Microcosm Publishing, Microcosm Distribution, and Pioneers Press…

Hey Folks,

Although some of you may not know, Microcosm Publishing was effectively split into two separate companies on August 1, 2012. This was done for a number of personal, financial, and geographic reasons, and led to the formation of Microcosm Distribution (which has since become Pioneers Press).

Unfortunately, splitting a company in two that has been in existence for over 15 years comes with an endless list of complications. Like a lot of the publishing world, and the world at large, this happened during times that were extremely hard for us. Prior to the split, Microcosm Publishing had amassed nearly $37,000 in debt—an amount that seemed nearly insurmountable for those involved.

As part of the agreement, which was drafted with the input of both parties and executed prior to the split, we agreed to each keep half of the organization’s property and split the debt 50/50. The settling of the debt would be done by Microcosm Distribution making monthly payments to Microcosm Publishing on their half of the debt until it was resolved.

However, despite the agreement, these payments were never made. Microcosm Distribution claimed that they are not responsible for any of the debt amassed while they were a part of the company and its management. We understand that it’s difficult to even survive in the publishing world in its current state, but that does not justify leaving one half of the company with the entirety of the debt.

After 15 months Microcosm Publishing has still not received any of the agreed upon contributions. Thankfully, through new endeavors and pinching paychecks, we’ve managed to scrape together the money to stay in business. At this point, we feel we have no chance at making progress with this issue without the help of professional counsel, and have filed suit against Pioneers Press as a last resort attempt at receiving their fair share of the debt payments.

It’s an unfortunate, and wholly foreign to us, way to go about this, but we can find no other solution. We are simply asking that the signed agreement be honored.

Although personal problems and past relationships can cause issues within business, Microcosm Publishing is an active and growing publisher with a small, full-time staff who are dedicated to creating the books we want to see in the world. And we would love to continue doing just that.

<3

Tim Wheeler

Microcosm Publishing