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I'm an unintentional author -- now what?

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by ArnoldBabar, Feb 24, 2009.

  1. swenk

    swenk Member

    The paper can do what it wants with your stuff, they own it (unless, as stated above), you have a rare different agreement.

    I wouldn't worry about how Amazon lists author credit, it's a real mess. I've seen assistant editors listed as co-authors, Foreword writers listed as authors, covers and prices and pub dates are wrong; you've got some data entry person just slamming hundreds of items into the system.

    Does that baseball anthology list the permissions for each story? That might tell you where they got it from.
     
  2. Howard Sprague

    Howard Sprague New Member

    Last year, I was surprised to learn that one of my stories was reprinted in a book about the Masters. One of my editors mentioned it off-handedly. He assumed I knew.

    I didn't ask many questions and don't know all the specifics, but I understand the book publishers contacted our editor. I don't believe any money changed hands. I think the paper's stance was that having the article printed, with full attribution, was payment enough.

    I recall being pissy for about 60 seconds, until I realized that my paper had flown me halfway across the country to interview this guy and had paid my salary while I was reporting and writing the story. Flat-out, the story belongs to the paper.

    Having said that, I wonder whether Reilly, Jenkins, Feinstein, Dave Anderson, etc. got paid to have their work in this book. I would imagine they at least knew about it ahead of time.

    I would have appreciated the publishers sending me a copy of the book. And if the publishers had told me ahead of time, I would have given them a heads up about a typo in one of the quotes. Yep, it made the book, too, where it'll remain forevermore.
     
  3. In Exile

    In Exile Member

    Anthology rights payments, even for the big guys, is relatively modest. It's a math thing. Say you have a collection with fifty stories. If you have to pay even $500 a story, that's $25,000, which, since anthologies in general don't sell all that well, (and the editor gets paid an advance as well) starts to price it out of being published at all.

    Most newspapers and magazines charge a set price for book reprints, usually $200-400. Most writers who own their own rights, relaizing the numbers, charge about the same, because in an anthology if you try to charge too much you'll simply get dropped, and it is better to be in, and get something, than be out and get nothing.
     
  4. 2muchcoffeeman

    2muchcoffeeman Well-Known Member

    AB, it occurs to me that you may wish to refer to those anthologies on your resume in some way.
     
  5. Ace

    Ace Well-Known Member

    I think InEx nailed it.

    Hey, at least you can tell people that you're an unintentional best-selling author!
     
  6. forever_town

    forever_town Well-Known Member

    Sadly, In Exile is right on the money. By and large, the work you do for a publication is a work for hire, which means they control its distribution and they have the right to pocket any royalties that come from it.

    If the anthologies or other pubs use your work without getting your shop's permission, different story. Your shop then would take action from there.
     
  7. dixiehack

    dixiehack Well-Known Member

    See if the local B&N will let you sign autographs one Saturday morning. Maybe you'll get some free juice and doughnuts.
     
  8. I Digress

    I Digress Guest

    I always feel so sorry for authors a see doing that, guys no one has ever heard of and everyone is taking a pretty wide berth around their table. I think to do that, you need your own copies of the books. A publishing contract usually includes some. My one, brief foray into fiction did.
     
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