Dear Airleaf Victims and Friends,
Many of you have received the following notice from Detective Jeff Buskirk of the Martinsville, Indiana police department. If you haven't, I am sending it to you so you can take the proper action. Please see my note at the end.
Good day,
This is to inform you I have talked to Carl Lau this date. He has closed down. However, he and his attorney has assured me that if I provide them with a list of items to be returned, they will make them available to return disks, galleys, books etc. Carl told me he has 60,000 books in his facility, of which he owns only about 10,000 of. The rest is yours and others who have published with him. When he receives an authors permission, he is donating books to Goodwill.
Here is what I need from each of you. I need a list of any items you want returned to you in a separate email sent directly to me. This email will be given to the attorney, so please only list what you are needing from the company. You may also indicate how much you feel they owe each of you, so that that can be recorded by the attorney too. Please keep the negative comments to another day, as we are trying to get each of you what we can get as we can get it. I will also need to know if you are willing to pay for shipping as I don't believe there will be funds to ship anything out from Airleaf and probably not from our agency. If you want to drive to Martinsville, please indicate this and I will try to set up a time in January to have a day or two where we can get this accomplished.
This does not stop the criminal investigation. Some of you have also asked about the class action or civil suit. You will have to talk to Bonnie Kaye about that issue as I have no involvement in civil matters at this time.
Finally, this is my last day of working this year, but I will be available thru email. Starting January 1, 2008 I will be working the streets and no longer a detective. Political change. As of today, I have continued to inquire as to how this case will be handled or if I will be allowed to continue this investigation, but the new Chief and administration has chosen to keep me in the dark. Therefore, I will just say I will do everything in my power to make sure this case is not forgotten nor ignored. Hopefully, I will be allowed to continue to work on this case as I change positions.
Thank you all for your assistance in this matter and I will be looking forward to hearing from all 150+ of you in the next couple of days as to what you need from Airleaf and what to do about your books if they have them.
Finally, in a total unofficial matter, I am on the Board of directors of the Boys/Girls Clubs of Morgan County which serves Martinsville and Mooresville communities. We currently have two clubs which are up and operational. If any of you have books which are appropriate for children ages 6-18 and wish to donate them to us, you can do so my sending them to me at the PD address. This is not a demand by any means, it's just a way for us to build up our libraries which we are just now putting together.
Sincerely,
Capt. Jeffrey C Buskirk
% Martinsville Police Dept
PO Box 1415
Martinsville, Indiana 46151
765-342-6614 Office 765-342-6725 FAX
It is with deep regret that Detective Buskirk is leaving his job. I had an extensive conversation with him this afternoon expressing our concerns for when he is reassigned. He has requested that he be allowed to finish up the investigation with Airleaf, but depending on the new mayor who starts after January 1, this will be determined later. We may need to write to the new mayor to express our concerns at that time, but I will keep you posted.
Although this isn't the final victory for us, it is a major victory. Authors will be able to get their valuable work back as well as books. Airleaf is out of business so that Carl Lau can't hurt anyone else like he has done to us. Although Lau is pointing the finger in my direction, I hope you all know that this fraudulence was taking place long before my Airleaf Victims campaign. I was not the cause of his fraudulence--he has to take the responsibility on himself.
We must continue our campaign with renewed energies after the New Year in order to see what money can be returned to authors as well as making sure that criminal charges are pressed against the man who was in charge of collecting our money. I will update you with more information on Saturday.
With love and hope,
Bonnie Kaye
Authors and friends,
We need you to continue blogging and sharing your stories so that justice can continue to all those parties involved in this horrific scandal.
Showing posts with label Authors. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Authors. Show all posts
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Airleaf Victims, Internet Crime Complaint Center, Governor of Indiana.
December 8, 2007
Dear Airleaf Victims and Supporters,
First, allow me to welcome our 13 new members bring our totals to over 225 victims.
This has been a productive week which I feel will make us some headway. Due to the important information in this update, I will hold off on new author stories. You can read more of the new ones posted on our website at www.AirleafVictims.com.
As of today, Saturday, December 8, it appears as if Airleaf is no longer opening their doors. I hesitate to use the term “out of business” because I believe there is a new reorganization going on. But Airleaf as we knew it is no longer operating. Their website went down as of Thursday, December 6. I will keep you posted on this development as soon as I can confirm any information early next week. This means you will receive a short update from me before next Saturday to let you know the status. I don’t want you to have to wait a week for confirmation.
