They are a scam.
Notice to Writers: Catcher Ltd and Pulse Books
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7 responses to “Notice to Writers: Catcher Ltd and Pulse Books”
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I got an email from Catcher, Ltd. the other day. I suspect they’re culling names from the Nano site.
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Entirely possible and not the first time this has happened.
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Catcher Limited and Pulse Books (plus Pulse Music) and the offer we are making to selected writers (and musicians) is not ‘a scam’ and we will be taking legal action against you unless you can find a way of undoing the damage you may have caused. You issued your comment across the web without checking your facts first. Check us out at http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk – our Company Registration Number is: 4463969. Yes, we have contacted selected Nanowrimo participants but why not?! Nanowrimo themselves have issued a Forum Bulletin announcing our new offer to writers and many writers are already working with us. Our new offer for unpublished writers is a fantastic idea which makes best use of the web and, frankly, can be the anwer to many unpublished writers’ dreams. Incidentally, we also run a free (sponsor & government funded) arts and publishing programme with schools and colleges both in and outside the UK – why are you so cynical? We’re not even asking for the £45 administration fee (very under-costed by the way) until the writer/musician has a contract in place!
Julia Heron
Catcher Limited -
Charging for publication is considered a scam. The only time you pay for “publishing” is for a vanity press.
You are spamming US citizens, which is illegal under the CANSPAM Act of 2003, further more you make false claims about publication. Why pay you when anyone can go to Lulu have their book printed? You aren’t promising publication, you are charging folks for a website with no guarantee of service without more fees.
The site you listed is nothing more than a site to registrar companies in the UK. Anyone can do that.
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Here’s a direct link to the listing for Catchter Ltd at Companies House:
http://wck2.companieshouse.gov.uk/2ca6da45ed0550c72b0d9e4342ea6ff2/compdetails
Nothing terribly impressive there: anyone can set up a limited company: all you do is pay a small fee and file accounts each year. This alone is no proof of a publishing company’s integrity: Companies House has no interest in your business model, just in ensuring you follow legislation regarding the running of a limited company.
I’ve had a quick Google for Catcher Ltd and Pulse Books, and can find nothing about this company that would make me ever even consider using its services to publish my work. Both Catcher Ltd and Pulse Books seem woefully ill-informed about how publishing really works (catchy phrase, that, eh?) and I don’t remember seeing any books published by them on the bookshop shelves.
I find it particularly telling that Catcher Ltd’s representative, Julia Heron, has threatened legal action in this comments thread as a result of Catcher Ltd and Pulse Books being called a scam. I don’t know of a single commercial publisher which would make a threat like that on such a flimsy issue: they’d probably just ignore it. There’s a small chance that they might put forward their case and explain why they’re not a scam: but threaten legal action? Nope.
This threat doesn’t help Catcher’s cause: all it does is provide another reason to avoid them. I certainly wouldn’t want to get involved with a company that threatened legal action at the first hint trouble: I’d want them to use reason and logic in the first instance. Another good reason to avoid them.
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Thank you Jane for your insight.
I used the information provided by Ms. Heron to post a complaint with Companies House about Catcher Ltd.
I’ve also banned her Ip address as she keeps filling my comments with her advertising.
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Michelle, if she’s spamming you then you need to tell her ISP as it’s not allowed. It says a lot about her ethics, though, which provides another reason for avoiding her business.
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