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Karen MacLeod

Editing Contracts: The Good and the Bad of Them

This column was inspired by one of the WVU members who contacted me, about a tentative contract she was offered, to edit for an electronic publisher. With Jane's (her name has been changed at her request) permission, I am sharing our correspondence, and contracts. Contract #1 is a very restrictive contract, and I made changes to it, to make it more favorable to an editor. The publisher did not agree to the changes, so I never joined the ranks of that particular publishing firm.

I hope you find the correspondence and contracts informative.

Hi Karen,

I am a fellow WVU member and Margaret from T-Zero suggested that I contact you for some information.

I have been offered an editing job with a brand new e-publishing house. I was skeptical of the job offer when I received it because they made the offer based on only a cover letter and resume that I sent. (and although I worked hard to highlight my writing and editorial skills-I do not have any professional editing experience to include.) No one else ever contacted me for more information.

The other thing that raised a red flag for me was that I would be paid entirely by royalty. Five percent of any downloaded book sales. I would be assigned projects by the publisher with no opportunity to select what I thought might sell well. I would only be able to reject a manuscript after reading five full chapters and then writing a report as to why I wouldn't accept it. Apparently the first chapters of the manuscripts will be prescreened by the someone else before they are assigned to an editor.

This seemed like it could mean a lot of work for what could likely be very little or even no compensation.

My questions are:
How are editors usually paid? Is it often by royalty only or is there usually a base pay too? Is there widespread variation in this? Is the e-publishing industry substantially different? Are editors usually allowed to choose their own projects if they are to be paid by royalty?

I hope you don't mind that I have contacted you. If it is an intrusion then please accept my apologies.

Thank you.
Jane

Karen's first reply:

Hi,

Good to hear from you.

I don't know how much of my experience is helpful to you, but my work with a certain e-publisher. pays a 5% royalty. I'd love to use our correspondence for a future column in T-Zero with your permission.

My experience in editing was fan based. Take a look at my page on Simegen.com 
Go to: http://www.simegen.com/bios/
Click on the tab marked STAFF.
Then click on the one for me... Karen L. MacLeod

You have to start somewhere to get experience. A good e-book contract may be a foot in the door, for something better. I have a similar contract to that you mention, which I will attach here. I will also send a BAD editorial contract I was offered - which should have been changed (it has red wording of the proposed changes) but the publisher didn't make changes. Needless to say I didn't take that contract.

You are not going to make a living this way -- not at first. What you will get is experience, which could lead to better things. I now do freelance edit, and sometimes make good money at it. Your payments from the e-publisher will be very small. However, there is one thing my e-publisher gave me, which I did not ask for, nor is it in the contract. My name as editor appears on the copyright page of each book I've done. That helps cement my reputation as an editor. Perhaps you can ask for something similar.

In my case, the publisher selects the manuscripts they give me to edit. They do ask if I am interested in the genre offered. If I don't want that particular manuscript, I am under no obligation to take it. However, a good editor tends to edit any project handed them.

I've not been an acquisitions editor - which sounds something like what you have been asked to do. Select the books they may publish and critique why you would or would not choose them based on the few chapters you have read.

If you feel you have the time to do the work the publisher has asked of you, not for personal gain, but for possible credentials, which may help in the future, then consider the offer. Each publishing house will have its own standards and offers for you.

I hope this has been helpful. As a freelance editor, there are certain ranges of payment you can ask for your work. A flat rate for a certain number of edits works for me. In that way, you get paid without royalties. Usually an individual author contracts for editing before submitting their manuscript to a publisher. That's the type of freelance editing I am familiar with.

Your query is not an intrusion. If any advice I provide is helpful, I'd like to know about it. Please keep in touch if you like. E-publishers are just beginning. Some may thrive, some may fold (and some have folded). I took my position to gather more credentials. I feel it has been a benefit to me, though not financially. I can not speak for your life, or what you are looking for. It may not be for you.

I wish you good luck in your future plans. If I have not answered a question you have posed, or wish more information, please ask me for more help.

Yours,
Karen MacLeod

Here's the next in the series of letters we exchanged. The contract and reply Jane refers to is numbered Contract #2

Dear Karen,

(-Jane)
Thank you so much for your speedy and candid reply to my email. The information, advice, and sample contracts are very helpful to me. If you can use this correspondence to help others learn more about the industry, it is fine with me. I'd love to have the chance to see it before its published.

(Karen)
What's funny is I was thinking of my next column being on potential contracts... I'm hoping they will let me do it -- of course, removing the names of the publishing houses and representatives. I'll gladly show you what I'd use, and how I would present it. Perhaps you can suggest to Margaret that such insight has been helpful, and others may benefit from it. It is getting difficult to come up with new ideas each month that are somewhat informative. I'm not even sure whom at T-zero I should ask about this potential column.

(-Jane)
I thought you might find the message with the job offer itself and the contract useful to your article, so I've included it as an attachment. (I copied both the original message and the contract plus my reply into a single Word document).

