Publisher Terminates Because Author Dares to Accuse Pub of Royalty Underpayment

Apparently, even the publishers we know about in the U.S. aren't the only ones who are trying to screw their authors. (Not ALL publishers, for sure, just...a lot of them.)

This one concerns an author who did the responsible thing (like Kris Rusch said in one of her posts) and checked her royalty statements...and figured out she had been shortchanged. Rather than try to rectify the situation, the publisher (Era Publications) came back at the author (we're not talking J. K. Rowling here) and terminated her contracts.

So What?

You might be saying, "So what?" right about now, because plenty of authors have had their contracts terminated. But here's the part that chilled me, taken directly from the author's special Facebook page:

Era Publications has no right to terminate my publishing agreements but if I want to prove the unlawful termination of my publishing agreements, I have to go to court and defend Era’s claim of damages.

Why is Era Publications suing me for damages? According to its Statement of Claim, the termination of my publishing agreements means that: “…[Era] has lost the opportunity to generate further profits…”

So Era Publications terminates my publishing agreements and sues me for damages because Era “has lost the opportunity to generate further profits...”

 Again - So What?


Maybe you're still shrugging your shoulders. "How much could they possibly sue an author for?" After all, most authors in the traditional system are not hugely monied like Stephen King or the aforementioned J. K. Rowling.


How about $506,000? However, if the author (Robyn Opie) coughs up $200,000 within 60 days, the suit goes away.


Do I have your attention now?


Everybody Has Tons of Money in the Bank, Right?


Of course, everyone I know has a stray $200,000 in a bank, or several banks. (I know I do. ::eyeroll::) Anyway, just read where Era came up with the $506,000 figure. Pulping books? Costs for publishing other books instead of Ms. Opie's?


WTF?

Pulping books? Isn't that something the PUBLISHERS came up with decades ago? Isn't that part of the cost of the publishing business? (Silly as it is.)

Costs for publishing books other than the author's? Wait...wasn't Era the one who terminated the contracts? Whose fault is it that the author's books are no longer being printed by the publisher?

Disgusting. Era should be ashamed of themselves, and should drop the suit.

I hope Ms. Opie comes out of this okay, without having to pay one red cent.

Literary Lawyers - For Those Wanting to Go the Trad/Commerical Publishing Route

Laura Resnick has been writing for quite some time, and drops in on Dean Wesley Smith's site from time to time.

Instead of going the agent route, Dean has suggested hooking up with an IP attorney, one who specializes in publishing contracts. (Especially since most agents don't have a law degree, yet IMHO they're acting as de facto contract lawyers). Considering the state of flux the publishing world is currently in, you need as many people on your side as possible, without having to give up that 15% of what your books earn as your agent's take.

But where to find vetted literary attorneys? I'm sure there are plenty on both coasts (New York and Los Angeles), duh, but which ones are worth using?

Enter Ms. Resnick.

If you want to deal with traditional/commercial publishers, she has compiled this small list of lawyers for whom she can vouch.

Thanks, Laura!

Be Careful Out There

If you are contracted with any of the traditional/legacy publishers, make sure you read your contract.  Among Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Dean Wesley Smith, and the lawyer dude who is Passive Guy, there are a lot of crappy clauses and what-not that publishers are hoisting onto writers, whether those writers have been in legacy publishing for a while or those writers who are about to sign their first contract.

More info here:

http://www.thepassivevoice.com/05/2011/strip-mining-the-authors/

What was it that they used to say on Hill Street Blues?  Oh yeah.

Be careful out there.

Gross is Better Than Net

So what the hell is silly ol' Nancy talking about, hmm?

Well, between this post on Dean Wesley Smith's site, and this post on J. Daniel Sawyer's site, you'll know exactly what I'm getting at.  And it ain't pretty.  (I could segue into some agents setting up as publishers, but I'll digress at this point...)

Traditionally Published Authors and Royalties

The post on Kristine Kathryn Rusch's site is here.

Having never been traditionally published, it's only very recently that what a mess royalty statements truly are.  It seems that authors knew their royalties would be off a bit here and there (if they could make sense of those statements).

Except now, it seems the royalties could be way, way off.

Copyright Law For Writers (Boring, Hunh?)

Reading on another blog (this one, to be exact), I went to the original site.

On Piers Anthony's site, he had up his February newsletter (which might be gone by the time you read this), but I'll leave the link anyway.

Legal crap, oh boring.  ::yawn::

Except this is actually interesting.

HarperCollins: No Advances, No Returns

I saw a post at Kristin Nelson's blog that made me somewhat nervous.

The article was published in The Wall St. Journal today.

Number 1 - No Author Advances

I read an opinion on another blog wherein the blog writer wondered how long it would be before writers would freak out at this prospect.

Not long.

The problem, as I see it, isn't necessarily not receiving advances; for most first-time writers, the advance won't pay one month's rent or mortgage payment.

No, the problem is that the unit will share its profit with writers.

Hunh? And what if there is no profit? The writer, who has spent months, sometimes years, writing a particular story...is stiffed. At least if he has some sort of advance - even if it's $1,000 - the writer has had some kind of payment for her hard work.

To PublishAmerica people: Commercial publishers pay a token amount as an advance, but it's well above the paltry, insulting $1 PA throws your way.

I'm sorry, but I don't like this part of the idea. More details will be needed.

Number 2 - No Returns

This is something I think a lot of publishers would rejoice at; from what I've read so far, bookstores probably wouldn't go for it.

I'm thinking that this HC imprint is going to print fewer copies of books, thereby letting bookstores have just enough on hand. Bookstores can then cut prices on the copies they have left; at least they'd still squeeze some money out of it.

But could it be that bookstores are so used to returns (plus, what is it now, 50-60% discounts?) that they'd balk at the no returns bit?

My take is, no returns might work to everyone's satisfaction. Again, more info is needed before anyone can pronounce judgement.

Number 3 - No Paying For Special Placement

According to something I've read (and this person sounded like he knew his stuff), placement is used all over the place. Product placement in movies - yup, seen it. I've seen product placement in books, too (one in particular made me want to pull out my hair; it was one of the reasons why I put down that book and never went back to it).

I worked for a company that had special software - this was back in the mid-1980s - wherein the company's manufactured products could electronically be placed according to how a particular store's shelving was laid out.

So I guess you have to pay to play. (And if you live in New Jersey...you know exactly what I'm talking about. ;-))

I'm up in the air about this one, although my initial thought is: How silly. I will say, though, that I'd forgotten the current book I'm reading had come out the day I was actually in the local Borders; if I hadn't seen it facing out, I wouldn't have bought it.

But I would have bought it at a later date, because I've really enjoyed the author's books. :-)

In Summary

Details are sketchy, so it's really hard to have anything other than knee-jerk reactions. Hopefully, HC will come out with more information so authors and agents can make better decisions.

~Nancy Beck

How to Get Out of Your PA Contract

..."PA" being PublishAmerica, of course.

Go here to get some ideas, specifically, on arbitration. Why arbitration? Because I've read that the few times people have gone to arbitration with PA, PA has lost.

Want some other ideas, or do you feel you need someone to talk to who is in - or was in - a similar situation? (Everyone needs to talk to somebody some time...jeez, wasn't that a song?) Then try this thread at Absolute Write.

Don't give up - keep writing!