Don't know if y'all know this, but my 'day job' is attorney, mostly family law, but I do some contract law as well. I've had some author-friends contact me who got really screwed by their publishers lately, so while THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE, when I come across blogs and stuff I find useful I'll post links to it here.
[*You want legal advice? Don't sign it. I sure as hell didn't... But, since many people do, here...*]
Here's an Attorney Checklist of options we're supposed to go over with the client (usually the publisher, not the author). It doesn't really explain in layman's terms what each item is, but it should give you a quick idea of what 'standard boilerplate' options exist for most contract attorneys? Okay ... boring stuff. Just download a copy of this for future reference and use it to drive your agent apeshit with questions the next time you rely on them to negotiate a contract for you.
Don't know if y'all know this, but my 'day job' is attorney, mostly family law, but I do some contract law as well. I've had some author-friends contact me who got really screwed by their publishers lately, so while THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE, when I come across blogs and stuff I find useful I'll post links to it here.
[*You want legal advice? Don't sign it. I sure as hell didn't... But, since many people do, here...*]
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Here's an Attorney Checklist of options we're supposed to go over with the client (usually the publisher, not the author). It doesn't really explain in layman's terms what each item is, but it should give you a quick idea of what 'standard boilerplate' options exist for most contract attorneys? Okay ... boring stuff. Just download a copy of this for future reference and use it to drive your agent apeshit with questions the next time you rely on them to negotiate a contract for you.
HERE: http://www.mbbp.com/resources/iptech/...
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More lawyer 'how to spot scams' crap.
HERE: http://www.wisbar.org/NewsPublication...
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Crap about signing a contract with an agent:
HERE: http://publishlawyer.com/the-agency-a...
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International Book Publishers Association laundry-list of book publishing issues:
HERE: http://www.ibpa-online.org/resources/...
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Here's some sample boilerplates by the Science Fiction Writers of America:
HERE: http://www.sfwa.org/category/informat...
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Okay ... hope y'all find this useful. NOT LEGAL ADVICE. And I'm not trolling for clients, so don't call me :-) This stuff is just helpful FYI.