(Karen)
I think your message is properly worded, and quite professional. Do let me know if you get a response, and what that response is. Its interesting to see that some of these e-publishers have a handle on what contracts may contain, and others don't. Some may "not even have a clue."

(-Jane)
I've also included my questions that I'm thinking about sending as a reply. After a quick review of the contracts that you supplied to me, I've realized that the one that I've been offered is extremely vague and unprofessional.

(Karen)
Let them know which sections seem unclear to you. It actually isn't a bad contract, but could use some clarifications. The part of you critiquing a manuscript for them sounds, as I said before, like an acquisitions editor. With my e-publisher, they have a senior editor, to whom I report. She and the owner of the company have selected the manuscripts prior to having them given to an editor.

As you see by the contract, with all the "red pencil" much should be changed there. Make suggestions, as I did, but don't expect the publisher to like what you offer. The "red pencil" suggestions were actually those of Jean Lorrah, professional author, who has signed and read many a contract. I very much appreciate the input of Jacqueline Lichtenberg and Jean Lorrah in helping me get ahead. I return that favor, by sharing my knowledge with you and others.

You may also want to check out the interview with Sharon Jarvis, who is now an independent publisher. She was an editor for Doubleday back in the 1970's and 80's. She has much experience I lack. http://www.simegen.com/writers/spotlights/nonfiction/1101/sjarvis.html

As an up and coming author, you may also be interested in the WorldCrafters Guild writing school at Simegen.com. Right now, there are no active classes, but much has been converted to self-study. The school is undergoing a re-vamping right now, with a new page look, and better, improved content before we begin new classes. The Editing Circle still operates, and you'd get feedback and help if you ask for it. There is no charge for the school, and its all online. http://www.simegen.com/school/

(-Jane)
I've always been interested in editing and one part of me is willing to give this a try, even though all of my "its a waste of time" alarms are ringing loud and clear. My more rational side says, "don't do it! Focus on your own writing career and stay out of situations that won't benefit you."

(Karen)
Smile. A good author has to learn to edit. Self editing is an important skill, and NO ONE can be more critical of your own work than yourself. I started with my amateur editing back in 1976, which has brought me to where I am now. For all those many years, Jacqueline Lichtenberg and Jean Lorrah have urged me to write for their Sime~Gen universe, and I've essentially refused. I am helping on a Concordance of their material for that universe. It has pleased them no end that I have earned my writing credentials by doing the column for T-zero! So, I'm "A published author" whether I wish to admit it or not.

Some publishing houses don't even offer editing these days. Being able to tighten up your manuscript and make it as clear and concise as possible is a wonderful skill.

(-Jane)
If you have any more input on this I'd love to hear it.
Thank you again for your help. Its good to get an insider's view in order to make my decision.

(Karen)
I'm glad my comments may have been helpful. Let me know if I can do more for you.

Hi Karen,

(-Jane)
I sent an email to the editor last night with my questions and she responded immediately. (That was good I thought.) I'm forwarding her reply to you as I thought you might find it interesting. Of course if you have any opinions on any of this I'd love to hear them.

(Karen) Her answers seem reasonable to me. I'm including an e-book's title for you, which may be helpful. You might want to use this book for more guidance. The book is Surviving the Novel Experience: An Author's Handbook by A.A. Aguirre and K.G. McAbee (NovelBooks, Inc.) Available at the NovelBooks website, or through other booksellers, as paperback or electronic versions.

(-Jane)
Thanks again for your help, Karen. Its been invaluable to me.


I did not include the publisher's reply as Jane mentioned, since that type of information is usually specific per publishing house. It is comforting to know that the publisher did take the time to reply to Jane, in a respectful, and what I considered, complete manner.

Contract #3 is also similar to Contract #2, and that I am including for more information.


Hi Karen,

Once again, thank you for being willing to share this information with me. It has validated my hunch that that this would really only be for the experience and to add a "credential" to my resume.

I'm still undecided about whether to take on this job or not. My husband is encouraging me not to and to focus on my own writing. (Also we have a lot of chaos and unknowns pending in our lives right now and he thinks adding another responsibility would be foolish-but he always supports whatever I decide.) Right now I'm about 75/25-against doing it.

Your advice and help has been a true gift. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to reciprocate.

-Jane

Smile.
You're reciprocated by allowing me to use our "discussion" in a future column.

You still may want that credential one of these days.

As soon as Jacqueline Lichtenberg's books are re-released, my credentials increase, as I just re-edited 12 of her various novels. All of them I did in the 1980's as part of her fan proofreading team (and never got editorial credit). Over the next few years, all will be reissued by new publishers, and then added to my resume under my name.

Oh, for that, since I'm Sime~Gen, Inc.'s "Editorial Consultant" I did get paid on a different basis than the e-publisher's contract. Then again, I've learned my editing trade from Jacqueline, Sharon Jarvis and others, so I "owed" them something.

Whatever you decide, and I know how "life" gets in the way, I wish you well in your projects.

Let me know if I can help further.

Karen


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