The Real Vickie Stringer

by Seth "Soul Man" Ferranti
October 2008

Triple Crown Publications is the first name in street lit, it’s product—raw, gritty, urban fiction—is sold everywhere, from street corners to small African American bookstores to Barnes and Noble. Vickie Stringer, an ex-con and former drug dealer is the founder of Triple Crown. The publishing house she started to self-publish her semi-autobiographical novel that she wrote in prison, Let That Be the Reason, has grown dramatically and has become a major presence in the publishing industry as has Vickie Stringer herself. Publishers Weekly declared her “the reigning Queen of urban fiction” and Newsweek ran a story on the Essence best-selling author in June 2004 titled “It’s Gangsta Lit.” Vickie Stringer has come a long way since her release from the feds.

Triple Crown Publications went international in April 2005 when her novels were translated and released in Tokyo, Japan. She is also a successful literary agent who is an inspiration and motivator to aspiring authors and self-publishers. Her first book, Let That Be the Reason, sold over 100,000 copies, her company has moved up to a million books, and has published over 35 titles by 26 authors. “People in the streets buy these books like its crack,” Vickie Stringer said. She follows the maxim, “Do you,” to the ultimate extreme.

Still in her 30’s, after having been a millionaire in the drug trade, a federal prisoner and a millionaire again in the space of a decade, Vickie has plenty to smile about. One Detroit Metro writer wrote, “She is beautiful with soft apple-butter skin, inquisitive brown eyes and a coy flirtatiousness that speaks volumes about her confidence. Most people can’t stop smiling when they meet Vickie Stringer because she can’t stop smiling herself.” Getting out of that life sentence and doing only five years in the feds and then making millions off some gangsta shit when you violated every gangsta code in the book will leave you smiling. Like you fooled the world, like you have a big secret, but we’re here to expose that secret. There is a back-story to this story.

Stringer grew up on Detroit’s eastside, the youngest in a struggling middle-class family. According to those that knew her, she was prim and proper, a church-going girl who went to Ohio State University and fell in love with a street hustler. “The first time I laid eyes on Chino, it was a wrap,” she said. “I loved him. I wanted to be with the bad boys.” Vickie started hustling too with her boyfriend’s gang, the Triple Crown Posse in the early ‘90’s but when she fell out of grace with Chino she didn’t fall out of the game. With the contacts she made through her boyfriend, Stringer continued to sell drugs and became the Columbus connection for an interstate cocaine and heroine trafficking operation that moved $6 million worth of narcotics a month from New York to Ohio. Her Dominican supplier shipped her 20 – 30 kilos at a time using a fleet of special vans configured with hidden stash boxes to transport the drugs safely without detection.

In 1994, one of Vickie’s couriers got busted and snitched her out. Agents found 26 grand in marked bills the informant had paid Stringer. They also found $320,404 in cash, 22 pounds of coke, and one pound of heroin, and on September 16, 1994 police and federal agents, intent on smashing the local drug trade, arrested Stringer. They accused her of running one of the cities largest drug pipelines and supplying the notorious Short North Posse and its associated gangs who terrorized Columbus.

Stringer was branded the “Cocaine Queen” of Columbus and her face was plastered on the nightly news. She faced a maximum penalty of life in prison. Police said her ring smuggled large amounts of coke to Columbus from New York over a three year period. From the jump Stringer and Ramon Diaz, another member of her ring began giving law enforcement officers details of their supplier’s network.

Stringer, 27 at the time, pleaded guilty to one count each of money laundering and conspiracy. In prison Vickie decided to write her story and penned her first novel that would go on to become a bestseller and trendsetter in the genre. “I was so angry sitting in prison all those years. I had put so much shame and disgrace on my family name. I told myself your legacy has to be greater than this,” Vickie said. Federal prisoner #63752-061 learned a lot too.

With her book written Vickie left prison with a goal to get a book deal, but she found it rough. Triple Crown was started after 26 rejection letters for her first novel, Let That Be the Reason. According to Stringer, more than 90 percent of her book is based on fact. “I tell my son all the time, the same story that made us sad now pays our bills.” In her book she outlines the lessons of the streets—Rule #1: Get Paid, Rule #2: Don’t trust anybody, not even yourself, Rule #3: Stay Free.

Out of prison armed with a dream, Vickie printed up her book and sold it on street corners in the hood. And the book sold and sold and sold. She found other aspiring street lit authors, like Kwan and Nikki Turner and put out their books too. Within what seemed like a blink of an eye, Triple Crown became a major player in the burgeoning urban lit industry.

