Contract Problems? You Signed It!

Contracts are all about making sure ALL parties are protected. In publishing, this means that the author, agent and publisher are all part of this agreement. Unfortunately, there are many authors out there who have this believe that publishing contracts are only out to "screw the author." It is also this reason why so many people seem to think that going into self-publishing skips this process.

This is far from true.

What I have to first say is that you, as the author, decided to sign that contact. No one put a gun to your head. No one forced you to take on that contract. This was 100% your decision. This goes for all of those contracts. When you made a decision to work with an agent, a publisher, a printing company, you signed a contract.

And yet, time and time again, I hear authors complain that a publisher "screwed them over." Authors complain about not having certain rights to their books. They complain they cannot just get those rights back at a moment's notice. Those rights were clearly worded in those contacts, and when the authors signed it, the author's said they agreed.

So, what do you do as an author? First, if you don't understand the language, it is up to you to figure out a solution. Agents know the language so they can help. There are lawyers out there who you can pay to look over the contract, but make sure the lawyer is familiar with publishing laws.

Secondly, you can negotiate to see if they are willing to make changes. Here is where it get sticky. Remember the contract is making this fair to everyone. If you go out asking for unreasonable terms, please understand that you will not have an agreement. You don't get to dictate everything. This is a business and both you and the other party are in this for financial reasons.

Finally, if you are still not happy, then you have the right to say no. You are not being pressured into this. If you are saying "this is the only way I can get published" then you are wrong. There are other ways, but this path might not be what you want. If you are still determined to do this, even though you don't agree with the contract, you simply cannot complain later.

It's tough, but it is the real world.