Well, shit. We may be dead in the water. Marlene spoke a third editor - this one at Dafina. I quote the feedback:

1. FUBU is not the platform we would like it to be. If this book were written 10 years ago, no question it would have attracted attention and done well. But FUBU is no longer what the age group, 17-21 is buying or wearing. This is seen in retrospect. 2. This is a celebrity-driven book, and must go with that angle. Buying copies would help, but buying copies alone isn't going to do it. It wouldn't be a bona fide bestseller, and the marketplace would know that. She cited Hill Harper as an example of buying into bestsellerdom with LETTERS TO YOUNG BLACK BOYS, and how it's been on and off the charts. If you go to a publisher with buy-back in your proposal, the house, if interested, is just as likely to want to go sans advance as it would make more sense. So no up front money. 3. The hip hop market, and associated markets, have not done as well as they would have liked. Still, a special book with a special voice will find a home. It will not attract a huge advance. Market expectations have not been met, except in the area of music (she cited Snoop Dog and 50 Cent). There is a relationship between music and book sales. 4. The business book (Daymond's) that is coming out is interesting. But since it's in the works, it will be out before this fiction book would be. An interested publisher would want to see numbers. If it does extremely well, that leaves the door open for this book. Not now.

The business book will have competition in Kevin Liles book from Atria (which has done ok but not as well as expected), and Germain du Pres book due out soon. 5. A 45-year old white woman would have absolutely no cred to the target audience. The Vibe magazine thing wouldn't happen...they partner with them and it wouldn't appeal to their audience at all. I asked as a translator, etc., to broaden the experience, make it more mainstream/ She told me "this is their world. They don't need translation." If anything, mainstreaming takes away from the experience."

So, this sounds dead in the water. Ah well. If so, at least Daymond won't go out of pocket too much.

Oh, babe. That really, really sucks.

Oh, man. I'm sorry...would have been so great.

Fuck.

Sheeeesh. I guess I'm glad you're hearing this now, but pfffffft on it, anyhow. I'm sorry, deb.

Forwarded to Daymond, after I let Jo read it. We'll see.

If it crashes and burns, it crashes and burns. Cookies, crumbling, all that stuff.

I didn't *used* to have any particular dislike of Mondays, but these days, it does seem to be the smackdown day of the week.

I asked as a translator, etc., to broaden the experience, make it more mainstream/ She told me "this is their world. They don't need translation." If anything, mainstreaming takes away from the experience."

I know, I know, I'm not a businessman, haven't crunched the numbers or looked at the bottom line. But I HATE this kind of pigeonholing. What it means is that I'll never read books that might teach me something new, or give me insight into a culture I don't know about, because either the book won't be marketed to me so I won't know it exists, or it will never be published.

But I HATE this kind of pigeonholing.

Not only is it bogus as a gestalt - it's bogus specifically in this instance. Because the target audience here isn't specifically or even primarily young hip black urban hiphop fans between 17-21, or whatever. The entire idea is a broad spectrum woman readership.

Out of my hands - I sent the editor's thing on to Daymond, and we'll see what he says.

But the universe can make up its mind, pretty much anytime now: good shit or bad shit, but MAKE UP YOUR MIND.

It might still be worth trying anyway. Too bad about the big score not happening yet, though.

That's a disappoining response. And a bit confusing, because their idea of how to market the book doesn't sound like what you were pitching.

I'm kinda hoping this one flip-flops again on you.