Business

Don’t we run a story on booksellers’ gloomy forecasts every holiday season? Only this time, their pessimism might be justified:

Like many businesses across the retail sector, the publishing industry has been hit by a raft of doom and gloom in the past few weeks. Leonard S. Riggio, chairman and largest shareholder of Barnes & Noble, said in an internal memorandum predicting a dreadful holiday shopping season, as first reported in The Wall Street Journal last week, that “never in all my years as a bookseller have I seen a retail climate as poor as the one we are in.”

Last week HarperCollins, the books division of the News Corporation, reported that fiscal first-quarter operating income had slid to $3 million from $36 million a year earlier, despite its publication of the Oprah Winfrey-anointed novel “The Story of Edgar Sawtelle” by David Wroblewski. A week earlier Doubleday Publishing Group, a unit of Random House, laid off 16 people, a 10 percent cut in staff. At the time the company said the move did not presage further layoffs in other publishing divisions, but industry insiders said they would not be surprised to see more.

Also this month Rodale, the magazine and book publisher, laid off 14 people in its book division, a little more than 7 percent of the staff.

Hoo boy. Despite all the squeeing we’ve done around WU in the last few months, all the bad news does give pause. How is the downturn in the economy going to affect book-buying? Will people use the library more? Undoubtedly. Will people buy books instead of more expensive gifts like electronics and jewelry? Hopefully.

From the NYT’s article:

So it’s been two months since I last posted here, and in those two months, I’ve had a second book come out AND hit the New York Times best seller list. Needless to say, it’s been a little, um, nuts. So what have I learned along the way? Here are a few things.

1) It doesn’t get easier. I swore to myself that I would be calmer, more collected this time around. Was I? Well, hmmm, uh, NO. I tried to be. I tried not to stress out over sales and call Ingram 100 times a day and wish that my agent were calling me four times, instead of just three times, daily, but none of this really happened. Sure, I was calmer in the sense of I knew what to expect, which is basically, nothing is ever going to be 100% as you’d like it to be when your book is released, but still, let’s level with each other: having a book come out is stressful. Period. No matter how often I tell myself that it’s not, it is. I will inevitably lose sleep and become a basketcase during the week’s leading up to a release, and the sooner I accept that, the better I’ll be to handle the anxiety.

2) A lot of a book’s success depends on luck. Authors might not want to hear this. We want to believe that we are firmly in control of our book’s destiny, but the simple truth is that some things, things that can make or break your book, will be completely out of your hands and in fate’s hands instead. (Or at least those of a really, really good publicist.) My book hit the Times’ list because, by chance, it happened to be reviewed in People and on The Today Show within days of each other. If one of these had happened during a different week, my sales would have likely been spread out rather than spiking, and I doubt I would have landed on the list. Pure luck. Plain and simple.

3) Not everything is about luck, of course.

Today marks the start of the 60th annual Frankfurt Book Fair–the largest such fair, when publishing reps from all over the world buy and negotiate foreign rights for their books. Good luck to all authors hoping for foreign sales!

NYC residents, please note: WU contributor Allison Winn Scotch will be doing a reading and signing tonight, Wednesday, October 15th, at Borders Time Warner Center at 7 p.m. Everyone else, click HERE to watch Allison’s interview with NY1 TV, about her new release Time of My Life.

WU’s Barbara Samuel will also be out and about this weekend. “I’ll be in San Diego and Encino this weekend,” she posted on her blog. “If you’re in the area, come see me.”

Sunday October 16
12-2
Barnes & Noble Encino
16461 Ventura Blvd
Encino

Sara Gruen’s bestselling Water for Elephants is heading for the big screen.

The bidding war is over, and Fox 2000 has emerged triumphant, clutching the rights to Sara Gruen’s bestseller Water for Elephants, which they are promptly putting on the fast track. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Francis Lawrence is attached to direct, and Richard LaGravenese is adapting it for the big screen.

Will Dracula rise from the undead? It appears so!

