Hey all, I'm an aspiring writer and I'd appreciate some help from people more knowledgeable than me in the field of online novels and distributing company/websites. I was recently contacted by a website for distribution rights to one of my stories which has about 400,000 words thus far. It was a project I'd placed on hiatus but they have expressed interest in promoting it and distributing it through their website so long as I take it up again. We haven't gotten into details yet but before that discussion takes place, I wanted to see if anyone here has any insight on the typical terms of such an agreement and what might be a fair standard of terms for an unknown, novice writer such as myself engaging with a smaller, less well-known site. While I'm cautiously optimistic, because I don't have any experience my goal is to gather at least a modicum of information so I can understand what I'm signing to and what I should be expecting. If anyone has any insight at all they'd like to share, you have my gratitude. Thanks.
I found a useful guide for self-editing. https://jerryjenkins.com/self-editing/ edit: forgot to add that it also has tips on what to be wary of when it comes to publishing and handling manuscripts. In the end, writing is a skill and to improve, I think we should be honest with ourselves. It's okay to make mistakes, but don't wave it off or get upset with it either. Use them to find your flaws and polish your writing. I see a lot of amateur writes who like to ask for critiques for their writing, but when they receive comments they don't like (that aren't bashing or flaming) they would say the critiques are nitpicking. Maybe the comments are nitpicky, but the truth is readers have seen them and pointed them out, so it's good if a writer takes them into consideration.
Dear OP, I recommend you visit Reddit or Royal Road forum for creative writers. They have useful information. Also, what is your intention for the novel? Do you want to self-publish in the future? Amazon kindle allows 10% of a novel to stay up online, so there could be a clash of interest. (If you don't plan on using amazon, then ignore this). For example, if your work is on an aggregator site, you need to fight with a DMCA/ask to take it down or else you cannot do kindle. Read the contract thoroughly and make sure that your work is yours to keep [unless you want to give it away voluntarily.]. Get someone who knows the law to go over the contract with you, so you can benefit/feel relieved and not get screwed over. Hope your writing journey sets sail smoothly. Cheers!
Any agreement is basically about two things, money and control of the license. The first is kind of obvious, the 2nd gets complicated. As in when the project is completed for some time(say 2 years after) can you post it as a novel or series of eBooks on Amazon or did they sign an exclusive license with you? Do you retain your right to publish a paperback novel? Can they demand a different story line or ending? The basic idea is the more you give away/ and the longer, the more you should be paid because you are closing off other revenue sources. That doesn't mean you have to bankrupt them, but maybe a deal isn't worth your time.
Ensure the matter of your copyright and monetary compensation. I assume that the distributor would want to have an exclusive license for your novel's distribution. Put a clear-defined date on how long will they hold this license, when will the license put into force, and the means to renew it. Be clear on the rights that you will give to the distributor--say, would you give them the right to make a merch from it? translation right? will you give them the right to distribute a paperback version of your story? And most importantly, be clear on the compensation that you will receive and the rights that you retain. And also, be clear about the consequences that each party will get for violating or requesting the termination of the contract, and the dispute resolution mechanism. i suggest having someone with a knowledge of law to advise you. and don't forget to do the maths for your income!! and always, always read the contract carefully
Thank you for the thoughtful and helpful replies. I feel a little better informed now as I head into the discussion table. As I'm obviously just an amateur with more ideas than solid works on paper, at this point I'm tempted to just say yes to anything so that I can gain a wider audience and recognition for my writing. At the same time, that's tempered by cautionary tales of the debauchery of corporate evil squeezing the little guy. Do any of you have any idea what the usual compensation would be like for such an arrangement?
If you're asking about traditional publishers, the usual compensation would be an initial lump sum after the contracts are signed and royalty payments based on sales. For initial lump sum/signing bonus/compensation, it depends on the country, the type of work being signed up, the type of copyright agreement and the company's size or reputation. Authors in USA is paid more than Singapore when they are signed up. Good young adults authors with some popular books on his belt gets paid more than an unknown self-help author. If the company only borrows your copyright for some restricted use for say, 10 years, it's cheaper than if you surrender your copyright in perpetuity for unrestricted use (like Qidian). The larger and more respected the company is, the more they will pay you, usually, but this is just speaking generally. For royalties, the most common amount is 20%. Some companies would say 20% of the retail price, some would say 20% of the profit. Those who say 20% of the profit (after production cost and operations cost) are whacked. Don't sign up with them. Technically that's not illegal, but that would mean they can declare whatever amount as 'profit' (with hidden administration cost) and you will never know how much they've been skimming off your income unless you sic the lawyers on them. If any publishing company gives you more than 40% royalty, run away, because that means they have no idea what they're doing and will most likely not pay you after a couple of months. But if they're planning on posting your stories exclusively on their platform to be read online, it could be they'd be paying you a fixed amount or a flexible amount. Fixed amount is when they pay you an agreed amount for every month or every release or by word count. If it's paid for every release, it means with more chapters, the more you get paid, same with payment based on word count. A flexible amount is when they pay you based on varying factors, which may include readership count, subscription count, daily visitors, site-wide visitors, ads ppv or ppc on your story page and how high the site is on the search engine. Ai-chan's advice is to read the contracts slowly and if possible, ask for advice from online internet lawyers for stuff you don't understand. They won't advertise themselves as a lawyer giving free legal advice because if they do, they'd be legally bound to represent you in court, for free, which is what no lawyer wants to do. So you have to sift through those replies and find one that seems legit.