Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1911-07-15
The Evening Star 5 Weekly Review Of Books
The Tennessee Shad" a Joyous Story Of Schoolboy Lite.
The Remuneration Of the Novelist.

in bringing about the dangerous
maniac's death.
90
WHAT DOES THE NOVELIST GETS
To dispose Of this briefly, one mignt
say from $40 to 100000.
He may sell his book outright. Ships
that Pass in the Night" by Beatrice
H~arradan-a book that sold widely
some few years ago-is said to nave
been sold by the author to the pub
Usher for only $500 outright.
= Frequently, l am told, It Is quite
usual for a publishing house to puy a
book outright for $3.50, $500 or $l,ooo. IL
the book sells we'll the author IS out,
the publisher is in. II the book DOM
sell the publisher is out. we neal
more of the misfortunes OF the au-
thors than we do of the misfortunes OF
the publishers.
1t is well to say for the publisher
that he is a good loser. The author.
on the contrary, is liable to get up on
his hind legs and how.
Go
However. without taking any partic-
ular case, or referring either to HI
ClStOll Vi aiy Pal
house or the pay of any author. it may
be said that it is quite the usual thing
for an author to get a royalty. The
royalty is rarely less than 10 per cent.
This is considered a small royalty, but
II lis frequently paid, and, in some
cases, the publisher who pays small
royalties is apt to spend what ne
doesn't pay the author on advertising.
In n case of a successful author tue
publishers usually pay an dvanc
This may be $500, 81, 900, $4,000 or $40
coo. This advance is an advance on
royalties. After it is paid the author
usually has to wait for more until his
earned royalties have equalled that
amount. Sometimes the book never
earns more than the advance. Some-
times it doesn't earn SO much.
Go
Ten per cent. on each book usually
means 10 per cent. on the retail trade
price. The retail trade price being
$50 would make the authors royalty
fifteen cents on each book. An estao-
lished' author frequently n usually
gets more thar that-say twenty
two and one-half, twenty-five, thirty
cents a DOCK. vi, We Will SoS' 81
per book on the first 10000, so much
on the next 10, 900 books. Then a differ
ent arrangement would be made for the
foreign rights. =
1t is said that Marie Corelli gets the
biggest royalty of any author-they say
she is paid fifty-one cents a book Tor
her works.
To AXE a concrete case-not based on
any actual author-suppose an author
was paid twenty cents a book for the
first ten thousand books. If his book
sold $1,000 he. gets $4,000. Say he gets
thirty cents Abook on all over 10000
and his book sells t, 10000. That nets
him $4,000 over all.
There are tricks about 1t, too. The
first trick is to write the book, next to
get somebody to publish It, and third
possibly the biggest trick OF alto
make 1t sell to 10000.
But the publishers, bless them, are
there with the cash. That's why
publishers don't get enormously rich.
They are always drawing checks.
Co
BOOKS RECEIVED.
Cynthia of the Minute" by o
Joseph Vance. Dodd, Mead & Co, N.
Y; $1.25 net.
Autobiography of Richard Wagner
two volumes. Dodd, Mead & Co., N. z;
$3.50 net.
1.-THE Claw" by Cynthia Stockley, q.
P. Putnam's Sons. N. T.: $1.S5 net.