Just to refocus, let me review what our three major goals are:
To make sure Airleaf is out of business so it can no longer take money from new unsuspecting victims or keep our royalties that are paid to them through their website and other sources such as Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
To have our money returned to us for the fraudulent services of book publishing and promotions.
Dear Airleaf Victims and Supporters,
First, allow me to welcome our 13 new members bring our totals to over 225 victims.
This has been a productive week which I feel will make us some headway. Due to the important information in this update, I will hold off on new author stories. You can read more of the new ones posted on our website at www.AirleafVictims.com.
As of today, Saturday, December 8, it appears as if Airleaf is no longer opening their doors. I hesitate to use the term “out of business” because I believe there is a new reorganization going on. But Airleaf as we knew it is no longer operating. Their website went down as of Thursday, December 6. I will keep you posted on this development as soon as I can confirm any information early next week. This means you will receive a short update from me before next Saturday to let you know the status. I don’t want you to have to wait a week for confirmation.
Just to refocus, let me review what our three major goals are:
To make sure Airleaf is out of business so it can no longer take money from new unsuspecting victims or keep our royalties that are paid to them through their website and other sources such as Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
To have our money returned to us for the fraudulent services of book publishing and promotions.
To have Carl Lau, owner, prosecuted for his criminal activities.
When Airleaf closes for good, we need to focus on goals two and three. We are not going to settle for Carl Lau going out of business and not being held accountable for our losses. He needs to return our money.
I really need your help at this point to take two important steps.
First, please fill out this link to the FBI when you have a chance this weekend.
Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)
I had an extensive conversation with the FBI here in Philadelphia on Wednesday, and they are opening up a case to investigate the charges. Due to the fact that this fraudulence was not only national but international, and the number of people and amount of money is so great, the FBI will investigate the case.
The agent I spoke to gave me the link listed above so we can start to bring the urgency to their agency. This form will take about ten minutes to complete. After your personal information, it will ask you if you are filing related to the Internet or online service. Since almost all of us have corresponded through the internet through emails and online advertisements, check yes. Next, you will be asked about the individual/business that victimized you.
You will need to have the Airleaf address, phone, and Email address handy for this form. They are:
Business Name: Airleaf Publishing and BooksellingFirst name:
Carl Address: 35 Industrial Drive · Martinsville, Indiana 46151Telephone: 1 800 342-6068 Email Address: Carl@Airleaf.com (this is Carl’s email)
The rest of the information will ask you basic information, including how you feel you have been victimized. This is where you tell them the same story you sent to Detective Buskirk. They will also ask you what other agencies you have been involved with. There are five choices listed including a consumer protection agency. That is for everyone who filed with the Indiana Attorney General. Most of you have filed with Detective Buskirk, so also check “Police.”
If you don’t have the exact information or dates, don’t worry. Put in what you can remember to the best of your ability just to get it submitted. The FBI agent was encouraging about our getting restitution for the money we’ve lost, so please take some time as soon as possible to take this step. I would like for the FBI to have over 100 complaints when they walk into their offices on Monday to give this case a big push.
The second step I need you to do is fill out the link below to the Indiana Governor’s office, Mitch Daniels. This form is shorter and invites you to ask the governor a question. In that box, please tell him your story.
The reason I am asking you to do this is because I had an antagonistic conversation with the Attorney General’s office in Indiana on Tuesday, December 4. Last week, I reported to you that Terry Tolliver is no longer part of the case and that I was trying to reach the person who took over our case. When I called the new person on Tuesday because I had no response from last week, it was a voicemail for a “paralegal.” I became angry and called Indiana’s AG Steve Carter’s office directly. His aide was not supportive when I told her that there is a “mountain” of complaints and this should not be handled by a paralegal. She looked at her computer and said, “This is hardly a ‘mountain’ of complaints.” I became angry because I have tracked over 70 complaints from you. She was only able to find a few scattered ones. I told her this is unacceptable. I decided to call the Governor’s office in Indiana for help. Again, I was transferred to a voicemail, but at least when someone did pick up the message, I had very quick action. Within an hour, I received a message from Joanne Hartford in the Indiana Attorney General’s office representative who now stated (changing her comments from the day before—and I quote because I have her message on my voicemail), “I have talked to several people that are working on investing this…it is still a very active investigation…obviously we can’t take it to any kind of litigation, we can’t go on without heavy duty investigating, and since the majority of these were filed late in the year we are doing our best…and I explained all that to the governor so he understands too.”