“When I was a hustler I used to put packages in shorties hands and I thought I was giving them a chance but really I was dealing them death.” Vickie said. “There’s people that I gave packages to that are doing life in prison, people who wound up getting murdered trying to sell drugs I gave them. So now, when I’m able to give someone a book deal, I’m giving them life. God gave me a second chance, so I use that opportunity to give others a second chance too.”

Visit Vickie Stringer's Personal Blog.
Visit the Triple Crown Publications website.
Visit Triple Crown TV.

Seth Ferranti is a contributing writer for The Urban Book Source and accomplished journalist having written articles for Don Diva, Slam, King, Feds and many more. View more of his articles at: www.gorillaconvict.com

Comments page 4 of 4:

Click here to add a comment

Your Name:


Image verification:



Message:

 

Therone Shellman :

Posted 38 days ago

I don't see where the issue with TCP, its authors checks or whatever is the readers or publics business? People go support movies. The movie industry is a million times more sheisty---actors get jerked everyday. Is it the publics business? No. The music industry as well. There was a time when journalists and other record companies tried to slander other companies. But when people started getting shot up, and physically ... aulted for things they would say on paper or on the radio, that stuff stopped. Forget TCP-but we're going down the same road with this book situation where the words on the internet one day are going to spill into the real world. And if we are going to talk about ethics or get into peoples personal Business which people seem to do with Vickie or Terri than there could be a long line of accusations b/c I run into people who have alot to say about alot of folks. I have been in the streets for over 3 years all over the east coast. And as you know the streets is always watching. Dead beat daddies, chics getting ran through in the industry, bi-sexual dudes. I laugh b/c I don't have time to be listening to the stuff but people be excited and sometimes pissed to get it out there and they think by telling someone in the industry that it will get out there. Sometimes I be hoping that they run into one of these ladies who just love to gossip cuz some folks who act all righteous and have their publicists dish dirt would really get put on blast. On a business note, some companies have been responsible for alot of book vendors going out of business and the street market not being such a lucrative business as it used to. So if its important to talk about authors getting ripped off then its equally important to talk about folks who are playing devils advocate and killing the industry, not for just one genre of the black book market but the black book market as a whole so they can profit alone. When publishers sell vendors their books for $2-4.00 and these vendors turn around and sell the books for $5-7.00 these vendors do not see a profit in buying books from publishers for $5-6.00 b/c they would have to sell the books for atleast $10.00 to double their money. So you see with TCP, TW and some other publishers there has been some questions about ethics with author dealings. But as far as the rest of the industry is concerned, the sellers and jobbers--everyone had been able to share in their profits and grow with them. Vendors, some AA stores are not as vocal as authors b/c if they were they would tell you about these publishers. One publisher its obvious that they're ripping off their mother company b/c how could they sell their books so cheap to people when they have to pay authors and cut their mother company in on all profits. It's no different than a record company who is linked to other companies above it. Everyone has to get their share. So who is being cut out? The authors? or the mother company? In my autobiography "Survivbor" I Chenged The Rules which comes out before the summer of 2009 the book is not a hood non fiction book at all. Its my total life, and some of this has been in this industry. I first came in this business in 2003 when Culture Plus was around. I took a step back for 18 months to learn who is who and what is what. Throughout this time I met alot of authors here in NY who shed alot of light on the history of this book business and how urban lit rose with Culture Plus and A&B and who was involved behind the scenes. How some companies grew while alot of authors and companies got ripped off by Culture Plus. Anyway I don't use any names in this book but my travels and the people I've met have been interesting to say the least. The Section of the book is titled: The Dirty Book Game. Am I striving to slander or belittle anyone. Nope! I'm just telling you about my travels in this industry and experiences (it's an autobiography). It's one section of the book , a small part but relevant to anyone who is striving to navigate in this industry

Jasmine :

Posted 48 days ago

Wow! This is funny. Sam W., I do remember the article with the checks. I just tried to find it again but they must've took it off the net. I wrote a blog about it to my friends the moment it happened. LOL!!!! I agree with Sam on most of your message about other publishers but I'm not feelin' givin' Vickie any more props. She should sell and maybe her authors would get paid. And what comapny do you work for now? Just asking. LOL!!!

