By Edward Nawotka
In our lead story today, author and marketer M.J. Rose and publisher Robert Miller debate the future of what the publisher/author relationship. Both come at the topic from different angles, but they both agree that advances, as they exist today, need to change. Rose wants marketing expenses undertaken by the publisher to be deducted from the sum that must be earned out before royalties are paid; Miller believes that authors don’t necessarily need advances but in return, should be entitled to a bigger cut of the profits.
So, the question is: What is the future of the book advance? If the advance goes away — or is significantly reduced — how will it affect the literary landscape? What are the implications for industry? For authors?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below or via Twitter using hashtag #ppbonus.
One Comment
I tend to lean more to Miller’s view on the future of author advances. We need to have publisher and author working together, rather than the author feeling isolated from the publisher’s marketing machine.
I have a lot of time for MJ Rose’s take on the publishing industry, but I think he is barking up the wrong tree here. Extracting marketing expenditure on a book release from the author’s advance seems only relevant to mid and top-listed authors. For most authors, their advance is so modest–rarely amounting to an annual wage–an advance minus marketing expenses would result in virtually no advance at all. I don’t think it is viable for most authors, and if anything, would have an adverse effect, with agents and authors at the bottom end following their bestselling cousins by looking for hugely inflated amounts. And that’s not where we need to be going right now.
Miller nails it more on the head. He at least recognizes many authors are getting involved in publicity and marketing of their titles like never before. And that should not go unrewarded by way of an increased royalty share.