Published Novelists - Your Checks - Kaching!

Not knowing the difference between PA and real publishing at the time, none of my friends asked... not but one of the family. And since I knew the lousy li'l money grubber was jealous, I told him 'five figures' and left it at that.

If I'm ever fortunate enough to have a legitimate pub to my credit, I won't worry about being tactful. I'll ask the rudeski to show me his/her last W2 and then I'll show 'im mine.

Go buy a fur coat and a Ferrari. Let 'em wonder after that.

Agent takes her bit first, then sends me the money.

My mother and stepfather believe Author = Millionaire. I've tried to explain reality to them, but I doubt it'll ever take.

Meanwhile, when it happens to me, I'll just wink and smile and walk away in response to the "how rich are you now?" question

The tactful response would be something like, "I got an appropriate amount for the type of book it is" or "I'm very happy with the advance my agent negotiated for me." If they continue to press after that, just say you're not comfortable divulging the exact number.

Agent gets the payment, keeps her 15% and sends the rest to you. I'm pretty sure this is industry standard. As long as you have a reputable agent, it's a good system, not least because your agent then prepares records you can use at tax time instead of struggling through yourself.

My publisher pays my agent. Agent takes his chunk and sends me a check.

And personally, when someone asks me about an advance, I tell them. That's my choice, and I'm not saying everyone should do the same. But I've never seen a reason for hiding that information, either. And I think it helps bust a few writing myths when people find out what a typical first-novel advance looks like

Ditto everyone else's scenario: my publisher pays my agent, who then pays me, less their 15%.

Like Jim, I choose to tell people when they ask. Not many have asked and I'm all about shattering illusions that I'm about to quit my day job

grommet

I forgot to mention the rule that I don't tell unless you've seen me in a compromising position before

One thing I do want to mention (and this experience may be my own) is the timeline for getting money. I got my deal at the end of October, but I didn't have a finalized contract until late February, so I didn't get the first part of my advance until March. I have no idea if that's the norm, but that's how slow things went for me. On the other hand, each subsequent part of my advance was paid out very quickly after I met the terms, but my agent is really good about following up on that.

grommet

Yup, an agent takes his cut and then sends the rest to you. PROMPTLY, I may add.

I've heard that agents can either receive your checks and split it first, then send you the rest, OR, the writer can split his/her own check and send the remainder to the agent. How do you handle this?

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Those details are spelled out in the contract with the publisher. It is far better, in my experience, to have publishers "split" checks, sending your agent her 15% and you your 85%. You get your money faster, and you don't have to wait for an agent to handle the paperwork at her end. Some publishers resist splitting checks, but from what I hear more and more are doing it. I know mine agreed without a murmur of protest when I asked.

Also, how do you handle it when family members/friends ask how much you got for the advance? Aside from my Momma, I feel it's none of folks bizness. Is there a tactful way to sidestep the nosiness?

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Well, you can just say you'd rather not discuss money (in which case they're either convinced you made a mint or else paid the publisher to publish your work). I've found the best way is to look them straight in the eye, smile, and ask, "How much did you make last year?" Most blink and look disconcerted, but usually get the point.

Some will tell you how much they made -- and to those I usually say something like, "I get X% of the cover price of every book sold, which is usually .25 (or whatever), against an advance of X-dollars, which means the book has to sell X-number of copies before I see another dime. Oh, and my agent gets 15% of every dollar the book earns. And that's before-tax income."

At the very least, it usually disillusions them. Because, of course, everybody's convinced you sell one book and are able to retire on the proceeds.

Yeah. Right.

ClaudiaGray said:

Agent gets the payment, keeps her 15% and sends the rest to you. I'm pretty sure this is industry standard. As long as you have a reputable agent, it's a good system, not least because your agent then prepares records you can use at tax time instead of struggling through yourself.

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Just to note (in case nobody else has) if the publisher splits checks, you will get the necessary paperwork from the publisher to file your taxes. That has never been an issue in my career. If earnings go through your agent first, she has to issue you the necessary forms -- and for many agents, that yearly chore is a major headache and one they tend to be behind on, depending on the number of clients they have.

And before (or in case) somebody asks, your agent pays taxes on her earnings and you pay taxes on yours. Whether you declare the 15% a deduction -- and a straight write-off -- or never see her commission, that's the way it will be handled.

To me, it always made more sense tax-wise to split the checks and report only my income -- not hers. For some people, that difference may keep you in a lower tax bracket.

BUT consult a professional. Get advice from an accountant or literary attorney who specializes in tax matters. I can promise you that you won't be sorry.

Star,

This was a big pub (Harper). This may have been an anomaly, though I suspect there is usually a delay before that first payment.

And to reiterate what Maestro said, all of my dealings with money being sent by my agent have been very prompt.

grommet

My experience has also been that the signing check takes the longest to work its way to the author. It also depends on how complicated the contract is, whether your agent accepts the boilerplate or wants changes, who at the house has to approve those changes, and the standard timeline at your particular publisher.

Some publishers simply take longer to put through money than others do, depending on their internal systems.

My point being, until you have some experience with a particular pub under your belt, don't even try to "plan" on when the money will come in.

Count on it when it's in your hand, and not before.

It took me forever to get my money. I've still not seen any money from most of the foreign markets the book sold to.

I sold the novel in February, didn't see a contract until April, and didn't get the first check until nearly May.

I think that's pretty standard at big publishers.