Sam W. :

Posted 48 days ago

This is horrid. It's one thing to speak the truth about a publisher with a proven track record for playing unfair, but it's a whole notha thing to bring in women who are making a name for themselves by playing fair. Vickie has caused MAJOR problems in the industry. This has been proven when four authors got together and placed copies of their bounced checks online for review. I bet a lot of you don't remember that. It was a year ago and I saw it when I was doing research for an article on street publishing. (I NOW WORK FOR THE LARGEST HIP HOP PUBLISHER) The magazine I wrote for decided against printing the checks it to avoid backlash from TCP. I was angry with the decision but lived with it and quit to work for another company. But the newcomer who is being linked with Vickie in this article should not be placed in the same category. Her establishment is well run and cl ... y. A few of our authors have signed at her store and what the person said is not true. How could you cheat someone when most of the novels on your label are your own? The people who got your novels rejected for whatever reason need to calm down. It's not that serious. When your comments are riddled with insuations, it's hard to take your message seriously. I will say this, like many of the commentator's stated, Triple Crown is still the most recognized name in the industry. The Triple Crown name carries more weight than the company I work for even though we're part of a major publisher and ship hundreds of thousands of books to Walmart and the like. She deserves credit for that if nothing else for building a solid brand. Calling her out of her name and dragging her family business in this article is plain ridiculous.

Star Jones :

Posted 48 days ago

Wow!!! LOL @ Dream & Stop Fronting

Dream :

Posted 49 days ago

Preach! They are all frontin' and none of them have it like that. What bestsellers list besides Essence has any TCP book made? Their backlist like you mentioned you can't even give away. With writers like Kwan, Joy, TN, Kashamba and Deja gone, what really does TCP have? Memories that's what! VS nor TW can keep authors because of their practices. Let that be a lesson to all aspiring authors not to sell their souls to the devil and to any publishing houses looking to imitate these crooks. It's funny that the two biggest (or used to be biggest) in this game are snitches. Go figure!

STOP FRONTING :

Posted 49 days ago

HEY, NOT FOR NOTHING, BUT I JUST DON'T BELEIVE TRIPLE CROWN PUBLISHING IS WORTH ANY MORE THAN $175,000, I MEAN SERIOUSLY, WHO WANTS THERE BACKLIST & I'M BEING KIND. SEE THE PROBLEM IS SIMPLE. NIGGAS & SNITCHES ARE FRONTING. NIGGAS RUNING AROUND SAYING Q-BORO SOLD FOR 1 MILLION DOLLARS, SOLD TO URBAN BOOKS, WHEN EVERYBODY IN THE INDUSRTY KNOWS CARL AINT GOT A 2,500 TO GIVE NO FUCKING BODY, LET ALONE A MILLION DOLLARS. NOW BACK TO TCP. VS IS ON TOP, THER IS NO DENYING THAT. BUT TO JUMP OUT THE WINDOW & SAY YOUR COMPANY IS WOTH 10 MILLION IS NOT THE TRUTH. TCP REALASED INFO ABOUT GETING THERE OWN SEPERATE SECTION IN BOOK STORES ACROSS THE COUNTY. NEVER HAPPENEND. WHY? CAUSE PEOPLE LIE. JUST WATCH VS WILL START RELEASING HER BOOKS UNDER HER OWN UMBRELLA, WHY? CAUSE THE CRACKERS AINT GIVING HER SHIT, FOR TRIPLE CROWN OR ANY OTHER BOOK SHE WRITES. WATCH & MARK MY WORD WE ARE LOOKING AT THE NEW TERRY WOODS OF PUBLISHING. OH, YOU DID'NT KNOW HER ASS WILL BE IN FEDRAL COURT FOR HER BULLSHIT LIES. 10 MILION DOLLRS MY ASS.

Therone Shellman :

