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Topic: Work for Hire contracts
| Author | Message |
| HeatherSchwartz | Posted – 10/10/2007 3:49:09 PM | show profile Can anyone tell me: What is the opposite of a work for hire contract? I mean, I know what it is - that it's a better deal financially. But is there a succinct term for this "other" type of contract? Thanks! |
| writesonwater | Posted – 10/11/2007 12:17:36 AM | show profile Work for hire is not necessarily a better deal! I co-authored a book, work for hire. I get no royalties, I can't use the material anywhere else. How's that a better deal? With royalties and advance, at least you get the advance -- even if the royalties are iffy. With a work for hire (the book I did, anyway) I waited for money until the whole thing was done. Plus -- I knocked myself out doing an incredible job. I became the lead co-author because of this effort (feels good, looks good) instead of a contributing writer. However, not a nickel more for the efforts... That said, my beef with work for hire contracts is that you don't own the rights to what you write. So take it for what it is, do it if it furthers your goals. |
| eriksherman | Posted – 10/11/2007 8:59:52 AM | show profile | email poster The problem is that there isn't "two" types of contracts, but many, because as the owner of copyright (something you don't keep under WMFH), you can slice and dice the rights any way you want. You can let someone have print rights only, or add in some web rights, database, web archival, syndication, reprint, ability to make a derivative work (like a book or screenplay), make any of these rights exclusive or non-exclusive, provide some rights to some publishers in some geographic areas - it's a broad topic. The more you understand rights and copyright, and the better you negotiate, the more you may find that you can license more discriminatingly without cutting into your current revenue and preserve some possiblities of additiona sales and uses of your material. For example, I have a file on my WriterBiz blog site (http://www.eriksherman.com/WriterBiz/) with information on electronic rights. (It's under Writer Resources on the left.) Take time to learn as much as you can about this area, because it's vital to your business. ------ Free writer resources: http://www.eriksherman.com/WriterBiz |
| HeatherSchwartz | Posted – 10/16/2007 3:28:06 PM | show profile Thanks for your help, both of you. Actually, what I meant was that the "other" type of contract is better - not work for hire! Sorry for the confusion. I'm basically just trying to figure out how to approach a particular editor. I've done "work for hire" work for her, but I'd like to ask whether the company also uses writers as... Well, then I can't finish the sentence because I'm not sure how to phrase it. What I'd like to do is pitch my own idea to this editor and get a better contract for that project, with royalties and whatnot, for my work. Maybe there is no succinct way to say this. |
| westsidestory | Posted – 10/16/2007 3:44:57 PM | show profile Actually, I think it's called a "standard book contract." Most book publishers have them, although the trend, more and more, is to use a work for hire. |
| HeatherSchwartz | Posted – 10/17/2007 11:57:17 AM | show profile Oh, that helps a lot - thanks! At least now I have something to say and I can work from there. |
| writesonwater | Posted – 10/17/2007 1:59:01 PM | show profile The difference between work for hire and standard book contract: is it as simple as whose idea the book is? Most standard book contracts seem to start with a book proposal from a writer which leads to a standard book contract. Most work for hire seems to be signing up to do what they want. |
| westsidestory | Posted – 10/18/2007 10:12:18 AM | show profile No, it's not that simple. In the nonfiction area, it's very common for a publisher to think up the idea - say a variant on a successful theme - and then find an author to complete the book. The deal then may be a royalty deal -- or as I've said, the trend is towards work for hire. I've had both kinds of deals. Happy with both. One big difference is that work for hire usually guarantee a much larger sum - whether or not the book is a success. An advance on royalties is usually a smaller figure, and has to be "earned out" before any additional fees in the form of royalties will be paid. |
