- What is Duck Prints Press?
- What is this anthology?
- Who is writing for this anthology?
- What is the timeline for this project?
- How were contributors selected?
- Will authors be paid?
- Will story rights revert to the author post-publication?
- Who are the people behind this project?
- I missed the Kickstarter! Is it too late to get a copy of “Add Magic to Taste”?
- Where will net profits from anthology sales go?
- This anthology doesn’t sound like my cup of tea but I’d potentially be interested in writing original stories about other themes – will you be doing other anthologies in the future?
- Will I be able to request that “Add Magic to Taste” be purchased by my local library? Will the book be distributed?
What is Duck Prints Press?
Duck Prints Press LLC is a small, independent press based in New York State, USA. Claire Houck (aka Nina Waters, aka unforth) is the owner/managing member. Our founding vision is to work collaboratively with fanfiction authors who wish to publish their original work. You can read more about Duck Prints Press here!
What is this anthology?
This anthology is the debut collaborative project from Duck Prints Press, a new small press. Titled Add Magic to Taste, if you love a good coffee shop AU, you’ll adore this anthology – all new, fluffy, original queer love stories set in magical coffee shops, tea shops, and bakeries!
Who is writing for this anthology?
You can read about our author contributors here!
What is the timeline for this project?
You can read the schedule here.
How were contributors selected?
Qualified applicants were asked to submit a work sample of between 1,000 and 2,000 words. These samples were assigned a random number and areviewed by three members of our management team using this rubric. The three scores were statistically adjusted and averaged, and the 20 authors with the highest averages were invited to contribute. Rejected authors were encouraged to apply for future Duck Prints Press projects.
Will authors be paid?
Authors are being paid 8 cents US per word, or up to $400 US for a 5,000 word story. All authors have signed a contract that outlines rights assignments, payment, copyright, and other legal issues. You can see a sample of that contract here.
Will story rights revert to the authors post-publication?
Yes. The contract outlines the following rights: Duck Prints Press licenses exclusive rights to the story in both print and eBook format for one year. Other rights such as right of translation and right to record as an audio book will remain with the author; if at some point in the future we wish to expand in those directions, we will contact authors, recruit those who are interested, and develop new contracts. You can see a sample of the author-publisher contract here.
Who are the people behind this project?
Hi, we’re unforth (Claire Houck/Nina Waters), jhoomwrites (A.L. Heard), FormidablePassion, Adaille, and Alessa Riel. Please see our biographies page for more information about us.
I missed the Kickstarter! Is it too late to get a copy of “Add Magic to Taste?”
Now that the Kickstarter for Add Magic to Taste is finished, the print book and most of the related merchandise will only have limited availability. An “extras” sale may be held once all backer copies have shipped – most likely in November or December of 2021 – if we have any extras available; alternatively, extras may be retained as prizes/extras for future campaigns. This anthology will also be available in ePub, Mobi, and PDF form on the Duck Prints Press website for as long as the publisher is in operation.
Where will net profits from anthology sales go?
If there are any net profits from this anthology, they will be re-invested in Duck Prints Press to help us grow the business, pay our staff and consultants, and fund future projects. You can see our estimated final budget for Add Magic to Taste, based on our actual sales in the Kickstarter, here.
This anthology doesn’t sound like my cup of tea but I’d potentially be interested in writing original stories about other themes, or buying an anthology featuring stories on other topics – will you be doing other anthologies in the future?
We absolutely will be! We hope to publish two to three anthologies a year, and we’ll begin planning our 2022 anthology offerings over the summer of 2021. Each will have a different theme – and while this one is fluff, some will be dark, or horror, or erotica, or, or, or. Our second is already in the works, and features transformative queer works inspired by William Shakespeare’s Much Ado about Nothing. We’re a multi-genre publisher and open to all types of fiction (and to poetry and non-prose writing!) so if coffee shop fluff isn’t your thing, it’s entirely possible our next anthology will be! We encourage you to sign up for our mailing list if you’d like to get an e-mail when we get to work on something new!
Will I be able to request that “Add Magic to Taste” be purchased by my local library? Will the book be distributed?
For this specific book, sadly, probably not – though if your library keeps an e-book collection (some do!) then that would work. The contractual terms we have with authors and artists for Add Magic to Taste does not include ANY right for Duck Prints Press to produce or distribute print copies outside of the Kickstarter, and we’d need to negotiate new contracts if we wished to put Add Magic to Taste in with some place like Ingram for print distribution support.
Long term, we definitely want to get involved in print book distribution, but it involves logistical challenges and costs outside the purview of what we’re able to do right now – we’ve only been open since January, and only have one full-time staff member right now – me, hi – and there’s only so much I can juggle. It’s on my “five year plan” to do list, but isn’t something we’re actively looking into at the moment.
Now all that said – if your library does e-books – e-book distribution IS covered under the current contracts; once the KS is finished and all rewards have been distributed, the e-book will be available for sale on our website for as long as we’re in operation, and we’d LOVE if your library, or anyone else’s, wanted to purchase a copy for their e-book lending!!
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