Drawing from handwritten notes by Bram Stoker, the horror author’s great-grandnephew is set to pen a Dracula sequel entitled Dracula: The Un-Dead.

The new project is the first story authorized by the Stoker family and estate since the 1931 film starring Bela Lugosi.

The forthcoming Dracula: The Un-Dead — apparently the title Stoker had intended for his original before an editor changed it — is slated for release in October 2009 in the U.S., U.K. and Canada. Film rights to the new story have also been sold, with production tentatively scheduled to begin in June 2009.

The final book in Cornelia Funke’s wonderful Ink trilogy, Inkdeath, has been released. Go forth and read!

David Beckham marks the latest in a long line of celebrities who will write a children’s book series. Beckham’s series, set to debut in June of ’09, will be about a group of 7 year olds in a football institute.

How has this new era of economic uncertainty affected the publishing industry?

Today’s guest is Raquel B. Pidal. Raquel has a master’s in Publishing and Writing from Emerson college, and currently works in publicity at Harvard University Press. She’s also the blog mama of Copyrighteous–a site focused on copyright and writers’ rights issues.

If you missed parts 1 and 2 of her post on publishing contacts–when she discussed some business basics, and three important clauses (the introductory clause, the delivery and acceptance clause, and the grant of rights clause)–click HERE, and HERE, then come back. In today’s final post on contracts, she’ll explain the advance and royalties clause, permissions, the option/first right of refusal clause, the warranties and indemnities clause, and the out of print clause.

The Anatomy of a Publishing Contract: Part 3

By Raquel B. Pidal

The lovely advance and royalties clause determines how and when you’ll get paid. An advance is just what it sounds like: an advanced payment from the publisher paid out before your book is even published. Royalties are a percentage of money that you earn from the sale of each book.

An advance is paid out against royalties—in essence it’s a loan from your publisher. Let’s say you are paid a $5,000 advance against royalties. This means that you get the $5,000 in advance of publication of your book. When your book starts selling, the first $5,000 of royalties you earn won’t go to you; it goes back to your publisher. Any royalties you earn after $5,000 will then be paid to you. If you earn more than $5,000 in royalties, you are said to have earned out your advance, a joyous day in the life of your publisher because many books nowadays don’t even earn that much back.

Advances are usually paid out in 2 or 3 installments: when the contract is signed, when the manuscript is submitted, and when the book is published. Be sure to read your contract carefully to determine whether your publisher expects you to pay back any portions of your advance if your manuscript is rejected, as some publishers expect this.

Royalties are a percentage of money you earn on every book sold.

Today’s guest is Raquel B. Pidal. Raquel has a master’s in Publishing and Writing from Emerson college, where she studied copyright law, contracts, and rights. She currently works in publicity at Harvard University Press, and is also a freelance writer and editor. She’s also the blog mama of Copyrighteous–a site focused on copyright and writers’ rights issues.

If you missed part 1 of her thorough and fabulous post on publishing contacts–when she discussed some business basics, including why it’s important that you understand your contract before signing–click HERE, then come back. Today, she’ll explain three important clauses: the introductory clause, the delivery and acceptance clause, and the grant of rights clause (including sub rights).

The Anatomy of a Publishing Contract: Part 2

By Raquel B. Pidal

Clauses, clauses, clauses! What do they all mean?

A publishing contract will begin with an introductory clause that lays out the parties involved in the contract (the author and the publisher) and what the contract is in regards to (the manuscript). It also lays out the date when the contract comes into effect. There’s also usually a brief description of the work the author’s submitting. Sometimes this is vague to the point of being nearly indecipherable—just a title and then a few words of description: “Eighteen Wheels: A novel about truckers” or “Finding the Light: How to Rewire a Lamp Yourself—an instructional guide.” You may want to flesh this description out a bit on the contract (or on an attached page that you can refer to as a rider) so that it’s more specific what you understand that the publisher expects from you. “Eighteen Wheels: A novel of approximately 70,000 words about a group of truckers and their adventures traveling across America” or “Finding the Light: How to Rewire a Lamp Yourself—an instructional guide of approximately 50,000 words including directions for working with wiring and projects, along with illustrations and photos.” Inserting this little bit of extra information will give you a little peace of mind, especially considering the next clause that’s included in a publishing contract: delivery and acceptance of the manuscript.

