Charles River Press

*shrug* All but one of the publishers I've edited for have paid royalties. The others I know that work as editors get paid royalties as well. Some paid a combination of royalties and an flat-fee upfront, others were just royalties.

sunwriter said:

*shrug* All but one of the publishers I've edited for have paid royalties. The others I know that work as editors get paid royalties as well. Some paid a combination of royalties and an flat-fee upfront, others were just royalties.

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My impression (just from getting questions and reports about small presses) is that this is pretty common, as a way for small publishers to save $$. If the publisher is successful, though, it can become more expensive. I know of one pretty successful epublisher that recently switched from paying royalties to paying flat fees.

- Victoria

Wow, Vic, I had no idea, since everyone I know gets a paycheck for services rendered. Seems to me receiving a salary via royalties is a gamble for the editor. What if the book doesn't sell well? All her work she put into editing will go unpaid.

Getting back to sunwriter's original complaint and warning - what he/she described is definitely not the way to do business, unless the head of the house is just another neurotic wannabie king, who is content with having a few peons to push around and with having his small town know him as 'a publisher'. Business growth and hence author success wouldn't be high on the list in this case.