Authoring attorney: Don't be quick to sign

When negotiating contracts with publishers, authors need to get over the intimidation and ask tough questions, said Michael Lennie, an authoring attorney and agent specializing in textbook authoring issues. Publishers come into contract negotiations knowing every word in a contract and its meanings and ramifications, said Lennie, while the author seldom sees the implications. Many authors are college professors and school teachers whose expertise is in their subject, not the law, and they're just thrilled that a publisher is willing to take a work and publish it, he said. That euphoria, Lennie said, causes many problems.

"Publishers come in with a standard contract and tell authors to sign it," said Lennie. "Most contracts get signed with the same scrutiny as signing a hotel register." All standard contract provisions, he said, are written to protect the publisher, not the author. "There's no reason why you can't cross something out, he said. "You can negotiate. Just ask."

Lennie discussed four key clauses in a contract that should be negotiated:

Electronic rights. Although some authors don't see e-rights as an important issue right now, signing away these rights now could tie up your e-rights through several editions. Most e-royalties offered today, he said, are 5 percent. Publishers argue that they have extensive set-up costs in creating an e-product, but, said Lennie, they can recover those expenses in other ways besides the author. Lennie suggests asking for at least 15 percent e-royalties, being sure to include that the rate is to be renegotiated for future editions.

Foreign rights. If a publisher sells to a subsidiary in Canada, an many authors receive only a quarter of the royalty rate they do in the United States. Authors should negotiate the following into the contract:

Competing works clause. This clause says the author can't write a book that might interfere with this textbook. Be specific about what they define as a competing text, he said. For example, "The author would not participate in any other book on introductory psychology aimed at first or second year students." If not tightened up, said Lennie, authors may find themselves in a position that binds them to the publisher for everything they write.

Publication clause. This clause give a specific date for when the author must submit the contract. If the author is late, the publisher can claim breach of contract. The contract doesn't require such a specific date for the publisher to print, only "within a reasonable time." Authors should negotiate a provision saying something like "the publisher must publish the work within 12 months of the date they received the manuscript or rights revert back to the author."

Remember that both sides come into the negotiations with a sense of what they can give in on, said Lennie: "In any negotiations, you want to have a way to defer to a higher authority."