Cocktales
Penny Reid
Foreword
By Nana Malone
Tribes.
It’s a word that has always fascinated me. I think it’s because when I was a kid, my family moved around a lot and I never felt as if I had that group of folks who had the same shared experiences. I was always an outsider. A solo nomad.
In the last few weeks, that has all changed. Without much effort on my part, I found my tribe. I met a fabulous group of women—many of whom I honestly squealed about when I said their names aloud—who let me into their circle. I’m not sure how I got invited into this group (that’s a lie, I totally know and THANK YOU—you know who you are) but I am so grateful.
And now, my tribe had grown by leaps and bounds, all because of one word: Cocky.
If you are reading this forward, it is very likely that you have heard about #cockygate and how a romance author trademarked a common word (cocky). For those of you just joining this little party, basically, if this trademark goes unchallenged, my understanding is that no author will be allowed to use the word “cocky” in a book title, retroactively from June 16, 2016 until forever.
You’re probably wondering what this has to do with me, right? Well, I was messaged by this author a few weeks ago, just prior to the first book in my new series being published. My original series titles were perfect for the stories—which are about a swaggering, arrogant prince—and were perfect for my brand, which is sexy, smart romantic comedy.
The original titles were: Cocky Prince, Cocky Royal, and Cocky King. After years of writing and planning and working, I had the perfect titles, three amazing covers, and all the excitement I felt for this series.
I was ready to make this my breakout series.
I thought I’d done everything right—I’d even networked!
Shudder
(Seriously, I’m actually pretty shy.)
Five days before the reveal of the hottest covers I’d ever seen in my life, I got a notice from this author claiming I had copied her covers and her brand and that she was ready and willing to defend it to the “full extent” (i.e., take legal action).
How had this happened? I’d never heard of this author or her books before. Her message completely blindsided me. I have sixty-five books published, and not once . . . not ever, had anything like this happened before.
I did what any other author would do. I cried. There were tears. I howled. There may have been some screaming. I begged advice from this new band of women who, let me be clear, were shocked and flipping commiseration tables of frustration at my bad luck.
None of them had heard of anything like this happening either.
And then I got smart. I called a friend and said, “What is the name of your lawyer again? I need to make a call.” Then I cried and bitched and complained to the lawyer.
Long story short, I was told that, while the claim was shaky, it was somewhat defensible, so unless I had a pile of money to burn, it was in my best interest to change my titles.
So, I bit the bullet and changed my covers two days before the reveal. No lie, that cover designer, AMY DAWS, is a saint. She made so many versions of that book cover it was unbelievable.
The next thing I did was get ahold of some other authors who had the word “cocky” in their titles. These were women I’d never met or talked to or shared a drink with at conferences, but I tried to warn them. Some I couldn’t easily find, but those I did were appreciative, even though they hadn’t had any trouble by that point.
So Cheeky Prince, Cheeky Royal, and Cheeky King were born. And you know what? Thanks to that newfound tribe, those books rocked! These women I barely knew shared and pimped me out like crazy. They put me in their newsletters and made blood pacts that my books would kill.
I moved on, occasionally grumbling to my poor husband, but I had let it go. I was mostly still mad about the funds I’d paid to my new lawyer just to find out this was a fight I couldn’t win without tens of thousands of dollars to spend on legal fees.
And then, guess what?
A month later, all hell broke loose. One of the authors I’d warned weeks prior had been hit with a trademark infringement notice.
From Audible.
It seemed as if the Cocky ? author had bypassed the fair warning cease and desist she’d sent me and started trying to take books down from vendors directly.
Some people said, “Don't change your title, she has no claim.” Others said, “You don’t have to do anything; it’s bogus.” But when someone is holding your livelihood for ransom, you’ll do what you have to do to get it back, even if that means changing your original title. In my opinion, this Cocky ? author knew that.
Overnight, several authors reported to the author community that takedown notices had been sent to Amazon for their books. Some had books removed, and some had their future revenue threatened. I guess that was the gong heard ’round the world.
Romancelandia came out swinging.
That group of women I told you about? My new tribe? They decided to let themselves be heard in the only way that mattered. They took action, have volunteered their time and words, and have reached out to others willing to do the same. They have brought you the cockiest of stories, Cocktales.
The goal for this anthology is for the proceeds to go where they will do the most good—helping the authors who have been impacted to fight back.
I must pause here and say thank you to Cassie Sharp for the eloquent and kind open letter she penned (if you haven’t read it yet, read her blog about this issue), because it helped me find some compassion.
To these women who have taken action, I say thank you. Thank you for being my tribe. Thank you to the romance community. Thank you to RWA for your advocacy. Thank you to the readers. And thank you to those who have no skin in this game but see the terrifying precedent and have stood up to fight this fight.
Stay cocky, my friends.
Nana Malone
About the Cocktales Anthology
'Cocktales' is a limited-release anthology (available only from May 26 – August 26, 2018) of original, never before published material, some of which is raw and unedited. Each story was specifically written for this anthology.
The goal of the Cocktales Anthology is to raise funds to fight against obstruction of creative expression. Specifically, what we believe are obstruction attempts through the trademarking of common (single) words for titicular use in books / or as a book series (eBooks, print, and audio).
ALL net profits will be donated to:
Authors already impacted by creative-obstruction, and
Advocacy for all authors of all genres against obstruction of creative expression.
Cocked and Loaded
Dylan Allen
Getting revenge on her childhood crush, turned tormentor, is has been Maria's dream for twenty years. But, when she finally gets her chance, will she be able to resist him long enough to see her plans through.
Copyright ? 2018 by Dylan Allen All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
One
MARIA
CockedandLoaded: Let’s meet tonight.
LusciousCutiePie: Why the rush?
CockedandLoaded: It’s been two weeks. Hardly a rush sweetheart. In fact, this is the longest I’ve ever talked to someone before I meet them.
LusciousCutiePie: Good things cum to those who wait.
CockedandLoaded: You’re all talk. Meet me tonight. Or, I’m done.
I groan and glare at my phone. “You’re such an asshole,“ I say through gritted teeth.
“Ummm, you know he can’t see or hear you, right?” My roommate Tina drawls in disgust from the couch she’s curled up on reading.