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5 Tips for Authors When Negotiating their Author Agreements

5 Tips for Authors When Negotiating their Author Agreements

Writers, what do you know about author agreements?

by Joseph Perry

Author Agreements: Know the Legal Terms

For authors who are given a book contract and may not have an agent or attorney, here are a few tips that may help you in negotiating against the publisher.

1) Grant of Rights

When reading the grant of rights clause, there are several things to watch out for. Here are a few items to keep in mind:

  1. License – Grant the publisher the exclusive right to publish your book. But don’t assign the copyright of your book. If you assign your copyright, you effectively no longer own the copyright and cede control of it. This means the publisher can effectively do what it wants with your book.
  2. Territory – Review the territory to see if the publisher is asking for world rights. If you think your book can sell in multiple territories, specify that the territory is only for a specific region (like North America, for example).
  3. Review the specific rights being granted – Grant the publisher only the rights you want them to have. If there is catch-all language that the publisher may publish your book “in all formats now known or hereafter,” try to strike this. Reserve all rights you don’t wish to grant.

2) Representations and Warranties

A representation is an assertion of fact at a given time. A warranty is a promise that the assertion of fact will remain true into the future.

Most author agreements have authors represent and warrant, among other things, that their work doesn’t violate copyright law, trademark law, privacy laws. Also that it’s not libelous or obscene. If you think your work may violate the law or are unsure if it does, try to qualify your representations and warranties. Use language like “to the best of Author’s knowledge.”

Also try to eliminate any representations and warranties that ask that your work won’t violate any law or harm anyone whatsoever. That’s way too broad, and it’s almost impossible to guarantee that with such broad language.

3) Delivery of Manuscript

Ask your publisher to notify you in writing when your manuscript is accepted. That way you’ll have proof that it’s accepted and you’ll be entitled to your next portion of your advance.  (If applicable: some publishers pay the full advance upon signing).

Also, ask for language that gives you the reasons why your manuscript wasn’t accepted. You’ll also want to ask for time to revise–typically 30 days.

Along those same lines, make sure to write that your manuscript is satisfactory in form and content. By doing this, it eliminates the publisher from arbitrarily saying they won’t publish your book.

4) Option on Your Next Book

If you intend to write books on different topics, try to narrow the clause. Say your next book will be about the same subject rather than agreeing that the publisher will have the option on your next book (whatever genre that is).

This opens up the possibility to publish books with multiple houses. This is especially important if your current house doesn’t have a strong list in a certain genre in which you wish to write.

5) Out-of-Print

Try to eliminate language that allows publishers to state any electronic editions or print-on-demand editions are considered in print. If this is the case, your book may never be out of print.

This becomes an issue when you’re not satisfied with the publisher and want to move on, so be sure to say that this clause only pertains to print books.

You can also try to limit it further and ask for the clause to apply to print books in the English language. Another thing you can do is to insert a financial threshold as well (for example, out of print means sales less than $100).

The information above is not nor is intended to be legal advice. If you have any questions regarding your contract, please consult an attorney

***

by Joseph Perry (@PerryLiterary), August 22, 2021

Trad-pubbed authors: Did you know all this before you signed your first contract? (I sure didn’t) I know many of our readers are self-publishers, but many self-publishers also publish some of their books with traditional publishers. Did you know all this stuff about author agreements? New authors who are planning to go the traditional publishing route, do you have any questions for Mr. Perry? 

Joseph Perry

Mr. Perry is a literary agent and publishing attorney at Perry Literary, Inc., and The Law Offices of Joseph J. Perry, P.C. As an agent he represents bestselling cookbook authors, athletes, musicians, journalists, influencers, academics, and more.
As an attorney, Joseph counsels clients in the publishing industry, where among other things, he drafts, reviews, and negotiates various publishing agreements and conducts prepublication review of manuscripts.
Joseph obtained his Juris Doctor from St. John’s University School of Law and a Master of Arts and Bachelor of Arts in English from St. Bonaventure University. He is a graduate of New York University’s Summer Publishing Institute.
You can find Mr. Perry on Twitter @PerryLiterary, on Instagram @perry_lit, and Facebook at Joseph Perry Law and Perry Literary . His law firm is at www.josephperrylaw.com and agency website is www.perryliterary.com.  And you can sign up for his newsletter with legal tips for authors..

