A couple weeks ago an ad for Silent Spark Press popped up on my Facebook. The short portion of what I was able to read, stated they were accepting poetry submissions for their upcoming eBooks. I was intrigued and clicked the link. I learned they only produce eBooks, at this time, covering a variety of topics - photography, art, poetry, short stories, etc. Their goal is to give exposure to lesser-known creators. Sounded fabulous so I submitted a poem, Outside My Window, which was written a few months ago in honor of my dad.
I received a text last Sunday saying they'd accepted my poem and it would be featured in their upcoming eBook Beautiful Poetry. Through emails and further communication, I was able to preorder a copy and find out the publication date was July 22.
What I did not know when I submitted and preordered, was that I'd be expected to pay full price in order to obtain a copy. I paid the $12 because I wanted to see my words published. They sent an early copy of the "book" as a DropBox file and I was able to see it pre-published. When I didn't get another email confirming my copy was ready on the publication date as they stated it would be, I went back to the website, my order status showing "unfulfilled." Then I noticed they had 2 products listed side by side titled Beautiful Poetry. But one said book and one said eBook. I had initially clicked on the book and, believing I had placed an incorrect order, I paid another $18 for the eBook version.The order was confirmed, but I never received anything except the same file they'd already sent. I emailed customer service, which I never do, and they informed me that was the final product.
I also learned when you purchase, the only option is to have an automatic payment EVERY WEEK "renewing" your subscription. They give you the option to cancel anytime - which I've done - but each purchase qualifies as a separate subscription.
