“Brainstorming on the Beach” Conference with Novelists, Inc.
Here are my notes, keeping in mind this is what I heard and my interpretation. This panel was geared toward Harlequin Enterprises.
Writing for Worldwide Distribution with Marsha Zinberg, Executive Editor, Harlequin Enterprises and Author Vicki Lewis Thompson
Marsha: A breakdown on what’s popular with readers shows that cowboys, weddings, babies, and Texas remain favorite themes. The Presents line features the power dynamics between a hero and heroine. A new line is coming, HQ Heartwarming with wholesome stories.
Mini-series and connected series are always hits.
Direct to Consumer: No paranormals. Heroines should be focused on home not career.
Overseas: Fantasy and romance are welcome but not paranormal. Ugly Duckling, Cinderella, forbidden love, millionaires, and secret babies are themes that work. The romance should be the focus of the story.
When you, the author, are doing your fact sheet, keep in mind that overseas editors read them so make your universal theme evident right away. The synopsis shouldn’t be overly long or complicated since English may not be their first language.
Topics to avoid: Casinos and gambling, ballroom dancing, post-war traumatic stress disorder.
Medical sells well overseas but not in North America.
Be prolific to create your author franchise.
Time sensitive issues and brand names may date a book so be wary of using these. Ditto for technology and politically correct terms.
Vicki: Know what is selling but don’t always follow trends. Focus what you do well and write often. Be a pro regarding deadlines. Challenge yourself as a writer and take a chance on special projects.
Refilling the creative well implies that you drain your energy when you write. Instead, think of writing as recharging your batteries. The more you write, the more you want to write.
“Brainstorming on the Beach” Conference with Novelists, Inc.
Annette Mahon, Nancy Cohen, Cynthia Thomason
Here are my notes, keeping in mind this is what I heard and my interpretation.
Panelists:
Lou Aronica, Publisher, The Story Plant
Donna Hayes, Publisher and CEO, Harlequin Enterprises
Al Zuckerman, Literary Agent and Founder of Writers House
Carolyn Pittis, Senior VP, Global Author Services, HarperCollins
Heather Graham, NYT Bestselling Author
Alan Kaufman, Literary Attorney
Loriana Sacilotto, Executive VP, Editorial & Global Strategy, Harlequin Enterprises
Angela James, Executive Editor, Carina Press
“Publishers are moving toward digital publishing because consumers want it.” Ereaders will be hot over the holidays.
A digital world offers no returns, no print production, and a different distribution avenue. It’s a very big opportunity for writers and publishers. Genre readers have adapted to the technology faster than others.
Neilsen Bookscan (if I got this right) reported $40.6 million eBook sales in one month. The Kindle is responsible for this explosion.
The competition, i.e. B&N, Borders, Amazon, and Google, are growing awareness of this product. What will really shake things up will be Smartphones. This is the next big opportunity. People who don’t own dedicated eReaders will have global Smartphones. Even eReaders may disappear in favor of these devices. The deciding factor is how long brick and mortar stores stay open.
See this article “Verizon Wireless Brings Kindle Experience to Android Smartphones and Other Devices” at http://bit.ly/9LypQG
Lou: He doesn’t distinguish between print or eBook writers and publishing houses re prestige. Readers want interaction with writers. You must connect in some significant way with your readers. The only way you can stand out from the pack is to market yourself, no matter the publisher or the format.
Regarding whether you should self-publish or go with an epub, Lou reminds you that epubs can manage the different streams of income. Convenience is a major factor to going with an epub for now. If eBook sales equivocate to print sales, perhaps these epubs should begin offering advances.
Print publishers have to set up a new infrastructure while maintaining their legacy print operation, but there may be casualties as their margins are very small.
Angela: Digital first authors may choose to go with an epub because they want to write something different or they want to start out in a smaller market. It doesn’t mean they’ve been rejected by the major houses as many perceive it.
“You don’t want to just publish a book. You want a career.” Authors are small business owners and have to market themselves.
Carolyn: How do pubs and authors collaborate together as partners in a new business model to sell more books? The major houses have to figure out how to reduce costs on the print side while increasing their investment in digital. Readers care about what reviewers think and what their own friends like. They care about a good story. She believes too much technology (i.e. enhanced eBooks) may interfere with this experience, at least for fiction. It might work better for nonfiction.
Alan believes things may look similar in five years if the general trade publishers acquire the eBook publishing houses. Then those pubs may in turn be acquired by Google.
“Publishers act as gatekeepers. This is their most important function. If they aren’t around to do that, who knows what’ll be out there?”
Harlequin is already ahead of the game because it has Carina Press. Angela says other issues like DRM and pricing will change the landscape.
Other issues mentioned in the panel were consumer pricing and the strong trend toward price reduction, demographics and the behavior of younger readers and their purchasing habits, and the foreign market which is hungry for content.
Coming next: Digital Rights
I’m guest blogging today over at Fresh Fiction on Creating Memorable Villains. Please check out my post and leave a comment: http://freshfiction.com/page.php?id=2864
Judy Fitzwater and Edie ClaireTraci Hall, Sally Schoeneweiss, Kathleen Pickering
“Brainstorming on the Beach” Conference with Novelists, Inc.
