Publisher Settles Concerns of Flashing Swords #6 Writers

Last week editor Robert Price set off a rebellion among the contributors to his revival of a classic fantasy anthology series, Lin Carter’s Flashing Swords #6, when they got a look at the political diatribe in his Introduction. Several writers pulled their stories from the book and Pulp Hero Press told them it was being delisted.

When one of the contributors, Cliff Biggers, received a copy of the book he thought it had been released anyway, and aired his grievances on Facebook, including that the authors never signed a contract and have not been paid.

But Pulp Hero Press publisher Bob McLain and the writers continued talking and they have reached an agreement. Cliff Biggers told Facebook readers:

I am very pleased to report that Pulp Hero Press publisher Bob McClain continued to discuss the Flashing Swords #6 situation with all of us in hopes of finding a solution. This morning, he approached the authors with a proposed resolution that has been accepted. Bob has confirmed that we hold the copyrights, he has confirmed cancellation of the book (even if Amazon somehow resists it, they have no copies or files to ship), and he has offered the writers a “kill fee” for the stories while allowing them to take the story to any publisher immediately. This is the best possible resolution to a situation that was as unpleasant and unexpected for Bob McClain as it was for all of us, and I appreciate his willingness to bring this to a close.

Some of the stories will appear in a new anthology from publisher Bob McLain.

Author Joe Bonadonna secured permission to post McLain’s email with all the details.

Bob McLain
9:54 AM (1 hour ago)

I’m sure you’re all sick of FLASHING SWORDS by now – as am I – but this email is essential to provide closure to the matter, and stands as my last statement about it.

Let me get another “excuse” out of the way first.

FLASHING SWORDS was my first anthology. Robert Price was respected in the field and had many, many anthologies under his belt. He provided to me a “ready-to-publish” manuscript, and I assumed in good faith that he had secured rights from the contributors. I was to pay him a royalty on sales.

The copyright notice in the book identifies Price as the copyright holder. It has been quite a few years since I sat in an intellectual property class in law school, but I can assure you – guarantee you – that the rights to your stories remain with you, and not with Price. He has *no* copyright to anything in the book except for his introduction, the vile catalyst for all these problems. His claim to your stories, in regard to including them in an anthology, was extinguished when they were, in fact, included in an anthology. He didn’t pay you for anything, and as I’m now being told, he didn’t even offer you contracts to sign.

I can also assure you that Price has no copies of the book himself. After telling him a couple of days ago that I would have nothing more to do with him (to which he replied “Nice knowing you”), he had the gall
last night to send me an email asking that I send him a few comp copies. Even if I had copies myself, which I don’t, the only place they belong is in the trash.

I never should have published that book. More to the point, I should have been more engaged in the process and not have *assumed* that Price had done all the editorial and legal legwork. The book is no longer available on Amazon, not even from third-party sellers like The Book Depository, and I took steps to remove all of your names from Amazon’s book description. The book should also no longer appear on your Amazon author pages.

Some of you have re-submitted your stories to me for inclusion in a new anthology. I’ve already paid for a couple of them. Some of you want nothing to do with a new anthology. Regardless, I’m going to take one of your suggestions and offer a kill fee to everyone whose story was included in FLASHING SWORDS! #6, regardless of whether that story is slated for further publication, regardless of whether it has already been paid for, and regardless of its length. The kill fee is $50. If you’d like to claim the kill fee, please give me either your PayPal address or your mailing address. By paying the kill fee I do not request, nor will I acquire, any rights to your story, in particular the right to include it in a future anthology (unless, of course, we’ve already made a separate agreement about that). In *all* cases, *you* are the copyright holder.

This closes the book, so to speak, for me on FLASHING SWORDS. I’ll have nothing more to say about it. My lesson learned, for future anthologies, is to circulate a final proof of the *entire* book to all of the
contributors prior to publication for review and approval. Had I taken this obvious, in hindsight, step prior to publishing FLASHING SWORDS #6, the fixable problems in the book would have been fixed, and we’d likely all be friends right now.

— Bob McLain

Authors Pull Stories from
Flashing Swords #6

Editor Robert Price set off a rebellion among the contributors to his revival of a classic fantasy anthology series, Lin Carter’s Flashing Swords #6, when they got a look at the political diatribe in his Introduction to the book.   

