About that lawsuit I've been involved in for the last year...

The lawsuit is over, and we won.

There has been a lot said about me, and this lawsuit, by people who don't know the full story, or who think it's perfectly okay to profit off of the stolen labor of others. I couldn't address any of that, because of the ongoing suit, but now that it's over I'd like to address a few things.

First off, I hesitate to label the other party as some kind of ethical or moral pillar, because he's not. He never was. He wasn't doing this to fight copyrights or help people; he was doing this for MONEY. Plain and simple. By his own account, he was making in excess of three hundred THOUSAND dollars a year off of his website.

Got that? He was stealing my work, and the work of other authors to make money, lots of money, with which he bought two airplanes and lived a pretty good life. He now claims that he's broke and living out of a conversion van (aren't those expensive?). I don't know if that's true or not, and I don't care.

The primary goal of this lawsuit was always to get an injunction and stop him from stealing my works and the works of other authors. I didn't even know his site existed until I was told my works were on it by some fans and other authors. I sent a C&D, my lawyers sent a C&D, and my lawyers even sent the appropriate DMCA notices. BTW, DMCA did NOT apply to his website. He was NEVER protected by its 'safe harbor' rules. Seriously folks, stop trying to practice law and talk to a real lawyer. The things my critics think are true and legal are bizarre.

Oh, and for all of those saying I should have settled out of court? We tried. Three times. The first time? Mr. McCrea sent US the settlement offer. One that was a hell of a lot better than what he was hit with today. He asked us to write it up for him (because of course he didn't have a lawyer - right). So I paid my attorney's to write it up exactly like he sent it to us.

And he never signed it.

Twice more we sent it to him, at the judge's (subtle) urging. He didn't respond to the first of those and was a bit rude on the last time. Again, it would have left him in a far better position than the ruling that came out today. So when the crocodile tears start to flow, don't pay them no mind. He was given three chances to get out of this for a lot less money, a LOT less.

But he refused.

My reasons, again, for this lawsuit.

• First is that he was making money off of the stolen work of me and other authors, and bragging about it.
• Second, he was claiming that by stealing my works (and the works of other authors) he was 'helping us'. If he was 'helping us' why did he post more than say the first book in any of our series? Or more than one or two?
• Third, he claimed 'he had permission'. Which of course, he didn't.
• Fourth, he never complied with any take-down requests. Oh, I know he claimed he did, and I was told by one author that any books taken down (in the few instances he appeared to do that) were back up again in days.
• Fifth, he was destroying the retirement of many authors, who rely on the royalties they get from their backlogs to pay their bills. This is a real thing! People were being financially hurt! This wasn't some small pirate site that maybe a couple of dozen people go to. The site was getting over a million hits per month, by his own account. Millions of books were being downloaded. Books are not like songs where you listen to them again and again. You read a book once, that's it. People who steal books don't come back and buy them later. Claiming that they do is a myth.
• Sixth, he was destroying the ability of new authors to enter the market. If your book only sells a few copies on Amazon, but it's the 'book of the week' on his website, with people downloading thousands of copies. Do you think that author is ever going to write again? It takes thousands of hours to write a book. It takes money to get cover art and editing services. If you don't get paid for your hard work, you find another job.
• Seventh, though it would be wrong, because the availability of my books on eBook.Bike was beyond my control, I was worried that Amazon might pull my books and punish me, for them being on his website. After all, he was claiming he had permission for them to be there. Other authors were highly concerned with this as well.
• Eighth, he was not only impacting my sales, but he was impacting my sales ranking and my marketing. The secondary impact of this theft is a lot harder to estimate, but it was there, and I felt it. Again, other authors felt it too.

Mr. McCrea survived only because lawsuits are expensive. He knew this, hence his challenge 'just sue me!' He knew most authors can't afford it. Well unfortunately for him, I could. I saw authors whom I'm a long time fan of complaining about the damage, I saw reflected in my own sales damage. I've been very successful as an author, I'm very thankful to all my fans, and all of the authors who have gone before me.

So I saw this as an opportunity to pay them back, to give something back to the writing community. To take down someone who was stealing, who was profiting from that theft. Someone who was so self-entitled that he was laughing at the rest of us and just challenging us to sue him while bragging about the money he was making.

Understand that I did NOT want to do this. But if not me, then who? If not now, then when? Sometimes, you just have to stand up for what is right. This lawsuit hurt me, considerably, and not just because of the money that came out of my pocket. Rarely did a day go by that I wasn't thinking about it, and rarely did a week go by when I wasn't having to deal with my attorneys. But it wasn't just about me, it never was.

I'm glad this is over. I'm happy we won, and I'm happy with this ruling. I will look and see if I can find a place to post it so that others may read it. I'm sure the usual sites that have been following this will post copies, I'm sure they'll completely mis-interpret the legalities involved, and I'm sure I'll once again be harangued and liabled in the comments.