Contracts and Copyrights
Panelists:
David Forrer, Literary Agent
Alan Kaufman, Literary Attorney
Carly Phillips, NYT Bestselling Author
Deb Werksman, Editorial Manager, Sourcebooks
Donna Hayes, Publisher and CEO, Harlequin Enterprises
Chris Kenneally, Copyright Clearance Center
Al Zuckerman, Literary Agent and Founder of Writers House
Brenda Hiatt, Author
Here are my notes, keeping in mind this is what I heard and my interpretation.
Ad revenues surrounding e-books will increase. For example, books will be sold on Google with ads surrounding them. This will be new revenue to the publishers, and authors should share in it. Publishers have to staff up their royalty departments.
Regarding reserves against returns, one panelist believes they should not continue beyond two royalty periods. A book having ongoing sales a year or more after it was published should not have reserves held back. Another agent agreed that if there are ongoing sales above the advance, there should no longer be reserves.
Editors defended their reserves policies. One editor said backlist books are out there for a long time. 50% sell-through is considered a success in mass-market, but there are still going to be returns. Trade paperbacks can be returned at any time.
Regarding piracy, is it cannibalizing book sales, or would those readers not have bought the book anyway? One way to combat piracy is through education. Mention it in your blogs and on your website. You should let people know, those who feel entitled to getting whatever they want off the Internet, that information is valuable and it is not free. Another solution is to write to the advertisers on pirate sites and alert them to violations.
One panelist said she thinks the used book marketplace as we know it will go away. If publishers price eBooks reasonably, legitimate readers will buy them.
What about the issue of returns? Why are we still doing them at all? Because booksellers won’t stock the books otherwise. There have been attempts to launch imprints without returns, but the experiments failed. Booksellers demand return policies. There have even been eBook returns when a customer clicks on the wrong book or downloads the wrong format.
Reversion of rights and the definition of a book being in print entered the conversation. We should try to restrict this clause to trade editions, English-language editions, or a dollar amount like $250 sold over two royalty periods. You could also try to narrow this clause by saying the book is considered to be in print if 300 copies are sold electronically within two royalty periods. Publishers want to hold onto your rights and they will do so forever because of the clause “in any form whatsoever” as defining a book in print.
A similar phrase to watch out for is when a book is considered to be in print “in any format now or yet to be invented.” This is a sticky issue today as publishers are trying to grab whatever rights they can. “They have a huge challenge coming up and are running scared.”
According to one panelist, the most important rights to keep are your foreign and film rights. Try for a movie bonus in your contract, i.e. you get extra money if your book is optioned. Try to get an audio rights reversion clause for six months or later so if the publisher does not exercise these subrights within the specified amount of time, the audio rights revert to the author. 50% of net is a good deal for audio rights.
Also try for a Look Back clause regarding eBook royalties. For example, after three years, you can renegotiate your royalty rate.
The advantage of digital first pubs: no advance but a higher royalty rate. The size of the eBook market is equivalent to 67% of mass-market sales or 55% of hardcover sales. The Book Industry Study Group is looking to measure data but Walmart, for example, doesn’t report to them.
Copyright will be more important than anything in the future.
Some publishers are sticking a morals clause in contracts now. This means the publisher can cancel the contract if the author behaves in an immoral manner. Try to cross this one out.
And a final quote: “If you’re confused, you’re beginning to understand the problem.”
“Brainstorming on the Beach” Conference with Novelists, Inc. 2010
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
We checked in for the Novelists, Inc. conference at Tradewinds Resort in St. Pete Beach. In the lobby, I met authors Cynthia Thomason, Brenda Hiatt Barber, Thea Devine, Ruth Glick, Judy Fitzwater, Barbara Keiler, Annette Mahon, Patricia Rosemoor, and Mary Stella. It’s great seeing people I haven’t met up with in a while and meeting new friends, especially folks I’ve only seen online. It’s always good to match a face with a name.
Consisting of multiple buildings, the Island Grand portion of the Tradewinds Resort occupies several acres and includes beachfront property, numerous pools, picturesque footbridges over meandering canals, swans, plus several restaurants and bars. We went over to a tiki hut our first day. I had a Trade Winds Sunrise, a mixed rum drink, and hubbie and I split a potato skins appetizer. We ate dinner later in Beef O’Grady’s sports bar, a noisy venue with a reasonably priced menu. We watched the spectacular sunset over the water as the blazing tangerine orb sank into the horizon.
One of many pools
We had a standard suite, with a comfortable sitting area and a mini-kitchen separated from the bedroom and bathroom by a regular door. There are old-fashioned TVs in each room. Shampoo, lotion, bar soap, conditioner are supplied. There’s a coffeemaker in the kitchen with packaged supplies. The staff are all very courteous throughout the place. Guests can get Starbucks coffee at a bar in the main lobby beginning at 6am. Breakfast in the Bermudas dining room opens at 7am. My single complaint is that the soundproofing could be better in the rooms. I could hear outside noise through the doors/windows. Otherwise, it’s a lovely resort with many facilities and activities throughout the property.
