Selling foreign book rights

What authors need to know september 21, 2014 february 15, 2017 rachel rueben last week, i discussed how to get your selfpublished book translated using various techniques from hiring contractors to using a royalty splitting website. You must comply with all federal, state, and local laws and amazon policies applicable to your products and product listings. How dropcap sells foreign language rights dropcap rights agency. Aug 02, 2016 elliott talked about the three major advantages of selling in foreign markets. How dropcap sells foreign language rights dropcap rights.

Hungary for hungarian rights, ukcommonwealth for a uk publisher buying from a canadian publisher, etc. Literary, subsidiary, and foreign rights agents this word document includes more than 1,375 literary agents, including 375 agents that sell foreign rights and another 50 or so that handle subsidiary rights sales. Place your book in front of thousands of international book right buyers and grow your income streams. My first foreign rights sales occurred as a result of book expo america, where for a small fee, the book was displayed in a coop booth. How authors sell publishing rights with orna ross the. If an agent believes money can be made from your book, he or she will work for you on a commission basis, usually 20% of advances and subsequent royalties in foreign markets. But until recently, other foreign markets havent really seen much growth in these areas.

Sell foreign book publishing rights online by pubmatch issuu. Sep 21, 2014 selling your foreign licensing rights. While selling foreign rights for books directly into the english language, france, germany, italy, the netherlands, portugal, and scandinavia, we are supported by a solid network of awesome coagents in the following languages and territories. Jan 23, 2014 for several years now, we have seen the rise of ebooks and online print book sales in the us, followed by the uk, canada, australia and a few other markets. Content must be relevant to appeal to foreign publishers and agents. Once youve written a book, there are many ways you can deliver it to the world. Bookventures international book rights is a specialty marketing service that will help you sell your book rights to foreign publishers by showcasing it in international book exhibits and making it. There is a growing interest in selling educational book rights as many countries realize the ever growing needs of children. Selling the foreign rights can be a lucrative business. Dec 16, 2018 whoever your book publisherwhether a traditional publisher or a selfpublishing servicethe book contract you sign with them should cover the amount of the book rights sale proceeds that you, the author, would be entitled to if the publisher is successful in selling the film, translation or any other rights. The big traditional publishers often promote their books by highlighting the number of languages the books has been translated into. Now, say an agent just sold this book rocks to a publisher for world english rights. Writing right american society of authors and writers. The advance is usually deducted from future royalties.

Selling foreign rights abroad bookends literary agency. While you must be wildly successful to sell merchandising or franchise rights, even a little success can go a long way when pitching foreign rights or language rights. These book fairs are essential for publishers and agents foreign rights business. Many authors have found that selling foreign rights to their book is a nifty way to diversify and expand revenue, often with little upfront cost. At dropcap, we rely on two powerful tools to sell our publishers books to global rights buyers. Outline your sales to date and any other rights sales, such as audio, ebook or screenplay rights. Usually specialist rights sales staff within publishing houses they will have detailed and direct knowledge of their own publications subagents may also represent titles from major foreign trade publishers, but they will be handling rights in books from many different publishers. Selling the film rights increases the chances of a bookthat might not have been picked up otherwisegetting picked up in a foreign translation deal. Although the book didnt take book expo by storm as i somehow thought it would it received interest from and i sold translation.

Mar 16, 2017 in this scenario, once the book is sold, the agency is out of the picture in terms of foreign rights. Foreign book rights, creating a books series, and selling out. There are a few avenues for authors to sell foreign rights. This policy provides an overview of intellectual property ip rights and some common ip concerns that might arise when selling on amazon. Authors who have retained translation rights for their books may submit their book to a foreign rights agent or publishers may commission a foreign rights agent to represent the publishers catalog, or collection of titles. For several years now, we have seen the rise of ebooks and online print book sales in the us, followed by the uk, canada, australia and a few other markets. Im excited about foreign rights exploitation in 2014 and beyond, both through selfpublishing and signing specific territory deals. If you think your title has potential for overseas distribution, here are some things to remember. Find the network of international publishers, authors. Buying book rights growing the list of books you publish goes a long way in generating revenue. My books have now been published in 29 countries in 22 languages as a result of my efforts in selling foreign book rights. It shows writers the best ways to reach decisionmakers in various industries, what these rightsbuyers are looking for, and what to expect in negotiating a license or sale of rights. Publishers would sell more foreign rights if they just took the.

How to get a publisher to publish a book overseas career trend. Selling foreign rights around the world independent publisher. Intellectual property policy for sellers amazon seller central. And, of course, if the project makes it to the screen, it can really positively affect book sales, which is the goal of every author and publisher. The money is, of course, split 5050 with the author, if youre talking about us publishers and books.

In addition, we have had great success in selling rights of fiction and nonfiction books in asia, the middle east, and europe to name a few. Written by an international foreign rights expert, this useful book provides the information you need so your book can be translated or sold into additional english language markets. Dec 16, 2015 while you must be wildly successful to sell merchandising or franchise rights, even a little success can go a long way when pitching foreign rights or language rights. Get an agent to sell your rights to foreign publishers who will translate and sell your book. Mar 07, 2016 today i talk to orna ross about how authors sell publishing rights. In this scenario, once the book is sold, the agency is out of the picture in terms of foreign rights. Sometimes, a publisher has a strong presence in all the major english language markets, and it makes sense to sell world english. Selling foreign rights it is easier than you think. Sometimes, an offer is made that is so high that it makes sense to sell british and translation rights. They work on commission, so will be seeking the best deals.

