9 Must-have Clauses for Digital Rights Contracts - Michael Stackpole

9 Must-have Clauses for Digital Rights Contracts - Michael Stackpole

A very good blog post from Michael Stackpole. Given the shady dealings of Macmillan publishing with sending letters out to authors (bypassing their agents) asking for the digital rights to their backlists.

Stackpole gives some very clear examples of how an author can get ripped off if they're not keeping track of e-publishing developments. The nine points he comes up with are a must-read for any author out there.

He also highly recommends authors self-publishing and uses his and experience to support his recommendation.

9 Points:

1. A cash advance

2. A 6 month window for publication

3. A sunset clause on the contract

4. Clearly define which formats are to be used

5. Copies of all files, including source files

6. Electronic rights to the books are limited to one language only

7. Series royalties on a per volume basis and on an omnibus basis

8. Royalties should be calculated and paid every 60 days

9. The files will be made available to the author to sell from his own webstore