I am not annoyed ... much.

Mark Robson

Mark Robson

Dragon Writer
Joined
Aug 31, 2004
Messages
2,123
Location
Daventry - England
It appears the first in the Dragon Orb series is being launched in France in August with a great cover. Good news ... fantastic news even. At least it would be if they hadn't spelt my name wrong!!! I'm trying to tell myself it doesn't matter, but I'm finding that I'm having to do it through gritted teeth. There may be a perfectly good reason for it, but if there is, I haven't managed to work it out yet.
 

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Is it too fantastic to think it's a French spelling? I'm so sorry this is annoying you, perhaps it's purely to appeal to its audience in some way which will ultimately work to your advantage. Anyway, I hope so.
 
I know how you feel because I have my work on the Barrie James new authors' website and for quite a while any translation of the name "Hall" (my surname) came out as what hall would be any country's language. Fortunately they have now put it right. Mind you, some of the foreign names for Hall were brilliant - wish I changed my pen name now (though I use my own name, not a pen name, in any case).

Can't you do anything about it Mark? Maybe get them to haul them all in and reprint? Mind you, if you can get a copy if they do do that, it might be worth a fortune in a few years.

Anyhow - apart from that, congratulations in getting your work on foreign shores.
 
Interference said:
Is it too fantastic to think it's a French spelling? I'm so sorry this is annoying you, perhaps it's purely to appeal to its audience in some way which will ultimately work to your advantage. Anyway, I hope so.
Click to expand...

It could be this, but I find it strange - especially given that the same publisher is publishing the Imperial series using the correct spelling of my name. I suppose it doesn't really matter why they've done it. I am very pleased to have a publisher in France who are choosing super artwork to go on my covers. That counts for a lot in this game. Let's hope the young people in France are soon talking lots about Marc Robson!!
 
I agree, it's a cracking cover, Mark.

On the other matter: I appreciate that it's a bummer they spelled your name wrong, but at least it wasn't your surname - that would have really screwed up the search and indexing systems...

I wonder, like SS did, if you can make them recall the run and reprint it?
 
"Marc" is how the French would write it if he were one of their own, but it's not his name. Would they have corrected "William" to "Guillaume"? I suppose trying to adopt him into Gallic culture is a compliment, of sorts.

So, book signings predicted for these overseas editions?
 
chrispenycate said:
"Marc" is how the French would write it if he were one of their own, but it's not his name. Would they have corrected "William" to "Guillaume"? I suppose trying to adopt him into Gallic culture is a compliment, of sorts.

So, book signings predicted for these overseas editions?
Click to expand...

I've been invited to Nice next year, Chris. But that is to speak at the International school there, so I'll be speaking to English speakers. I hear it's nice in Nice! :D

As for asking them to reprint the cover ... no, it's not that big a deal. The cover is the most expensive part of the printing process. I should know, I've paid for enough of them myself!
 
Congratulations on the launch of this series in France, Mark. It is a good cover; and I'd guess the pronunciation of Mark and Marc are the same (give or take the accent).




(Wonders: With a name like that, Marc Robson could very well be a non-dom. And is Marc's flight to Nice direct or via Zürich? ;):)) [/temptation]
 
Hi Mark, this seems pretty daft (dare I say incompetent) of your french publisher; in the writing game, your name is your brand, no?

Congratulations on the french release, though maybe your publisher/agent needs to have a stiff word with the folks responsible for this... :|
 
I would have thought, though, that they should have shown you the cover first! Wonder why they didn't!
 
Publishers over here usually send out cover proofs a few months before they start printing the books and the actual covers -- and in time to make changes, since I've known them to make their own changes during the interim. (Although it's only been easy things like the color of the writing.)

I don't know how they do it in France, but since the book doesn't come out until August there's a chance it may not be too late to fix the name.
 
Teresa Edgerton said:
Publishers over here usually send out cover proofs a few months before they start printing the books and the actual covers -- and in time to make changes, since I've known them to make their own changes during the interim. (Although it's only been easy things like the color of the writing.)

I don't know how they do it in France, but since the book doesn't come out until August there's a chance it may not be too late to fix the name.
Click to expand...

It seems you are quite right, Teresa. The French Publisher in question has done a 'U' turn and is going to change the spelling back to Mark. I put the question to my rights team at Simon & Schuster UK, and within a day they came back saying it would be changed. No explanation as to why, or why they had used Marc in the first place. It really wouldn't have bothered me if there was a good reason for it. So I've been left a little bemused by the whole thing really.

What a strange little event in my life as an author!
 
Sorry I'm so late with this Marc ;)

Awesome book cover and Marc Robson does look quite cool if that's any consolation.
 
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