I don’t think the Governor does understand at all. These complaints have been coming in for five months. I think he needs to know first hand.
Here is the link to the Governor: ASK MITCH
At the bottom, it will ask you to write a question to him. That’s when you can ask him why the Attorney General’s office was not active in closing this company. Remember, as Airleaf closes, it is due to US, the vigilant victims, not the legal agencies that should have done it.
The closing of Airleaf brings up many questions including what happens to your books and how will books recently sold through Amazon and other outlets go to you. To help us unravel this mess, I turned to predatory expert Victoria Strauss who owns the website Writers Beware. I sent Victoria a copy of my Airleaf contract which I assume is similar to most of yours. In there is this clause:
Author Assurances
AUTHOR retains all rights to any book, manuscript or other written material submitted to AIRLEAF. Author is in agreement with the following statements:
1. AUTHOR is legally responsible for the content of any written material.
2. AUTHOR will not hold AIRLEAF responsible for delays or errors caused by any company or other distributor, beyond AIRLEAF's control.
3. AUTHOR is the sole owner of the written material submitted and has full power and authority to enter into this agreement.
4. AUTHOR is responsible for any written material that infringes any other copyrighted material, violates anyone else's rights, or contains unlawful, or libelous material.
5. AUTHOR retains all rights to any book, manuscript or other written material submitted.
6. AUTHOR understands that the laws of Indiana govern this agreement, and that Indiana would be the venue for any dispute.
The sentences I highlighted made me feel confident that we are clear of any tie-in with Airleaf. However, Victoria wrote this back to me to share with you:
The contract may say that "Author retains all rights," but that's not strictly accurate, since the contract grants nonexclusive publication rights to Airleaf. As long as the contract is in force, Airleaf has the right to print and sell your book. For your rights to be fully free and clear (which they would need to be if you wanted to try to sell your book to a commercial publisher), the Airleaf contract needs to be terminated or voided.Since the contract is freely terminable at will, sending notice to Airleaf that you're terminating the contract should be sufficient, even if you don't get a response from them. I'd send both an email and a certified snail mail letter, just so you can say you did everything you could.However, before you do anything, I suggest you consult a lawyer knowledgeable about publishing or intellectual property law. Would canceling now have an impact on your standing as a creditor if Airleaf does declare bankruptcy? On the other hand, it might make sense to cancel right away to avoid getting caught up in bankruptcy proceedings. I'd definitely want to have an informed opinion on this before I took action.On the Overview page of Writer Beware (http://www.sfwa.org/beware/overview.html), there's a section on Legal Recourse that provides links to the American Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service and Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts (a volunteer organization that specializes in providing legal assistance for people in the arts). Either service will arrange an initial low-cost or pro-bono consultation for you to discuss your situation, after which you can decide on what further action to take.- Victoria
I would like to thank Victoria for the support she is providing to our group. She has an important similar story on her blogsite this week that will encourage all of you. Here is the link:
Link: At Last! Writer Beware Blogs! A.C. Crispin and Victoria Strauss Reveal All!: V
We do have several lawyers in our group, so I’m hoping that one or two of them can check this out for us. In the meantime, you can feel free to email Carl Lau at Carl@Airleaf.com and tell him that you are terminating your contract with him and keep a copy of that email for yourself.
This week, I had three conversations with Al Smith, President of Lite Stone Entertainment whom I have accused of being in partnership with Carl Lau to defraud authors. First I received this email from him:
December 4, 2007
Dear Ms. Kaye,
I have just been informed about your web statements regarding Airleaf. The information you have stated about myself and Lite Stone Entertainment is incorrect. We have Airleaf Publishing our book and that is it. Airleaf wants to do books to film with us but only if they paid for production cost.
I understand you have a problem with Airleaf and I am not a part of your relationship or issues. Please give me a contact number, so that I may speak with you.
Sincerely,
AL SMITH
President
Lite Stone Entertainment
I sent him my phone number, and he did call me. After our first conversation, this was my response to him:
Dear Mr. Smith,
Thank you for your candid conversation this evening. As I explained, I accused you of being in a conspiracy with Airleaf because on your website of books in production or pre-production for Lite Stone Entertainment, all of the books listed except for two matched the Airleaf site of Books to Films.
