Mary Rosenblum:  Nice to see you all here tonight!  I wanted to talk about publishers tonight, because the publishing world is changing all the time and those changes are having a daily effect on writers.  The whole Harlequin issue is a perfect example.  MWA has dropped them as an approved publisher. So their books will no longer entitle you to become an MWA member or be eligible for the Edgars, the big MWA awards. I was amused to discover that by last weekend, Harlequin had scrubbed their website of all the offending connections. It remains to be seen whether SFWA will drop them, too. Alas, this is a route that is becoming more prevalent in publishing....fleecing the novice writer.
Who  or what is MWA? did I miss something?
Mary Rosenblum:  Mystery Writers of America, David.  Harlequin was 'suggesting' to its submitting authors that they self publish their books first for a fee with the Harlequin self publishing program.  It was 'suggested' that favorable sales might predispose editors to buy the next book.  It was also 'suggested' in the submission guidelines that the novice writer pay for a critique by a Harlequin service prior to submission. So ineffect, Harlequin was making money from the thousands of writers who submit, few of whom actually get a book accepted.
Sounds  like the novice writer is getting the shaft
Mary Rosenblum:  You got it. As more and more people write and the publishing world struggles, publishers are finding that the writer is a more reliable source of cash than the reader.  And that means that writers really do need to beware when choosing a publisher. The market is also widening, in terms of small press and ebook publishers, and if the kindle continues to sell well, the market may open up much more rapidly than anyone anticipated.

Seems like there are more and more scams out there for a novice writer.
Mary Rosenblum:  There are, Ken. Keep one thing in mind always. This is still true. Money flows FROM the publisher TO the writer. ALWAYS. No matter what 'good reasons ' you get given for a reverse flow!
Is the kindel and other such readers good or bad for us novice writers?
Mary Rosenblum:   The Kindle and Nook and the like are ultimately very good for writers. It is much less expensive to produce an ebook, the small publishers keep books in print, which the big NY houses will not do.   Print on Demand technology also allows small press publishers to keep books in print. This allows writers to grow a readership over a period of years. Publishers can establish themselves as an ebook publisher with much less overhead, which allows them to survive an early 'no income period' much better than a house with a high overhead for print runs.

 However....
You, as a writer, need to give some thought to which small publisher you sign with.  And that choice depends in part on what your goal is with your writing.  If your only goal is to see your book in print or have it available on the internet somewhere, any publisher who doesn’t charge you money to publish or tie up too many rights is fine.  For that matter, you might as well self publish with Lulu Publishing or iUniverse and sell your book from your website. Although a publisher is going to have credit card and paypal services in place already. But if you're trying to establish a career for yourself as a writer, then you need to consider publishers from a different perspective.  The internet is a sea of self published and small press books and readers need to know who you are before they'll seek out your book.  How do they find you if you're not on the front shelf in Barnes and Noble?  Why buy this book from the 10,000 or so mysteries listed on amazon.com.  You can promote yourself, but that doesn't necessarily bring you to the attention of the people in the field who give awards, or the big publishers. Reviews put you up where people in the field -- the award people, the bigger publishers -- start noticing you. A publisher offers you two benefits:  Reviews in good places and a reputation.
  If a reader has enjoyed the Poisoned Pen books he's purchased in the past, he's likely to buy your book when Poisoned Press features it as their spring release. If a reader has burned a couple of times because Publish America publishes any book anyone sends to them....they're not likely to buy your Publish America book.
So we should avoid self publishing if at all possible right?
[Mary Rosenblum:   Self publishing is a very good fit if you have access to readers. If you're in real estate and you have access to lots of realtors through professional connections, conferences, and so on, then by all means self publish your mystery where the sleuth is a realtor and promote it through these connections.
I thought self published books don't get the review and the promotions publishers give

