June 23, 2009

Inkwell book packager goes under after it says Harcourt refused to pay them

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The book packager Inkwell Publishing Solutions is apparently out of business. According to Jim Dwyer’s New York Times report from Friday, the company, which specializes in developing textbooks, has closed its offices and turned the lights off. According to the Times, “The phone rings and rings. No one answers.†What’s worse? The company apparently went down owing freelancers hundreds of thousands of dollars—payments that were many months overdue and long said to be in the mail.

Take Taylor Baxter, 28: he’s owed more than $10,000. “I owe the I.R.S. over $4,000,†he told the Times. “My credit card is days from being frozen. I am two months late on rent. I have $100 in cash.†Baxter is one of about 50 freelancers who haven’t been paid.

On April 1, Inkwell’s Patricia Cooke, the company’s president, wrote to freelancers and claimed that the delays were caused by late payments from the textbook publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. It’s a fact—or an excuse—that Cooke apparently intended to remain private. When the Times reached Cooke, she noted that it would be “disgusting†to print her earlier statement about Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

And what about Houghton Mifflin Harcourt—which the Times describes as being “owned by a holding company based in the Cayman Islands” that “floats in oceans of debt”? What’s their side of the story? The Times says “The company did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday and Friday.”

But all it took was one phone call from MobyLives: Josef Blumenfeld, vice president of communications at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, told us that “there’s no truth to the story,†insisting that all Inkwell invoices had been paid in full since June 1. However, as the story notes, InkWell had complained about unpaid invoices from Houghton as early as April 1. Whether late payments contributed to InkWell’s fall remains to be seen.

Kelly Burdick is the executive editor of Melville House.

  • Michele Pridmore

    Inkwell’s invoices to HMH very well may have been paid but Inkwell Publishing Solutions DID NOT pay a dime of it to their freelancers who worked on those projects. Freelancers who all felt a sense of responsibility for completing HMH projects. In the mean time Israel Luzunaris and Patricia Cooke, the owners of INKWELL PUBLISHING SOLUTIONS hide behind the excuse that HMH still has not paid them. This is disgusting of them (Israel Luzunaris and Patricia Cooke). By the way, Inkwell Publishing Solutions has a satellite office in Mexico, where HMH projects were also worked on. There is no knowing how much these mexican workers are owed by Israel Luzunaris and Patricia Cooke.

  • Michele Pridmore

    Inkwell’s invoices to HMH very well may have been paid but Inkwell Publishing Solutions DID NOT pay a dime of it to their freelancers who worked on those projects. Freelancers who all felt a sense of responsibility for completing HMH projects. In the mean time Israel Luzunaris and Patricia Cooke, the owners of INKWELL PUBLISHING SOLUTIONS hide behind the excuse that HMH still has not paid them. This is disgusting of them (Israel Luzunaris and Patricia Cooke). By the way, Inkwell Publishing Solutions has a satellite office in Mexico, where HMH projects were also worked on. There is no knowing how much these mexican workers are owed by Israel Luzunaris and Patricia Cooke.

  • http://www.WritingCollegeTextbookSupplements.com/blog John Soares

    There’s now a postscript at the bottom of the New York Times story:

    “Postscript: June 24, 2009
    The About New York column on Sunday, about the closing of Inkwell Publishing Solutions, a book development company in Manhattan, reported that about 50 of its freelancers were still owed hundreds of thousands of dollars for their work on textbooks commissioned by the publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. In an e-mail message to the freelancers, Inkwell’s president blamed slow payments by Houghton, which did not respond to three requests for comment before the column was published. On Monday, a spokesman for Houghton said it had made the “vast majority” of its payments on time to Inkwell, with the final two checks it owed issued on May 8 and June 1. Inkwell ceased operations in mid-May.”

  • http://www.WritingCollegeTextbookSupplements.com/blog John Soares

    There’s now a postscript at the bottom of the New York Times story:

    “Postscript: June 24, 2009
    The About New York column on Sunday, about the closing of Inkwell Publishing Solutions, a book development company in Manhattan, reported that about 50 of its freelancers were still owed hundreds of thousands of dollars for their work on textbooks commissioned by the publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. In an e-mail message to the freelancers, Inkwell’s president blamed slow payments by Houghton, which did not respond to three requests for comment before the column was published. On Monday, a spokesman for Houghton said it had made the “vast majority” of its payments on time to Inkwell, with the final two checks it owed issued on May 8 and June 1. Inkwell ceased operations in mid-May.”

  • this guy

    Meanwhile, Israel Luzunaris is taking ski trips to Colorado, owns a condo in West New York, NJ, and is paying his ex-girlfriend’s cell phone bill.

    This is a disgusting situation that needs to be brought to higher attention. If Israel Luzunaris and/or Patricia Cooke are funneling money from Inkwell NYC to Inkwell Mexico and not paying freelance workers… who do the workers turn to? The police? The FBI?

    Side note: One of the employees applied for NY State Unemployment and was told that they had no record of a company called Inkwell on file, therefore, he did not qualify.

    I hope bringing some press attention to the situation helps these freelancers to get the payments they are owed, and maybe even some extra for damages.

  • this guy

    Meanwhile, Israel Luzunaris is taking ski trips to Colorado, owns a condo in West New York, NJ, and is paying his ex-girlfriend’s cell phone bill.

    This is a disgusting situation that needs to be brought to higher attention. If Israel Luzunaris and/or Patricia Cooke are funneling money from Inkwell NYC to Inkwell Mexico and not paying freelance workers… who do the workers turn to? The police? The FBI?

    Side note: One of the employees applied for NY State Unemployment and was told that they had no record of a company called Inkwell on file, therefore, he did not qualify.

