Walk Like a Duck (I only printed 25 Ducks, 100 EVs).
I chose Arjun and the Good Snake to start with as it is the most likely to sell and begin making money for books 5 & 6.
I think Jeff Bursey's book will do well, and will definitely provide some lustre to the press.
I will see to it that Bori Praper and Arlt are published. After that, everything depends on sales. Somewhere in there Eddie Vegas copies must be printed. As I see it now, the worst of likely outcomes is that WD Clarke and David Vardeman wait for enough sales for me to publish them.