My Wednesday #Publishing legal posts spend a lot of time on publishing contracts, but publishers aren’t the only ones who sign contracts with authors. Agents do, too. Today, we look at some common provisions authors should expect to see in an author-agent (agency) contract. 1. Exclusivity. The contract will normally make the agent the author’s exclusive representative, either for a single Work, all Works, or all novel-length works the author writes. This exclusivity applies for the length of the contract, and sometimes longer for works the agent represented or sold during the contract period. Read carefully: you need to know whether the agent
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What’s in a (Pen) Name?
Today’s post picks up where our Christmas Eve series left off: with a discussion of pen names, and when it makes sense to use them. The Christmas Eve post discussed the legal ramifications of pen names. Today, we’re focusing on the business-related issues. Why would an author want to use a pen name? Let’s look at some of the most common reasons, and the business arguments for (and against) a pseudonym: 1. Avoiding “Day Job Conflict.” Many authors have day jobs other than writing. In some cases, the author would rather not deal with conflict or overlap between the “day job” and the
Read moreA Love That Will Break Your Heart – and Fill it Up
The publishing business will break your heart, if you let it. Prior to publication, many authors believe that everything becomes sparkling rainbows and gold-bridled unicorns after the author signs with an agent/signs a contract/has a debut release/has more releases or meets another major publishing goal. That isn’t true. Fear is an artist’s traveling companion, the black dog resting on your shoulder that never quite goes away. It takes a hiatus from time to time — most often when those major victories happen, but also in the quiet days when writing goes well or a reader’s compliment fills the author’s heart with joy. But
Read moreCopyright Warnings – Hold Onto Your Rights
Today’s post takes a look at some dangerous copyright pitfalls authors need to be aware of – and avoid. Beware Losing Your Copyrights Through a Contract. The most dramatic copyright danger is loss of the author’s copyright through contract. No “standard” publishing contract should ever contain a grant or transfer of the copyright to the publisher. A contract which contains a transfer of copyright is essentially a “work for hire” agreement, where the writer retains no rights to the work. By contrast, a standard publishing agreement–traditional OR self-pub–is not a work for hire arrangement. I see a surprising number of contracts in which the
Read moreGet it in Writing: the Importance of Contracts
ALWAYS WORK WITH A CONTRACT As a general rule, U.S. law requires written agreements for publishing contracts and other assignments and long-term licenses of copyright. Two different laws require a writing: 1. The U.S. Copyright Act requires a writing for any transfer (complete or partial) of a copyright holder’s rights on an exclusive basis. 2. The “Statute of Frauds” (a commercial statute adopted in most states) requires a writing for any contract which cannot be completely performed within a year. Most importantly, good business sense requires a writing any time a writer grants any kind of permission for someone else
Read moreMini-Interview: A Book By Any Other Name…
Today’s mini-interview takes a look at a pair of interesting topics: how long it takes to get traditionally published, and what happens to the title of your debut book when you get there. It took me ten years (and five manuscripts) to get my first publishing contract. My debut mystery, Claws of the Cat, was originally titled Shinobi. When the series sold to Minotaur Books, my editor, Toni Kirkpatrick, told me she loved “Shinobi” for the series but that the novel needed a title that offered readers more than a foreign word. With a little help from my critique group, Shinobi became Claws of the Cat: A Shinobi Mystery. I asked a group
Read moreBecoming a Twitter Content Provider…Part 1
Since I “simultweet” my Wednesday blog posts on Twitter (using the #PubLaw hashtag) and on my blog, I’ll assume for the moment that if you’re here, you already know how to use Twitter. That said, I’ll do a supplementary post or two on the blog about using Twitter in the days to come for those who want a review. Used improperly, Twitter can suck the hours from a day faster than vampires can raid an unguarded blood bank. The key to effective Twitter content is knowing what you’re going to do before you get there. There are many ways to
Read more“Bad” Reviews, and How (Not) To Respond to Them
Today, we continue the Wednesday series with a look at negative reviews. We’ll start with a universal principle: Not everyone will like your book. And that’s okay. In fact, some people will HATE your book, and that is okay, too. Most debut authors (and many experienced ones) release a book into the world with the unreasonable expectation that everyone will adore it. Or, in the alternative, they think the people who don’t enjoy the book will decide, collectively, never to mention that fact. The truth is, some people will love your book. Some people will enjoy it. Some people will find
Read moreDown the Publishing Rabbit Hole — To Catch a Little Fish (part 1)
Last Monday, I started this two-part “down the rabbit hole” series with a discussion of Catching a Charlatan–essentially a set of tips to help prevent authors from signing contracts with publishing scammers. Today we look at the other side of that “down the rabbit hole” situation … the side that leads to well-meaning but inexperienced houses, the “startup” publishers who don’t set out to take advantage of authors, but whose inexperience and lack of planning often leads to an unsatisfactory publishing experience (often for both the author and the publisher). PLEASE NOTE: This post is NOT about all small presses–only
Read moreDown the Publishing Rabbit Hole – to Catch a Charlatan
Last week, I had to tell two different authors to walk away from publishing contracts. To walk away from a dream. In both cases, the decision wasn’t based on terms that “weren’t good enough,” or on traditional publishing’s refusal to meet the author’s reasonable needs. For these authors, the rabbit hole–and the problems–went much deeper. This is the place to get off this post if you don’t want to hear an unpleasant truth about modern publishing. To quote Morpheus from The Matrix: “You take the blue pill – the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever
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