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The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Career » Page 16

Career

Your Money is Your Business or Keep a Lid on How Much Money You Make

By Steve Laubeon March 5, 2018
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I think it is a huge mistake to reveal how much money you make as an author. The details of your royalty advance on your latest deal should not be shared with other authors. It is similar to finding out the salary of the co-worker in the office cubicle next to yours. When I was a retail store manager we had major problems when salaries were discovered…I had to stop a near fist-fight between two people who had been friends.

Money Can be a Measure of Worth

Money is viewed by many as a measure of worth; i.e. a measure of the worthiness of your work. Consequently if you contract for a $5,000 advance with AlphaGammaDelta publisher and a month later, your best writing friend, who is at the same stage in her career as you are, contracts for a $8,000 advance with the same publisher for a similar project…what is your reaction? Sure, at first, it is excitement and joy for your friend. But later, in private, you will naturally begin to wonder about your publisher’s commitment to you. You think, “They must like Sally better than me!” Jealousy and bitterness can set in.

I’m not saying that this will happen to you, but I caution you with every ounce of my being, be very careful about ever revealing monetary details of a book contract with anyone. It can become a form of gossip that does no one any good. I know of an e-mail trail among authors that was very free with this kind of information and consequently there was tension towards a particular publisher for not paying everyone the same. This is unreasonable and unfair…and doesn’t help anyone.

Over the years I’ve seen a few thousand book contracts. Those deals have landed all over the board. The timing of a publisher’s economic situation and certain management directives can change quarterly (even weekly!). The relationship the author has with the publisher, the relationship the agent has with the publisher, the perception of value that the publisher has of a project… They all influence each situation uniquely.

But we tend to compare contracts as if all contracts are equal. Trust me, they are not.

Also be aware that some contracts have a non-disclosure clause in them for this very reason.

A Major Blunder in Etiquette

Years ago I was sharing the stage with a number of faculty at a writers conference for a panel Q&A. One author took the microphone and, without thinking, blurted out the amount of money they were paid on their last contract. There was an uncomfortable silence in the room since no one really knew how to react.

Afterwards an editor turned to me and said, “I never want to work with that author. There’s no filter nor is there any common sense.”

I Just Want to Help Others Know 

As far as sharing your successes as an Indie author? Again, be careful. You may want to help others succeed like you have. That is admirable. But at least limit your information to things other than your income.  Sharing what you spent on editorial, production, cover design, and marketing can be helpful for comparison. But declaring that you made a million dollars last month might not be the right message for your audience.

How Am I Supposed to Know What’s Normal?

One cannot analyze or compare their own income, contract, advances, or royalties with absolute accuracy. Recently I was asked, “What does the average author make in a year?” Instead of answering I asked in return, “What do you think?” They responded, “$45,000 per year?” I had to blink a few times and said, “That might be an average if you include a number of bestselling authors in the formula. But that also means there are a lot of others who would have to drop a zero from that number (down to $4,500) to create an average of $45,000.” I then told the story of a writer who had a day job unrelated to writing but wrote 10 published books by getting up at 5am every morning to write for two hours…and then helped the kids get ready for school and then went to work. For that writer, the books were a supplement to his income, not the primary source.

One author may get a one time deal for $15,000, but never write another book. Another author may write one book every two years, with each getting a $5,000 advance, but also publishes 30 paid articles a year. A third author may write a novel once every five years and nothing in-between, but their advance for their novel is $100,000. A fourth author may be prolific and publish eight novels a year, four with a traditional publisher and four as an Indie author…with an annual combined income of $60,000. Which one is normal?

You see the problem? There isn’t a straight answer to the question of what is normal when it comes to a writer’s income. Your agent is the best source of information. The agent knows what is typical in a situation and whether your deal is a good one or not.

Meanwhile, the Bottom Line is to keep your bottom line to yourself and be content with it being normal for you.

 

 

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Category: Book Business, Career, Communication, MoneyTag: Book Business, Contracts, Facebook, Gossip, Money, rumors

Should I Blog My Book?