Airleaf has repeatedly advertised Jessie's Girl and The Touch as Airleaf books that were being made into films. We know that is not the case. Based on the false advertising that went on for so many months regarding this, numerous people were misled to believe that their books could end up being produced by your company and invested large sums of money for a dream that became a nightmare.
I am attaching a compilation of my updates so you can read some of these stories. You can also read some of the other horror stories on our website at http://www.airleafvictims.com/.
I will gladly give you an opportunity to post a response as you discussed with me stating that you were not in a conspiracy with Carl Lau to rob people of their money. I still don't understand how you could list people's books as being in production or pre-production, but maybe you can explain that in your response as well so we can put this issue to rest.
I appreciate your responsiveness of changing your website so more people won't be misled. I will forward you the advertisements that Airleaf had sent out to people to make them think that you were part of this fraud.
I am attaching a compilation of my updates to date where I do speak about you and your company. I will be happy to print your side of the story.
Sincerely,
Bonnie Kaye, M.Ed.
www.AirleafVictims.com
After Mr. Smith read the compilation of updates, he sent back this response:
December 5, 2007
Dear Ms. Kaye,
I appreciate you forwarding the information regarding Airleaf. It's all quite overwhelming. We will be speaking soon.
Thank you,
Al Smith
Mr. Smith called me on Thursday evening, December 6, to let me know that his website was being taken down. He asked me if I could retract my statements. I told him I would change my website after I received a letter from him that I could share with you. He promised he would send it.
Mr. Smith called me again yesterday, Friday, December 7, to explain that it will take a few days to get the website replaced because of the complexities of the codes. I do understand this because I have someone else doing my websites. However, I still wanted him to send me a letter before making any changes. Early this morning, I did receive this note on his stationary:
December 7, 2007
Dear Ms. Kaye,
I appreciate you informing me on all the issues regarding Airleaf. We have the website being updated as of this moment. We are extremely disappointed in this situation with Airleaf also. We have disassociated ourselves with Airleaf Publishing completely. In addition, as mentioned, the books that were on our website’s listing was to be made into films only if Airleaf paid us to do so.
If you have any further issues, please let me know.
Sincerely,
Al Smith
President
Lite Stone Entertainment
I am giving Mr. Smith the benefit of the doubt after my three conversations with him. I still don’t understand why he was naming “films in production or pre-production” knowing that there was no production, but I’ll assume that Carl Lau was promising that the money would be found. Based on that, I did change the language on my website about Lite Stone and changed that they were the partners in fraud with Airleaf to also being victims of a fraud.
For those of you who were listed on the site hoping that your books were going to become films, I'm sorry, but the truth has to be known.
I have mentioned to you in earlier updates that I am seeking a marketing company that you can trust for marketing your books for those who are looking to do so. I have been very careful not to promote any publisher, printer, or marketing source in these updates. I only mentioned Axess Printing because many of your books were stuck in that loop. A number of other printers, publishers, and promoters contacted me when they learned about our plight. But unless I feel totally confident in a company, I am not advocating them. In the weeks ahead, I will send you resources for republishing your books because when Airleaf is out of business, you will need to find a new publisher, as I have. But for the time being, I’m still doing research.
I believe in this company called Spotlight Publicity. I have worked in the past with one of the employees, Jessica, when she was at iUniverse where my earlier books were published. She was truly excellent, efficient, and effective as far as getting me excellent publicity which helped my book sales. I wrote and spoke to the manager, Lea Toland, and I asked her if she would be willing to work with some of our authors who are seeking publicity services. I asked her to put together some information about her company, and she sent me this response:
Spotlight Publicity guarantees that every author that we meet, consult, or work with will walk away with more knowledge and know-how when it comes to the book publicity process. Our main reason for founding Spotlight Publicity was to take the guess work out of marketing and publicizing books for authors of all levels. If you don’t know your target audience or aren't sure what your book marketing goals should be, that’s OK, we‘re happy to get you on track. If this is your ninth book and you're looking for a book promotion on a budget, then we can help you too.