Foreign rights the world is our market with more than 60 years of combined experience in the trade, trident media groups foreign rights department routinely leads the industry in sales of both fiction and nonfiction abroad. If your book has sold only ten copies in its home market, foreign publishers will see it as much riskier than if your book has sold 2,000 copies. Meetings are arranged with acquisitions editors at publishing houses, at which new projects are pitched, and new potential publisher customers can be discovered. Selling foreign rights of your book can provide you with a new revenue stream, putting local versions of your title into the hands of readers all around the world. If youre selling into india or china or another pirate haven dont. An indie authors guide to selling foreign rights lifetree. Foreign rights agents generally receive books for representation in one of two ways. For foreign rights sales, see my list of literary, foreign, and sub rights agents. The first is allison olson, who in the course of her career has sold the rights to more than 6,000 titles in 180 languages. Nov 18, 2015 the big traditional publishers often promote their books by highlighting the number of languages the books has been translated into. The idea of selling all territorial rights to a publisher is a good one in some cases. This report also includes a sample foreign distribution contract. In december 2011, 65 million copies of the series had been sold worldwide. Apr 15, 2020 in this interview, hal elrod and chandler bolt talk about how hal turned his book the miracle morning into a series.

Aimed at authors, publishers, foreign rights managers, literary agents, and even those aspiring to enter the foreign rights field, foreign rights and wrongs goes beyond just describing the dos and donts of selling or buying rights by providing possible contacts, checklists, worksheets, selfquizzes, and informative examples to facilitate. Most experienced publishing professionals will tell you that you should never ever sign over all your books licensing rights. In this interview, hal elrod and chandler bolt talk about how hal turned his book the miracle morning into a series. The territory tends to be the place of origin for the publisher making the offer.

Oct 03, 2017 selling foreign rights of your book can provide you with a new revenue stream, putting local versions of your title into the hands of readers all around the world. He also talked about pitfalls to avoid when negotiating foreign publishing rights contracts. If you have licensed your foreign rights to a publisher, the publisher usually markets your foreign rights through a foreign agent or at international book fairs e. This practical stepbystep guide shows you everything you need to know about selling or buying foreign rights. This means the agent can sell the rights in any other language except englishwhereas the publisher can sell the english rights anywhere in the world.

Write a sales pitch email for your book directed at foreign rights agents. Book publishers often offer the author an advance, which is an amount of money. Jan 10, 2014 the idea of selling all territorial rights to a publisher is a good one in some cases. The more general a book is in scope, the more potential for international rights sales. Selling your books internationally jane friedman when it comes to selling your work overseas, there are two channels. Elliott talked about the three major advantages of selling in foreign markets. Foreign rights in publishing explained 2 seas agency. In this article, we look at how to a book, including some of the rights to his work that an author can sell to a publisher. Mar 19, 20 book fairs are about selling foreign rights. Part of your sales package is a list of the subsidiary rights you have sold. How much money do publishers generally get for selling the. Bookventures international book rights is a specialty marketing service that will help you sell your book rights to foreign publishers by showcasing it in international book exhibits and making it available on a digital selling platform.

Celeste fine, senior vice president and director of subsidiary rights at folio, says. There are several reasons to sell foreign, or translation, rights of your book into other languages. Fortunately, the frankfurt book faire is coming october 48, 2006. Place your book in front of s of international book right buyers, selling the foreign rights to your books can be a lucrative business. We have sold foreign rights to thousands of publishers in over two dozen countries. This is the largest book fair in the world for buying and selling foreign rights and establishing partnerships. Foreign rights trident media group literary agency. How to find the right international markets for your book.

With the goal of making a difference and helping bring peace into relationships, i decided to try selling the book in other countries. Authors, pro tips on how to sell the rights to your book. This report also includes a sample foreign rights contract. Jun 25, 2019 selling the film rights increases the chances of a bookthat might not have been picked up otherwisegetting picked up in a foreign translation deal. Get lots of agents to sell your rights to foreign publishers who will translate and sell your book. Although the book didnt take book expo by storm as i somehow thought it would it received interest from and i sold translation rights to publishers in mexico, poland and nigeria.

By having your book translated into other languages, more people will benefit from your message, you will gain a new profit center and the sale counts as an endorsement. With the global publishing marketplace easier to access than ever, selfpublished authors are selling foreign rights to grow their audience around the world and promote the number of foreign rights sales to increase sales at home just like the big publishers. How does one sell rights in the international marketplace. Since im in the uk, lets assume youve sold your book to a uk publisher, but it works in much the same way anywhere. Coagents selling foreign rights for books 2 seas agency. May 31, 2015 most experienced publishing professionals will tell you that you should never ever sign over all your books licensing rights. Over the years i have negotiated over 111 book deals with foreign publishers without using a north american foreign rights agent. Today i talk to orna ross about how authors sell publishing rights. It shows writers the best ways to reach decisionmakers in various industries, what these rightsbuyers are looking for. Foreign languageterritory rights are publication rights for a book in another language andor geographic territory. Let your book go beyond geographic boundaries and make it a global phenomenon. Keep in mind that some of this may differ if you are self.

How to buy the rights to a book with pictures wikihow. Violating this policy may result in loss of selling. Whoever your book publisherwhether a traditional publisher or a selfpublishing servicethe book contract you sign with them should cover the amount of the book rights sale proceeds that you, the author, would be entitled to if the publisher. How authors sell publishing rights, from the alliance of independent authors alli, helps authors navigate todays complex rights marketplace. Selling foreign language rights for your book with elliott. Since im in the uk, lets assume youve sold your book to a uk. It requires preparation and planning for a publisher to meet, negotiate and execute a deal at the frankfurt book faire. Jan 30, 2011 celeste fine, senior vice president and director of subsidiary rights at folio, says.