    I hope bringing some press attention to the situation helps these freelancers to get the payments they are owed, and maybe even some extra for damages.

  • prefer not to say

    HMH can say what they like, but I personally know of two other companies waiting on payments from them.

  • prefer not to say

    HMH can say what they like, but I personally know of two other companies waiting on payments from them.

  • BLA

    To anyone who has been screwed, he’s still in business “Active’, according to NYS corporations records…………..

    NYS Department of State
    Division of Corporations
    Entity Information
    Selected Entity Name: INKWELL PUBLISHING SOLUTIONS, INC.
    *Stock Information
    *Stock information is applicable to domestic business corporations.
    Name History
    Selected Entity Status Information
    Current Entity Name: INKWELL PUBLISHING SOLUTIONS, INC.
    Initial DOS Filing Date: MAY 29, 1998
    County: KINGS
    Jurisdiction: NEW YORK
    Entity Type: DOMESTIC BUSINESS CORPORATION
    Current Entity Status: ACTIVE
    Selected Entity Address Information
    DOS Process (Address to which DOS will mail process if accepted on behalf of the entity)
    INKWELL PUBLISHING SOLUTIONS, INC.
    SUITE 3F
    36 PLAZA STREET EAST
    BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, 11238
    Registered Agent
    ISRAEL LUZUNARIS
    SUITE 3F
    36 PLAZA STREET EAST
    BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, 11238
    This office does not require or maintain information
    regarding the names and addresses of officers,
    shareholders or directors of a corporation.
    # of Shares Type of Stock $ Value per Share
    200 No Par Value
    Filing Date Name Type Entity Name
    Entity Information Page 1 of 2
    http://appsext8.dos.state.ny.us/corp_public/CORPSEARCH.ENTITY_INFORMATION?p... 7/17/2009
    A Fictitious name must be used when the Actual name of a foreign entity is unavailable for use in New
    York State. The entity must use the fictitious name when conducting its activities or business in New
    York State.
    NOTE: New York State does not issue organizational identification numbers.
    Division of Corporations, State Records and UCC Home Page NYS Department of State Home Page
    MAY 29, 1998 Actual INKWELL PUBLISHING SOLUTIONS, INC.
    Search Results New Search
    Entity Information Page 2 of 2
    http://appsext8.dos.state.ny.us/corp_public/CORPSEARCH.ENTITY_INFORMATION?p... 7/17/2009

  • BLA

    To anyone who has been screwed, he’s still in business “Active’, according to NYS corporations records…………..

    NYS Department of State
    Division of Corporations
    Entity Information
    Selected Entity Name: INKWELL PUBLISHING SOLUTIONS, INC.
    *Stock Information
    *Stock information is applicable to domestic business corporations.
    Name History
    Selected Entity Status Information
    Current Entity Name: INKWELL PUBLISHING SOLUTIONS, INC.
    Initial DOS Filing Date: MAY 29, 1998
    County: KINGS
    Jurisdiction: NEW YORK
    Entity Type: DOMESTIC BUSINESS CORPORATION
    Current Entity Status: ACTIVE
    Selected Entity Address Information
    DOS Process (Address to which DOS will mail process if accepted on behalf of the entity)
    INKWELL PUBLISHING SOLUTIONS, INC.
    SUITE 3F
    36 PLAZA STREET EAST
    BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, 11238
    Registered Agent
    ISRAEL LUZUNARIS
    SUITE 3F
    36 PLAZA STREET EAST
    BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, 11238
    This office does not require or maintain information
    regarding the names and addresses of officers,
    shareholders or directors of a corporation.
    # of Shares Type of Stock $ Value per Share
    200 No Par Value
    Filing Date Name Type Entity Name
    Entity Information Page 1 of 2
    http://appsext8.dos.state.ny.us/corp_public/CORPSEARCH.ENTITY_INFORMATION?p... 7/17/2009
    A Fictitious name must be used when the Actual name of a foreign entity is unavailable for use in New
    York State. The entity must use the fictitious name when conducting its activities or business in New
    York State.
    NOTE: New York State does not issue organizational identification numbers.
    Division of Corporations, State Records and UCC Home Page NYS Department of State Home Page
    MAY 29, 1998 Actual INKWELL PUBLISHING SOLUTIONS, INC.
    Search Results New Search
    Entity Information Page 2 of 2
    http://appsext8.dos.state.ny.us/corp_public/CORPSEARCH.ENTITY_INFORMATION?p... 7/17/2009

  • Anon Y. Mous

    This same thing is happening to freelance writers who worked for LinkIt!/CCI. Writers who submitted invoices for work done in February still haven’t been paid (as of early August) and the powers-that-be (Joshua and Reginald Powe) refuse even to communicate with these writers. Rumour has it that they, too, are hiding behind the “Harcourt hasn’t paid us” line. And in the meantime, the hiring clients (South Carolina and HMH) are publishing the work of these writers even though the writers have not been paid. A copyright attorney should be involved, but freelance writers don’t have the means to engage an attorney so they are screwed.

  • Anon Y. Mous

    This same thing is happening to freelance writers who worked for LinkIt!/CCI. Writers who submitted invoices for work done in February still haven’t been paid (as of early August) and the powers-that-be (Joshua and Reginald Powe) refuse even to communicate with these writers. Rumour has it that they, too, are hiding behind the “Harcourt hasn’t paid us” line. And in the meantime, the hiring clients (South Carolina and HMH) are publishing the work of these writers even though the writers have not been paid. A copyright attorney should be involved, but freelance writers don’t have the means to engage an attorney so they are screwed.

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