All of our marketing services are billed at a rate of $42/hour and are customized for each individual author. Our services range from individually purchasable basics like a media press kit to nationwide book tours with location and genre specific media coverage. An outline of all services with more specific campaign details and length specifications can be found on our web-site at http://spotlightpublicity.com/services.html. We're happy to answer your book promotion questions, just submit some information about yourself and your publication to us through our web-site or contact us directly at inquiry@spotlightpublicity.com. We would like to leave you with this, “Not every book is a guaranteed best seller, but every author deserves answers when it comes to marketing and publicizing their work.”
Our best,
Spotlight Publicity
Lea Toland
Spotlight Publicity, Business Manager
Office: (800) 914-1375 ext. 701
4451 S. 45th Street
Lincoln, NE 68516
lea@spotlightpublicity.com
http://www.spotlightpublicity.com/
Putting the Spotlight on Our Authors, Not Just Books.
Let me talk for a moment about marketing and publicity services. If you have hopes about your book becoming a national best seller or a movie in Hollywood, please do away with those thoughts. It is very unlikely to ever happen. Please be realistic with your marketing goals before you invest more money to find yourself disappointed. If you talk to Spotlight or other companies, ask for a realistic assessment of what will happen. Ask for them to provide you with a list of work they are doing for you. Ask for a written contract if you are paying for services. Don’t assume anything anymore!
If you have any questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
I’ll write to you as soon as I get the status of Airleaf confirmed. Please fill out the links to the FBI and Indiana governor, and when you complete those steps, PLEASE EMAIL ME AND LET ME KNOW so I can track the complaints.
With love and hope,
Bonnie
If you don’t have the exact information or dates, don’t worry. Put in what you can remember to the best of your ability just to get it submitted. The FBI agent was encouraging about our getting restitution for the money we’ve lost, so please take some time as soon as possible to take this step. I would like for the FBI to have over 100 complaints when they walk into their offices on Monday to give this case a big push.
The second step I need you to do is fill out the link below to the Indiana Governor’s office, Mitch Daniels. This form is shorter and invites you to ask the governor a question. In that box, please tell him your story.
The reason I am asking you to do this is because I had an antagonistic conversation with the Attorney General’s office in Indiana on Tuesday, December 4. Last week, I reported to you that Terry Tolliver is no longer part of the case and that I was trying to reach the person who took over our case. When I called the new person on Tuesday because I had no response from last week, it was a voicemail for a “paralegal.” I became angry and called Indiana’s AG Steve Carter’s office directly. His aide was not supportive when I told her that there is a “mountain” of complaints and this should not be handled by a paralegal. She looked at her computer and said, “This is hardly a ‘mountain’ of complaints.” I became angry because I have tracked over 70 complaints from you. She was only able to find a few scattered ones. I told her this is unacceptable. I decided to call the Governor’s office in Indiana for help. Again, I was transferred to a voicemail, but at least when someone did pick up the message, I had very quick action. Within an hour, I received a message from Joanne Hartford in the Indiana Attorney General’s office representative who now stated (changing her comments from the day before—and I quote because I have her message on my voicemail), “I have talked to several people that are working on investing this…it is still a very active investigation…obviously we can’t take it to any kind of litigation, we can’t go on without heavy duty investigating, and since the majority of these were filed late in the year we are doing our best…and I explained all that to the governor so he understands too.”
I don’t think the Governor does understand at all. These complaints have been coming in for five months. I think he needs to know first hand.
Here is the link to the Governor: ASK MITCH
At the bottom, it will ask you to write a question to him. That’s when you can ask him why the Attorney General’s office was not active in closing this company. Remember, as Airleaf closes, it is due to US, the vigilant victims, not the legal agencies that should have done it.
The closing of Airleaf brings up many questions including what happens to your books and how will books recently sold through Amazon and other outlets go to you. To help us unravel this mess, I turned to predatory expert Victoria Strauss who owns the website Writers Beware. I sent Victoria a copy of my Airleaf contract which I assume is similar to most of yours. In there is this clause:
Author Assurances
AUTHOR retains all rights to any book, manuscript or other written material submitted to AIRLEAF. Author is in agreement with the following statements:
1. AUTHOR is legally responsible for the content of any written material.
2. AUTHOR will not hold AIRLEAF responsible for delays or errors caused by any company or other distributor, beyond AIRLEAF's control.
3. AUTHOR is the sole owner of the written material submitted and has full power and authority to enter into this agreement.
4. AUTHOR is responsible for any written material that infringes any other copyrighted material, violates anyone else's rights, or contains unlawful, or libelous material.