To all of you who contributed, thank you very much! I appreciate your hard-earned dollars, and I appreciate your words of support. I'll be shutting down my gofundme soon, the final cost of this lawsuit will come out to be somewhere between seventy to eighty thousand dollars. Yes, going to court is not cheap. However a precedent has now been set, so things will be cheaper and easier for those who come after.

Last of all I'd like to thank my attorneys. They were highly professional and are both incredibly experienced and smart. They helped me through the hard times and I would recommend them to anyone who finds themselves in the same or similar position. Their staffs are also very professional and put in some long hours on my behalf. Joshua and Gary, I couldn't have done it without you, thank you both very much.

-John Van Stry

(yes comments are off, sorry.)

So my Cat Died

I ran out to the store to post a letter and get a few things. When I came back, I decided I should go in my office to spend some time with her. Since she's been sick she's pretty much been quarantined to the office, because it's 'her' room, and the dogs can be kept out. As she hasn't been able to jump the gate since she got ill, it kept her in there too.

I checked her, she was under the low coffee table, which has always been one of her favorite spots (as no one can bug here there). She was a little unresponsive at first, but then lifted her head and looked at me. About five minutes later, while I was checking a few things she let out a yowl and didn't stop. I had to move a bunch of stuff so I could move the table out of the way, but she was convulsing.

So I kept her company and petted her and talked to her, as it got less and less. She was obviously having a hard time breathing (which was the reason for the yowls) and they got softer and longer between and eventually she just stopped. I waited a good long while to be sure, but she had gone.

I went out and dug a grave in the backyard, in the rain. I put it inside the fence-line. I don't want coyotes digging her up. I also put about 50 or 70 pounds of large rocks on top. Don't want my dogs digging at it either, though she's about two feet down. I hate digging in Texas gumbo.

I'm going to miss her. I got her back in 2007, her primary domain has always been my office. She would sit in my lap or on my desk when I was working. She would also sit in my lap when I watched tv, or was sitting on the couch working in the living room. She also would come and sit with me whenever I played bass. Guitar, not so much, but she really liked the bass.

She went downhill fast when she got cancer. It only took a few days until it became obvious she was having problems. Took her to the vet and they told me she had less than two weeks. That was ten days ago. Yesterday was her 'last hurrah'. She was much more engaged and wanted attention and was eating treats and paying attention. Last night she parked herself and didn't move much until this morning. By this afternoon it became clear that she didn't have much time left.

So yes, I'll miss her. I don't think I'll be getting anymore cats. Her name, was Mia.

So my cat is dying

Took my cat to the vet on the 18th because she wasn't doing well and after keeping her a few days they told me she has cancer and is dying and won't last two weeks.

So yeah, she's definitely sick. She's lost almost all of her muscle tone, I'd say she's skin and bones, but unfortunately her belly is bloated, from the problems associated with the cancer. She drinks a little, only eats treats (in small amounts) really only moves around occasionally and mostly just lies around.

But she's aware and she seems relatively content. Of course she doesn't groom herself anymore, she hasn't got the energy, and I think I may have to wash her soon (not something I'm looking forward to). The thing is, the vet told me she had 'two weeks left, at best'. Well it's almost a week and a half now and at times she seems to be doing better (if only she would eat more).

It's rough being on a death watch. It's rougher still when you have to make a lot of changes to make sure the cat is taken care of, kept away from the dogs (Who won't understand why she doesn't want to play anymore), and because she can't come out and spend time with me anymore, (she used to either lie on my lap or on my desk while I worked) I have to go spend time with her. Every morning you get up and go check on her to see if she's still alive. Every time you go out for a while, you have to check on her again. She can barely make any noise, so you never know for sure where she is, so you constantly have to check before moving a chair back or something. And she's confined to the floor now. All of the things she used to sleep on, she can't get to anymore.

So with all the other BS going on these days, it's just another added difficulty. I wonder just how much longer it'll go on. When one of our dogs died a few years back, we spent a week taking special care of him (and a 120 lb dog needs a lot of care). When he started to act normal again, we thought he'd pull through, then he died that night while we were sleeping. Not a pleasant discovery, but at least he didn't suffer and it was over quickly.

This isn't going quickly, and while she's not suffering now, I don't know that won't change. And if worse comes to worse, will there even be a vet open to take her to? Yeah, not a pleasant thought.

Another Audio Release today on Audible

The Hammer Commission Audiobook Bundle that I was working on a few weeks ago is now available on Audible. Three books, 18 hours, for the price of one book (actually I think they put it on sale too right now).

https://www.audible.com/pd/Hammer-Commission-Audiobook/B0868YCQWJ

 

 

No Regrets, Book #17 in the Valens Legacy now on Audible!

So for all of you who have been waiting, No Regrets, the last book in the Valens Legacy, is now out in audiobook.

Link -> No Regrets on Audible

The "I'm Stuck at Home with Nothing to Read" Sale

Many of you I know are stuck at home this weekend and all of next week due to the Corona Virus. I wanted you all to know that I sympathize and wanted to do something to help. So, to make it easier on all of you, I've created this:

Introducing The Corona Virus Sale:

On Sale from this Saturday (21st) at 7am (in US stores) and 4am in UK stores until Midnight Friday the 27th! That's right, all of the following books are on sale for 99 cents, for the entire week!

