out of print

“Out of print” status is important to authors (and publishers), because in most contracts out of print status triggers reversion of rights. Beware publishing contracts which don’t include a reversion of rights (or the right to revert on written notice) if the work goes out of print.  Also, beware publishing contracts which tie “out of print” status to anything but royalty-bearing sales of the work. Historically, Standard Contracts Tied “Out of Print” Status to Availability–But No Longer. Before ebooks, most publishing contracts tied out of print status to a novel’s “availability.” The book remained in print as long as it was “available”