By Bob Hostetleron February 28, 2018
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Everyone has heard of bloggers who made it big with a book deal, right? Why shouldn’t the next one be you? I can think of a few reasons. A blog is not a book I know, it seems obvious (but I miss the Obvious Station often enough that I try to at least check there before boarding the Train of Thought). To choose just one example of the difference: blog posts are written for online reading, and tend …

Read moreShould I Blog My Book?
Category: Book Proposals, Career, Get Published, The Writing LifeTag: Blog, blog posts, Get Published, publishing

Why it’s Okay to Lose a Contest

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon December 14, 2017
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Any author who’s entered contests knows that they are difficult to win. The competition is more fierce than ever. For example, I just judged an ACFW competition and would have been happy to represent most of the authors whose work I reviewed. Entries get better every year. This is good news for readers while encouraging authors to fine tune their work. In the case of prestigious contests …

Read moreWhy it’s Okay to Lose a Contest
Category: Awards, Career, The Writing LifeTag: Awards, contests, The Writing Life

Evaluating the Contest Win

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon December 7, 2017
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Contests take time and money to enter. Are they worth it? For the Unpublished Author: A contest win shows that a set of judges believes this author possesses talent. When the unpublished author is seeking an agent or publisher, a contest win adds to the author’s credibility. Not only does it show potential, but the fact that the author is entering contests shows commitment to the profession. …

Read moreEvaluating the Contest Win
Category: CareerTag: Career, contests

The Curse of the Writer

By Steve Laubeon November 20, 2017
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Speaking from an agent's perspective...
I have more conversations with clients about their feelings of anxiety, apprehension or insecurity than almost any other topic. Almost every writer I have ever worked with as an editor or an agent severely doubts themselves at some point in the process.

Doubts occur in the midst of creation.
Doubts occur when the disappointing royalty statement …

Read moreThe Curse of the Writer
Category: Career, Encouragement, Faith, Inspiration, Reviews, The Writing LifeTag: Book Business, Doubt, Editors, Get Published, Pitching, Rejection, Writing Craft, Writing Life

Your First Writing Assignment

By Bob Hostetleron October 25, 2017
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If your writing doesn’t start with this practice, you’re cheating yourself. Lauren Winner, author of the wonderful memoirs, Girl Meets God and Mudhouse Sabbath,  tells about an experience she had when a writing student of hers showed her part of a memoir that was astounding, far better than this student’s usual writing. Winner asked the student what had transformed her writing over the course of …

Read moreYour First Writing Assignment
Category: Career, Faith, The Writing Life, TheologyTag: Faith, Prayer, The Writing Life

Be Published? or Be Read?

By Bob Hostetleron October 18, 2017
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Is your goal “being published” or “being read?” What pieces of writing and publishing advice do professional agents and editors wish would go away…forever? I asked that question of some of my friends in the industry (yes, I have friends, and most are much smarter than me). The last two weeks I have posted (here and here) some of their responses. But I’ve saved one more for last. One savvy, …

Read moreBe Published? or Be Read?
Category: Book Business, Book Sales, Career, Marketing, Platform, The Writing LifeTag: Book Business, Book Sales, Get Published, Marketing

You Gotta Know the Territory

By Bob Hostetleron September 27, 2017
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So you’re writing a book. In what genre? Don’t know? You must. My colleague, Dan Balow, recently wrote a valuable blog post (here) that touched on the many genre categories and sub-categories in today’s publishing world. You should read it—when you finish reading this, of course. “I don’t care about genre,” you may say. “I’m a writer, not an editor or publisher.” To which I say, “Tough.” If you’re …

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Category: Book Business, Book Proposals, Career, Genre

I Love Change, Especially For Someone Else

By Dan Balowon July 18, 2017
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Several decades ago, the British magazine, The Linguist printed a graphic with the phrase, “The strongest drive is not to Love or Hate; it is one person’s need to change another’s copy.” In the cartoon, the word “change” was crossed out and replaced first by amend, then by revise, alter, rewrite, chop to pieces, then back to “change.” I am not sure whether the cartoon necessarily struck a …

Read moreI Love Change, Especially For Someone Else
Category: Book Business, Career, Communication, Editing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Creativity, Editing, publishing

The Lies That Bind

By Karen Ballon May 10, 2017
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 Years ago at a writer’s conference I was confronted by a pastor who demanded to know why I promoted lies to God’s family. As you can imagine, I was somewhat taken aback at this accusation and asked the irate man to explain what he meant. “Those books you write. Those novels. They’re lies!” I pointed out that if I was lying by telling stories, then so was Christ seeing as He did the same with the …

Read moreThe Lies That Bind
Category: Career, The Writing Life, TheologyTag: Career, Faith, The Writing Life
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