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About Anne R. Allen

Anne writes funny mysteries and how-to-books for writers. She also writes poetry and short stories on occasion. Oh, yes, and she blogs. She's a contributor to Writer's Digest and the Novel and Short Story Writer's Market.

Her bestselling Camilla Randall Mystery RomCom Series features perennially down-on-her-luck former socialite Camilla Randall—who is a magnet for murder, mayhem and Mr. Wrong, but always solves the mystery in her quirky, but oh-so-polite way.

Anne lives on the Central Coast of California, near San Luis Obispo, the town Oprah called "The Happiest City in America."

Comments

  4. William L Hahn says

    Mr. Perry, this is so admirably clear and accessible, a real value for many I’m sure.

    I’m curious if you have a sense, as per your 1.3 above, whether the audiobook rights are typically included by established publishers as something they try to keep “in house”. If an author wants to exclude them, is that a deal breaker do you think?

    Reply

    • Joseph Perry says

      Hi William,

      I’m so glad you enjoyed the article!

      To answer your question, it all depends on the publisher. I’ve seen established publishers keep it in-house if they have the capabilities to produce a quality audiobook, while I’ve seen publishers license audio rights to an audiobook company (especially smaller and indie presses). You’d want to ask what your publisher typically does. If they license it, you may want to see if you can do that yourself so you don’t have to split the money with the publisher.
      It shouldn’t be a deal breaker to ask about their practices and assess what is best for your situation.

      If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out: jperry@josephperrylaw.com or visit my website at josephperrylaw.com

      Hope this helps!

      All the best,
      Joe

      Reply

  6. Linda Maye Adams says

    Add two more:

    1. Read the contract. Take the time to understand the contract.

    More people have gotten into trouble because they didn’t do either one of those things.

    2. Be willing to walk away if something’s wrong with the contract.

    When COVID kicked off, a lot of sites sought stories to help people through the isolation. One was posted on a site I trust, so I didn’t think as much about the guidelines as I should have. It was also non-paying. I just happened to have a flash fiction piece that fit, so it was “Why not?” (I didn’t repeat this mistake).

    The story was accepted. The publisher sent me to the contract. I read it. Frowned a lot. Was I missing something? Set it aside. Read it again the next day. Nope, I wasn’t misreading it. The rights were entirely missing from the contract.

    So I contacted the publisher and asked about the rights. He was cheerful, friendly, and completely clueless. He said, “Oh, no. We’re not buying rights. We’re just publishing it online.”

    I waited another day, mostly because I didn’t want to have an emotional reaction. Then I politely withdrew the story from consideration.

    Reply

    • Joseph Perry says

      Hi Linda,

      I wholeheartedly agree. Make sure to read the contract, and writers need to understand that it’s ok to walk away. I’m glad to hear you withdrew the publication offer (I would have too!). I’ve had to counsel clients to do the same before with various publishers. If it doesn’t feel free, it probably isn’t. If you ever have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out: jperry@josephperrylaw.com or visit my website at josephperrylaw.com

      All the best,
      Joe

      Reply

  10. Sue Coletta says

    Excellent post, Joseph. I *wish* I knew all this when I signed my first contract. Back then, I was in such a rush to get published I would have signed just about anything. Thankfully, I landed at a decent house who didn’t take total advantage. But now, if I could do things over again, I might have waited for my 2nd offer, which came days after signing the contract. Sigh. Live and learn.

    Reply

    • Joseph Perry says

      Thanks, Sue! And you’re not alone. So many writers say the same thing, and I’m glad to hear you landed at a decent house. The other thing I always hear writers ask is how to get out of their contracts. It’s never too late to pose that question to your publisher if that’s what an author wishes. If you have any questions about contracts, don’t hesitate to reach out: jperry@josephperrylaw.com

      Reply

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