5. AUTHOR retains all rights to any book, manuscript or other written material submitted.
6. AUTHOR understands that the laws of Indiana govern this agreement, and that Indiana would be the venue for any dispute.
The sentences I highlighted made me feel confident that we are clear of any tie-in with Airleaf. However, Victoria wrote this back to me to share with you:
The contract may say that "Author retains all rights," but that's not strictly accurate, since the contract grants nonexclusive publication rights to Airleaf. As long as the contract is in force, Airleaf has the right to print and sell your book. For your rights to be fully free and clear (which they would need to be if you wanted to try to sell your book to a commercial publisher), the Airleaf contract needs to be terminated or voided.Since the contract is freely terminable at will, sending notice to Airleaf that you're terminating the contract should be sufficient, even if you don't get a response from them. I'd send both an email and a certified snail mail letter, just so you can say you did everything you could.However, before you do anything, I suggest you consult a lawyer knowledgeable about publishing or intellectual property law. Would canceling now have an impact on your standing as a creditor if Airleaf does declare bankruptcy? On the other hand, it might make sense to cancel right away to avoid getting caught up in bankruptcy proceedings. I'd definitely want to have an informed opinion on this before I took action.On the Overview page of Writer Beware (http://www.sfwa.org/beware/overview.html), there's a section on Legal Recourse that provides links to the American Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service and Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts (a volunteer organization that specializes in providing legal assistance for people in the arts). Either service will arrange an initial low-cost or pro-bono consultation for you to discuss your situation, after which you can decide on what further action to take.- Victoria
I would like to thank Victoria for the support she is providing to our group. She has an important similar story on her blogsite this week that will encourage all of you. Here is the link:
Link: At Last! Writer Beware Blogs! A.C. Crispin and Victoria Strauss Reveal All!: V
We do have several lawyers in our group, so I’m hoping that one or two of them can check this out for us. In the meantime, you can feel free to email Carl Lau at Carl@Airleaf.com and tell him that you are terminating your contract with him and keep a copy of that email for yourself.
This week, I had three conversations with Al Smith, President of Lite Stone Entertainment whom I have accused of being in partnership with Carl Lau to defraud authors. First I received this email from him:
December 4, 2007
Dear Ms. Kaye,
I have just been informed about your web statements regarding Airleaf. The information you have stated about myself and Lite Stone Entertainment is incorrect. We have Airleaf Publishing our book and that is it. Airleaf wants to do books to film with us but only if they paid for production cost.
I understand you have a problem with Airleaf and I am not a part of your relationship or issues. Please give me a contact number, so that I may speak with you.
Sincerely,
AL SMITH
President
Lite Stone Entertainment
I sent him my phone number, and he did call me. After our first conversation, this was my response to him:
Dear Mr. Smith,
Thank you for your candid conversation this evening. As I explained, I accused you of being in a conspiracy with Airleaf because on your website of books in production or pre-production for Lite Stone Entertainment, all of the books listed except for two matched the Airleaf site of Books to Films.
Airleaf has repeatedly advertised Jessie's Girl and The Touch as Airleaf books that were being made into films. We know that is not the case. Based on the false advertising that went on for so many months regarding this, numerous people were misled to believe that their books could end up being produced by your company and invested large sums of money for a dream that became a nightmare.
I am attaching a compilation of my updates so you can read some of these stories. You can also read some of the other horror stories on our website at http://www.airleafvictims.com/.
I will gladly give you an opportunity to post a response as you discussed with me stating that you were not in a conspiracy with Carl Lau to rob people of their money. I still don't understand how you could list people's books as being in production or pre-production, but maybe you can explain that in your response as well so we can put this issue to rest.
I appreciate your responsiveness of changing your website so more people won't be misled. I will forward you the advertisements that Airleaf had sent out to people to make them think that you were part of this fraud.
I am attaching a compilation of my updates to date where I do speak about you and your company. I will be happy to print your side of the story.
Sincerely,
Bonnie Kaye, M.Ed.
www.AirleafVictims.com
After Mr. Smith read the compilation of updates, he sent back this response:
December 5, 2007
Dear Ms. Kaye,
I appreciate you forwarding the information regarding Airleaf. It's all quite overwhelming. We will be speaking soon.