The delivery and acceptance clause gives the date when the publisher expects you to turn in the completed manuscript of your project, and it often also spells out in what format they wish to receive it. If you’re writing fiction, you most likely have the manuscript completed and perhaps only have a few tweaks or formatting issues to resolve before turning the book in, but nonfiction books are often sold on the proposal and one or two sample chapters alone, so the due date is especially important. If you feel that you simply can’t turn in the manuscript by the publisher-assigned date, negotiate it, don’t just ignore it, as turning your work in late can render you in breach of contract.

Also be certain to pay attention to the terms of acceptance included in this clause.

Today’s guest is Raquel B. Pidal. Raquel has a master’s in Publishing and Writing from Emerson college, where she spent two of her semesters studying copyright law, contracts, and rights. She currently works in publicity at Harvard University Press, and is also a freelance writer and editor. She’s also the blog mama of Copyrighteous–a site focused on copyright and writers’ rights issues.

Therese stumbled upon Raquel’s site recently while researching her publishing contract–and trying to comprehend the legal lingo without rupturing too many brain cells. Raquel’s explanations of what you should find in a general contract were both easy to understand and exceptionally thorough, including things to beware and things worth negotiating. Our sincere thanks to her for allowing us to repost the information here at Writer Unboxed, in this special 3-part series running through Wednesday. We think you’ll agree: This is a resource tool you can bookmark and refer back to whenever your eyes begin to cross over contracts.

The Anatomy of a Publishing Contract: Part 1

By Raquel B. Pidal

A publishing contract is one of the most important pieces of paper a writer will ever get her hands on, but unfortunately, it can also be one of the most confusing. And it can be doubly confusing if you don’t have an agent there to help you. Don’t be daunted by the terminology; understanding more about what the different parts mean will help you cut through the verbiage and get to the heart of the matter. Even if you do have an agent who can help interpret what the heck all these terms mean, it’s wise to familiarize yourself with all of it so you’ll be better prepared to work with your agent, or directly with your publisher, to be sure it’s a deal you can both work with.

But before I start, a disclaimer: don’t consider any of this to be legal advice. If you actually have a contract and have questions about it, certainly use the information I’m providing as a starting point for deciphering what all the different clauses mean, but if you have any questions, doubts, or concerns, or need help negotiating, turn to a lawyer who’s got publishing experience, or try to find an agent to work with you.

What is a publishing contract, anyway?

It’s been a while since we’ve filled you in on books and business news. Here’s some of the latest (though some of it may be old news, too):

Author Christopher Paolini’s Brisingr was released this past Saturday. This, from Publishers Lunch:

In the UK, Waterstone’s children’s buyer Claudia Mody tells the Telegraph, “It’s our biggest pre-order campaign for anything since the final Harry Potter novel. Bigger than Sebastian Faulk’s James Bond novel, Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight or Delia Smith’s How to Cheat at Cooking. It’s going to be huge.”

More on Meyers; this, from Yahoo News:

Stephenie Meyer, author of the best-selling young adult “Twilight” books, has put the fifth and final installment in the series on hold in protest after a partial draft was posted on the Internet.

Meyer, the U.S. author of “Twilight” and its sequels “New Moon,” “Eclipse” and “Breaking Dawn,” said she had a good idea of how the leak of “Midnight Sun” had happened, since so few copies had left her hands and each was unique.

…”This has been a very upsetting experience for me, but I hope it will at least leave my fans with a better understanding of copyright and the importance of artistic control,” Meyer wrote.

“I feel too sad about what has happened to continue working on ‘Midnight Sun,’ and so it is on hold indefinitely.”

Meyer said the draft that was released on the Internet was incomplete, with messy and flawed writing, but she was making that draft available on her site because it added a new dimension to the “Twilight” story.

From BBC News: