Publisher Restructure - Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

MrsRussell

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OK so bear with.
Not at all venomous, but my current publisher has gone into liquidation anfd is restructuring.
They want to keep as many of their authors as possible, obviously, but...

PROs:
I have a mainstream publishing contract and that can act as a lever for accessing certain privileges
They handle distribution etc
They have a wider reach than I do
They're promising to return energised, thrusting, etc

CONs
They haven't paid my first royalties yet (due next month)
I hated their cover art and marketing, and so did a lot of my readers
Not as much control over finished products
I really fundamentally disagreed with a lot of their sales pitches (eg listing it the wrong category on Kindle)

Has anybody been in a similar situation?
 

Toothpaste

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It seems like the pros are all theoretical and the cons are the reality. Like yes they handle distribution but they way in which they do it is not effective. They have a wider reach but they are reaching to the wrong categories.

Cover art is a big deal too. Are there any covers you like at the house? Some publishers just have generally bad covers, some have a mix. If it's a mix then there is possibility of future good ones. If not . . . well . . .

And of course payment is the biggest deal. You say you haven't been paid yet but that the royalties haven't been due yet. So I'm not sure entirely why that's a con unless they were behind and you talked with them and they agreed on a fix date to pay you by and that time is coming up. But if people aren't paying you in a timely fashion, of all the cons listed, that's the biggest one to me. I'd absolutely leave a publisher who did that.
 

MrsRussell

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Well, I keep getting emails from their bookkeepers saying things like "creditors will be paid in due course" - being a natural born cynic I can't help suspecting that if I don't transfer I will become a "creditor" and a pretty minor one at that, and receive what's owing, as they say, in due course.
D'you see where I get suspicious, here?
 

Marissa D

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Are you in the middle of a multi-book contract? Because if you aren't, all you have to do is not submit any further work to them...and keep on top of the payment issue. Or do you want to ask them to return rights on your existing work with them?
 

MrsRussell

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Marissa - yes. Basically what's on the table is either go to the restructured side under the same ts & cs, and presumably a new contract will be issued in the future. Or all rights will revert to me on 9th March and it will be unpublished from Amazon and all reviews lost, if I don't go over. I must admit, I'm feeling a bit under pressure from the emails every couple of days!
 

Cyia

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Let's get this out of the way: I AM NOT A LAWYER.

However, you may need a lawyer. Your contracted books are assets of the publishing company. If they're liquidating, and are acquired without releasing you from your contract, or if they declare bankruptcy without releasing you from your contract - PRIOR TO - either of those things happening, then your books remain assets of that company used to recoup those "creditors will paid" losses.

IF they have agreed that your rights revert on 3/9, the GET IT IN WRITING. Send them a certified letter requesting confirmation of rights-reversal.
 

lizmonster

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Yes, by all means get a lawyer.

And I'd get my rights back ASAP. Like everyone else IANAL, but there are so many red flags here I'd be waiting for the running of the bulls.
 

amergina

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FYI, if you grab the ASIN of your book, you can have Amazon link the old edition (and reviews) to the new edition. I had a book revert to me at the end of a contract, and I was able to get the old reviews attached to the new edition, once I republished it. So if that's what's keeping you from leaving.... don't let it.
 

ironmikezero

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Consulting an attorney, with your current contract in hand, is good advice. More often than not, such scrutiny is well worth the effort.

Keep in mind that what people tell you is what they want you to believe; but, what they do is the truth.
 

PeteMC

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I think you need a lawyer - if the company has already gone into liquidation then I don't think they actually *can* give you your rights back, as (in the UK at least) it's now down to the appointed liquidator to handle the assets of the company, of which your publishing rights are one. However, I'm not a lawyer and could be wrong, so please get some proper advice from someone qualified on this.
 

Barbara R.

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Sorry this happened to you. If you can do it, get your rights back. In the long run, that's the most valuable thing at stake here. The publisher's future is iffy, and you don't want to tie your book's fate to them if you have a way to avoid it. IF in fact they do return, reenergized and refinanced, then you can talk. For now, I say take your rights and run.
 

Old Hack

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I think you need a lawyer - if the company has already gone into liquidation then I don't think they actually *can* give you your rights back, as (in the UK at least) it's now down to the appointed liquidator to handle the assets of the company, of which your publishing rights are one. However, I'm not a lawyer and could be wrong, so please get some proper advice from someone qualified on this.

This is right.

If the company is already in administration, then printed books, and the rights to publish those books, are the company's assets and cannot be disposed of by anyone other than the administrator.

If they're suggesting they can sneak your rights out somehow then they're being duplicitous. Be very careful what you agree to. It all sounds very unprofessional.