Posted 56 days ago

There's a lesson in everything. You see a man walk down the street and he falls in a pothole. Do you go behind him and do what he did? Or do you take heed.? As an author /publisher from day one since 2005 from afar I've watched and I still watch. We all can learn from others as well as ourselves in regards to shortcomings and strong points. This is a business, so whether you're an author or publisher. You have to have some business sense. Otherwise just do this for fun or a hobby. I see alot of the comments here in reference to shady publishing. How about lazy authors, authors who don't do what they need to do to support their titles and most of the weight falls on the publisher. Its like jumping in a boxing ring with no gloves on once the fight starts, but you were talking all this shit about how you want to fight. We all know or should know that part of an authors job is to promote and market their title. Even with a mainstream publisher this is the rule. But 70 % of authors fall in that category of what I mentioned. So when you call Vickie a crook, and other publishers I will have to say alot of authors are crooks as well. They just want to write a story to get a paycheck and put no work in. They don't put up no money, they write the story and most of the time spent with the project has to do with a publisher. Time equals money we all know this. So when people invest their time in you and your project and you sit on your ... dumbfounded I can in some ways understand why you may have some folks on the publishing side who arrange the contracts and do business in a way where it benefits them b/c the people with the stories aint no different than them. The above is why I have chose to sort of go outside the norm and publish childrens books, and mature adult fiction based around family issues etc b/c people who tend to write these types of books bring a certain state of mind, education and awareness. In fact new authors signed going into 2009 we will be mandated to hire a publicist. Let's face it and be real. I'm from the streets so I know what it is. A good segment of this black book market are folks who write as a hustle and a way to make money without going to prison or putting any real work in. They have this dream they will sell 100 thousand copies without busting a sweat b/c they have the hottest story. I've been all over the east coast, and I've seen more lazy, clueless authors than those who are doing what they need to do to support their work and make sure thier work and name stands above the companys name who published the book. When you come half ... then people teat you half ... . I hear alot about publishers, and as an author and publisher I know both sides. Its easy to get cynical. Especially from a business stand point as a publisher. At the end of the day for me it comes down to ethics, and just giving a person whats due to them morally. Thats how I balance it out although I may think an author is b/sing. But its their story so they deserve atleast their share. And for me theres no feeling with that-thats just the way it is. On the topic of Triple Crown I've seen a lot more accusations on the low than any signed authors stepping up saying anything. So I would have to ... ume most of it is rumors and jealousy b/c we do live in a time where if a person owes you money you can take them to court. On that note I will have to say that even bad promotion can be good promotion b/c all seems well.

Therone Shellman :

Posted 56 days ago

All I can say is that we should give credit where credit is due. The bottomline is Triple Crown is a solid brand within street lit. It takes a lot to succeed as an entreprenuer. Those of you in business know this. The contracts, author situations etc thats something else. I personally feel alot of authors in the urban/street lit genre shun education, and most know not a damn thing about the streets and most that were in the streets were not handling their business out there b/c a person who is about their business does not change their skin whether it's in the realms of the street world, to working or being an entreprenuer. That saviness is a part of you forever. So cats who don't read contracts. Cats who don't know that one mans ignorance is the next mans gain basically set themselves up b/c of their own shortcomings. In all areas of life, no matter who you deal with you have to be looking out for yourself b/c at the end of the day you are responsible for whatever happens to you. For a minute I was selling a lot of urban lit titles to vendors. And I can honestly say that for the most part readers who read Triple Crown read it b/c of the brand not b/c of the authors name on the book. So with that said you have to give the lady props for being a serious business mind. Thats a respect any entreprenuer deserves amongst the business community. In this case she is a publisher, so the writing community has to acknowledge. I'm not street lits #1 advocate. In fact I stopped distributing to vendors b/c I don't want to deal with ignorance, jealousy, two faced people. None of these folks like each other. This one talks about this one, none have the balls to tell the next. I can ... ume that there are some publishers in here right now taking cheap shots, but will not put their name out there. And this is what I don't like about this genre. If cats are so street, and so hood then put your name behind what you say. And no I have never read any of Vickies titles and I'm not defending any accusations made about her. In fact I did 4 1/2 years on my first bid behind loose lip co-defendants. And I don't believe in cheating the people around you. I was taught by stick up kids, cats that would arrange an accident for anyone as quick and easy as tying a shoelace so b/c of this I learned about principles. Around wolves there is no other way if you want your life. THIS ARTICLE though is not about her ethics. Its about how she turned Triple Crown into a name brand. It is what it is hate it or love it.

Get Real :

Posted 62 days ago

1) Dirty Red and Still Dirty. Ask Lisa Lennox about Crackhead. Oh. Wait. You can’t. She’s not a real person. But what was real was the author behind the book asking for readers that purchased the book to contact her because of a discrepancy in payments.
2) Any publisher that has not made it a practice to get over on and cheat their authors. Any publisher that has not built a company with poorly edited books. Any publisher that realizes they are in business because of customers.

<4321>

 

© 2009 by The Urban Book Source, LLC