Thank you,
Al Smith
Mr. Smith called me on Thursday evening, December 6, to let me know that his website was being taken down. He asked me if I could retract my statements. I told him I would change my website after I received a letter from him that I could share with you. He promised he would send it.
Mr. Smith called me again yesterday, Friday, December 7, to explain that it will take a few days to get the website replaced because of the complexities of the codes. I do understand this because I have someone else doing my websites. However, I still wanted him to send me a letter before making any changes. Early this morning, I did receive this note on his stationary:
December 7, 2007
Dear Ms. Kaye,
I appreciate you informing me on all the issues regarding Airleaf. We have the website being updated as of this moment. We are extremely disappointed in this situation with Airleaf also. We have disassociated ourselves with Airleaf Publishing completely. In addition, as mentioned, the books that were on our website’s listing was to be made into films only if Airleaf paid us to do so.
If you have any further issues, please let me know.
Sincerely,
Al Smith
President
Lite Stone Entertainment
I am giving Mr. Smith the benefit of the doubt after my three conversations with him. I still don’t understand why he was naming “films in production or pre-production” knowing that there was no production, but I’ll assume that Carl Lau was promising that the money would be found. Based on that, I did change the language on my website about Lite Stone and changed that they were the partners in fraud with Airleaf to also being victims of a fraud.
For those of you who were listed on the site hoping that your books were going to become films, I'm sorry, but the truth has to be known.
I have mentioned to you in earlier updates that I am seeking a marketing company that you can trust for marketing your books for those who are looking to do so. I have been very careful not to promote any publisher, printer, or marketing source in these updates. I only mentioned Axess Printing because many of your books were stuck in that loop. A number of other printers, publishers, and promoters contacted me when they learned about our plight. But unless I feel totally confident in a company, I am not advocating them. In the weeks ahead, I will send you resources for republishing your books because when Airleaf is out of business, you will need to find a new publisher, as I have. But for the time being, I’m still doing research.
I believe in this company called Spotlight Publicity. I have worked in the past with one of the employees, Jessica, when she was at iUniverse where my earlier books were published. She was truly excellent, efficient, and effective as far as getting me excellent publicity which helped my book sales. I wrote and spoke to the manager, Lea Toland, and I asked her if she would be willing to work with some of our authors who are seeking publicity services. I asked her to put together some information about her company, and she sent me this response:
Spotlight Publicity guarantees that every author that we meet, consult, or work with will walk away with more knowledge and know-how when it comes to the book publicity process. Our main reason for founding Spotlight Publicity was to take the guess work out of marketing and publicizing books for authors of all levels. If you don’t know your target audience or aren't sure what your book marketing goals should be, that’s OK, we‘re happy to get you on track. If this is your ninth book and you're looking for a book promotion on a budget, then we can help you too.
All of our marketing services are billed at a rate of $42/hour and are customized for each individual author. Our services range from individually purchasable basics like a media press kit to nationwide book tours with location and genre specific media coverage. An outline of all services with more specific campaign details and length specifications can be found on our web-site at http://spotlightpublicity.com/services.html. We're happy to answer your book promotion questions, just submit some information about yourself and your publication to us through our web-site or contact us directly at inquiry@spotlightpublicity.com. We would like to leave you with this, “Not every book is a guaranteed best seller, but every author deserves answers when it comes to marketing and publicizing their work.”
Our best,
Spotlight Publicity
Lea Toland
Spotlight Publicity, Business Manager
Office: (800) 914-1375 ext. 701
4451 S. 45th Street
Lincoln, NE 68516
lea@spotlightpublicity.com
http://www.spotlightpublicity.com/
Putting the Spotlight on Our Authors, Not Just Books.
Let me talk for a moment about marketing and publicity services. If you have hopes about your book becoming a national best seller or a movie in Hollywood, please do away with those thoughts. It is very unlikely to ever happen. Please be realistic with your marketing goals before you invest more money to find yourself disappointed. If you talk to Spotlight or other companies, ask for a realistic assessment of what will happen. Ask for them to provide you with a list of work they are doing for you. Ask for a written contract if you are paying for services. Don’t assume anything anymore!
If you have any questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
I’ll write to you as soon as I get the status of Airleaf confirmed. Please fill out the links to the FBI and Indiana governor, and when you complete those steps, PLEASE EMAIL ME AND LET ME KNOW so I can track the complaints.
With love and hope,
Bonnie
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