| Many though not all aspects of a contract are | | | | when I negotiated increased royalties! But our |
| negotiable. Knowing what is and what isn’t | | | | negotiations ended when I found they were |
| negotiable, and when to walk away, can increase | | | | unwilling to supply additional author’s copies. |
| your earnings immensely. | | | | (Just two? My other publishers were giving me |
| If you’re selling a timely article to a | | | | five to ten.) |
| newspaper, the editor seldom has time or | | | | Author’s copies are essential for promotional |
| patience for negotiation. But you could ask more | | | | purposes. Yes, you can give one to your |
| for a sidebar or a photo. | | | | Mother. But your father, your best friend, and |
| If you’ve just sold a short story to Playboy | | | | your favorite uncle will just have to wait. Tom |
| and the dollars offered are a good deal less than | | | | Clancy is the household name he is today because |
| in your fantasies, don’t even think about | | | | of all the copies of his first novel he gave away |
| negotiating. But you can and should negotiate a | | | | to reviewers. |
| kill fee (if one is not already present in the | | | | If Publish America wasn’t going to promote |
| proffered contract). A kill fee (payable if they | | | | my book and they weren’t going to give me |
| don’t publish your efforts after all) is always a | | | | any author’s copies so I could promote it, |
| test of how sincere a publisher’s intentions | | | | what were they going to do? They were going |
| are. You can and should try to negotiate one. | | | | to print my book on demand and “sell” |
| With book contracts, the base rate for royalties is | | | | me as many copies as they possibly could. |
| seldom negotiable, but you could ask for set up a | | | | I’d be self-publishing in other words. I walked |
| sliding scale with author’s royalties set at a | | | | away. |
| higher percentage as the number of copies sold | | | | To publicize my as-yet-to-be-sold children’s |
| increases. (If you book sells like one of Steven | | | | book, “Inside the Human Cell,” I |
| King’s, you should expect to get paid like | | | | considered an offer to buy the opening chapter |
| Steven King.) | | | | from Jack and Jill, a mass-circulation children’s |
| On the other hand, it’s essential that you | | | | magazine. They offered a decent fee and the |
| know when to walk away as well as when to | | | | exposure would certainly increase the likelihood of |
| play the game. | | | | a major publisher bidding on the book. The catch |
| A contract, a prospective “literary agent” | | | | was that Jack and Jill insisted on acquiring the |
| sent you, calls for you to reimburse them for | | | | copyright to my article, which meant I |
| “legitimate office expenses.” Walk | | | | couldn’t use it in the book. The book |
| away. They ain’t a legitimate agent. | | | | remains unsold to this day, but I am free to |
| I was thrilled to death when Publish America | | | | continue shopping it, or even to publish it myself, |
| agreed to publish my novel. The thrills continued | | | | because I’ve retained all my rights. |