I realize that publishers may claim that they have additional costs, such as for the inclusion of a CD-ROM, but such costs are included in the higher retail price of the book and should not, under any circumstances, be a justification for making the author pay for such costs through a reduced royalty rate or royalties. Revisions and revised editions. Given again the short shelf life of many of these books and the rapid pace by which technology advances, the publisher often has a clause that gives them to right, but not the obligation, to have the author create a revised edition or a revision to the original book. Presumably the publisher will exercise this right only if the original book is successful and yet the author is often not guaranteed the first right to write the revision or revised edition. And as a double whammy, the publisher can cause the author to revise the book or produce a revised edition under the same terms as in the original contract for the original book.
Success breeds no rewards to the writer.
And if the publisher exercises it right to bring in a new writer, the costs and royalties payable to the new writer may be deducted from the royalties due the original writer for revised editions, which royalties are often quite low to begin with. There are many other clauses in computer book contracts that may also impact directly upon the amount of money the author or authors receive as well as their liability to the publisher or to third parties. This article presents merely a sampling of such issues. These contracts may often be as complex as the software about which they deal and should be read very carefully by someone who knows as much about what the contract is about as the author knows what the book is about. This article is not intended as a substitute for legal advice.