Cliff Biggers, a longtime friend and one of those authors, broadcast his decision to pull his story “Godkiller” in protest:

It has come to my attention that in the introduction to the book Flashing Swords #6, Editor Robert M. Price has made several statements that I cannot and do not agree with. I have requested that my name and story be removed from the anthology, and I cannot recommend that anyone buy the book. I’ll make sure that my story “Godkiller” is available in another form at a later date. I apologize to anyone who may have already purchased the book at my earlier recommendation. If you cannot cancel your order from Amazon, contact me and I will personally reimburse you for the cost of this book. None of us who contributed to the book saw the introduction prior to publication. This introduction does not reflect my beliefs, my feelings, or my philosophy of tolerance, understanding, and acceptance. I still believe that sword and sorcery is a fine genre that has room for people of all races, genders, lifestyles, and beliefs, as it has from the early days when women like C.L. Moore and Margaret Brundage played a vital role in developing and popularizing the genre. I am not the only author who has expressed these concerns to Robert M. Price, but I will let those other authors speak for themselves.

Price’s Introduction talks about “the feminization of American culture.” He seems to see himself as protesting overreactions to injustices that deserve to be called out, where society’s response “smacks of an ideology of man-hating.”  

Amazon’s listing for the paperback remains live at the moment, here, with the “Look Inside” feature still working and the complete Introduction available to read there. And if that goes away, two screencaps of excerpts are here and here.

Bleeding Cool learned that several other writers asked that their work be removed, too: Frank Schildiner, Charles R. Rutledge and Paul McNamee.

Frank Schildiner:

Earlier today I recommended and spoke of how proud I was in seeing my first published Sword and Sorcery story in the returning anthology series, Flashing Swords. I apologize for those words.

A short time ago I learned of Robert Price’s introduction and felt sick to my stomach. I wrote and requested my name and story be removed from the book as well as the book that followed.

I’m grateful to Charles R Rutledge for bringing this to my attention. If you purchased the book on my recommendation, I hope you will forgive me for this situation. I had not received a proof copy and would not have allowed my name connected to such statements.

Paul McNamee:

It has come to my attention that in the introduction to the book FLASHING SWORDS! #6, Editor Robert M. Price has made several political/socio-cultural statements. I was not aware of this introduction until the book went live for purchase, and I read it via the Amazon preview feature.

Whether I agree or disagree, I do not believe in political screeds prefacing my story. If I want politics in my story, I will put them there myself. I did not sign up for a crusade. I signed up to tell a fun story with other stories of sword-&-sorcery.

A request to remove the introduction was refused. I have requested that my name and story be removed from the anthology. At this time, it is not clear this will be done. It is certainly not worth going to court over.

I have always prided myself on my professionalism in this little area of the world of writing that is mine. So, I will say no further but know that certain typical steps were *not* followed and therefore it is well within my rights to pull the story.

I am disappointed the editor has chosen a screed over a quality story.

I apologize to anyone who may have already purchased the book at my earlier recommendation.

Personally, obviously, I cannot recommend the anthology in its current state.

(I am not the only author who has expressed these concerns to Robert M. Price, but I will let those other authors speak for themselves.)

Cliff Biggers subsequently reports, “Pulp Hero Press publisher Bob McClain has reached out to those of us who removed our stories from Flashing Swords #6. He has removed the book from Amazon and has been very understanding of our concerns.”

Publisher Bob McClain, in “Publisher Delists Flashing Swords #6 After Authors Object to Foreword”, told Bleeding Cool he would have been willing to publish the introduction (!) until he received the backlash from the authors.

When Bob Price sent me the manuscript, I assumed that he had shared his introduction with the authors, given the controversial content. I don’t agree with much of anything in that introduction, but I also don’t like to censor other viewpoints – so, on the assumption that all the authors were on board, I published the book. The problem, of course, is that the authors didn’t know what Bob had written in the introduction. Surprise! And of course they don’t want to be seen as implicitly accepting or endorsing Bob’s opinions by having their work appear in his book.

I read FLASHING SWORDS as a kid in the 1970s and it’s a shame that the brand has taken such a hit so soon after its reappearance. I’m speaking with most of the contributors about including their stories in a new anthology series – no politics, no drama, just sword-and-sorcery! – that I’d like to release later this year.

[Thanks to Cliff Biggers and James Davis Nicoll for the story.]