That's Nineteen books for only 99 cents each (or pence I guess if you live in the UK)!

As John Van Stry:

Hammer Commission Books:

Hammer Commission (Book 1)

Wolf Killer (Book 2)

Loose Ends (Book 3)

The King of Las Vegas (Stand Alone)

Children of Steel Universe:

Children of Steel

Interregnum

Danger Money

Portals Of Infinity:

Champion For Hire (Book 1)

The God Game (Book 2)

Of Temples and Trials (Book 3)

The Sea of Grass (Book 4)

Days of Future Past Trilogy:

Past Tense (Book 1)

Present Tense (Book 2)

Future Tense (Book 3)

As Jan Stryvant:

The Valens Legacy Series:

Black Friday (Book 1)

Perfect Strangers (Book 2)

Over Our Heads (Book 3)

Head Down (Book 4)

Shadow

That's right! ALL are on sale for only 99 cents each (or 99 pence I guess if you're in the UK) from Saturday morning (the 21st) until midnight Friday, the 27th! If you're stuck at home, I wanted to be sure everyone could afford to have something, or lots of things, to read!

Link to the Sale Page: http://vanstry.net/vanstry/Sale.html

Links to books under my name, John Van Stry can be found at:  http://vanstry.net/vanstry/

Links to books under my pen name Jan Stryvant can be found at: http://www.vanstry.net/stryvant/

Upcoming Release Notice for Valens #17 - No Regrets Audibook

Hi Everyone, just got this:

Here's your friendly heads-up that the release date for No Regrets (The Valens Legacy, Book 17) will be March 24^th, 2020. The assets were recently submitted to Audible, so the listing should be up in the next week or so.

Mailing List

I would like all of you to sign up for my mailing list. With the way Facebook has started to throttle posts related to, well, damn near anything, it's getting harder for me to notify you when a new book comes out.

The mailing list info can be found on my blog, webpage, even in the back of my books or author central on Amazon. I only send out updates when I publish something, though I think I will start attaching a bit more information to those mails, to let folks know what's on the roadmap for the future.

(It's over there on the right --> )

Just put TakeTwo in to be published

About to head out to the airport to fly to SLC, but I put this in for processing a few minutes ago. Hopefully it'll be live sometime today.
Linky-> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B084PZSGBC/

I'll be in Salt Lake City Next Week

I will be at LTUE in Salt Lake next week. I don't know how many of you live in the area, or will be at LTUE, but if you are going to be at LTUE, drop me a line.

So the Veil Verse book is done.

I finished it last week, and I'm just waiting on Will's approval (Blaise really enjoyed it) and the cover artwork to show. I haven't sent it to my editor yet, I'll probably do that in a few days, I want my Beta readers to finish with it first.

The title of the book is 'Take Two' and it will be published under John Van Stry and not Jan Stryvant. Most likely it will go live early in February.

I may have a Shadow short or Novella out next week. Depends on how much work I can do over the weekend, and how much Star Citizen sucks me in...

Just a General Update

So, someone mentioned to me that I hadn't posted here in a while, so I thought I should perhaps catch everyone up. I have been working, the first draft of the Veil Verse book is almost complete, and I'll hopefully have that off to Will and Blaize soon, so I can find out if I'm okay, or if I mangled their universe horribly beyond description.

I did end up taking off pretty much all of December.

I do have plans for a bunch of stuff this year and I'm starting to work on some of it, I just needed a bit of a break after all of the work on Valens, which pretty much was non-stop for two and a quarter years. It was like one of those big rock tours where you spend every moment in a new place working your butt off but not getting to see the sights :-)

I do want to do a portals of infinity book next. I have some plans to turn out a few more Shadow things, hopefully in the near future. I also have a short series I'd like to write between now and any future Valens series. I've already done some work on that, so I do want to develop it more.

I'm also thinking of a possible stand alone Valens novel, something to span the space between the two series. Probably a bunch more short stories at some point as well. I just need to work on my roadmap for this year.

So yes, I'm still writing, just took a bit of a break before getting back up on the horse.

As for audio books, the next publishers pack, should be out Jan 28th. The last audiobook for Valens (which will be coupled with - I think- the last set of short stories) should be out March 28th.

The next Portals of Infinity audiobook, well I talked to the guy who has been doing them for me, and he's going to let me know whats going on with him, his day job has been working him long hours lately, so he hasn't had any extra time.

For those interested in the Hammer Commission series (which for those of you who are Harem fans, yes there are some harem aspects) I will be writing more in that world. But I don't have a date on anything at this moment.

I'm also on Patreon, and while I know a lot of folks can't afford a regular $5 a month contribution, I am going to see about giving something to the $1 crowd as well, to thank them for their continuing support. I probably should redo my patreon, but I think I've already got more than enough tasks to manage, so I don't want to screw it up.

So hopefully that wasn't too confusing.