Mary Rosenblum:   It won't help you careerwise, unless you sell LOTS of copies.  Or if it connects with readers, for whatever reason, and starts showing up on lots of blogs as people tell their friends to try it.  But you can't make that happen. :-)
What about those of us that don't have those connections?
Mary Rosenblum:   Then self publishing is likely to yield very small sales unless your promotion taps into readers.  If your mysteries take place at dog shows and you promote through pet stores, dog magazines, pet supply catalogues and the like, you might do pretty well. If it's yet another police procedural with nothing to particularly capture any niche market, you probably won't see many sales, self publishing.
Isn’t it really matter of turning out quality writing? the cream rises to the top right?
Mary Rosenblum:   I wish that was the case, David, but while good writing gets you nice reviews, critical acclaim, and awards, it does not guarantee sales. A lot of very popular books are not particularly well written.  And the reason literary presses are generally subsidized by a university is that the literary fiction sales don't generate enough money to support the industry. When you're looking at the small press publishers, do a bit of homework.  How many books do they publish in a year?  A few? Many?  How much attention can each editor give to the books? Do they ever get reviews in major newspapers or magazines? Google a few titles and see what turns up.  Is anybody reviewing the books besides the author and friends on amazon.com? And what do YOU want? If you just want that book in print, then the publisher that puts out hundreds of titles a year is fine. You'll end up in print and the book will be fore sale on the website and probably amazon.com
So I could turn out a Pulitzer prize winning quality piece and if I don't get a good publisher for it then few sales?
Mary Rosenblum:   That's it, David.  Unfortunately.  BUT....and this is the BIG 'but'...   That book can now GET published. And slowly, as people tell each other that this is a really good book, you can end up with lots of sales. Never underestimate the power of 'viral marketing'. That is, I tell two people, they tell two friends each...and so on.  And right now, we don't have a lot of big review sites, like Oprah, for example.  We have lots of little review sites. But as people depend more on the internet for 'what do I read next', that will change. Mostly you need to get a clear sense of what the publisher you're considering is doing.  Are they publishing virtually anybody, even though they claim to be 'selective'?  Then they're mostly interested in each author buying a few books for family members...that's how they're making their money.  I call it quantity publishing. Or are they publishing a limited number of titles each year and doing a good job of promoting authors? Google any publisher's name. Check Preditors and Editors: http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/   Or SFWA's Writers Beware http://www.sfwa.org/for-authors/writer-beware/  Keep an eye on that website in the future, by the way. It looks as if I'm going to be doing a section for novice writers for them. Always do a little homework before you decide to go with a publisher.  And always, ALWAYS read the contracts!  I have seen some real dillies show up recently!
Know what rights you are selling and if you are not sure what you are selling, ask someone who does know.
What sort of "help" do you need for reading contracts? A lawyer?
Mary Rosenblum:   Depends, charie.  You're welcome to forward contracts to me. Most small press contracts I've seen have been pretty simple. Too simple sometimes.  If they're over my head, I refer people to Daniel Stevens. He is the attorney who advises MWA and he reads contracts for a fee.  Make sure you know how the contract can be terminated.  Do both parties have to agree? That's a problem if you want to part ways with the publisher and can't because he/she won't agree.  Ask for a date when the contract can be renewed or terminated by either party, say two years down the road or something like that.  Make sure that you're not consigning all rights.  If that book becomes a blockbuster movie and you signed away all rights, you get nothing. What happens if the company goes bankrupt?  If your book gets tied up in a bankruptcy litigation, you can't do anything with it unitl it's over, and that book is now an asset that may be resold to someone else.  You can usually make those additions without too much trouble. Most publishers are willing to put in a 'renew or drop' date if they don't already have one in place.
If you want to sell all rights, remember....that's it. The book is now gone.  You can do that if you choose, but know what you're doing. I do it on work for hire projects, like the LR novel course. I have no rights to that.

If a given publisher buys all rights, then I as the author either sell all rights or go elsewhere? or is there room to negotiate?
Mary Rosenblum:   You can and should negotiate, David.  The problem with fiction, unlike a nonfiction work for hire, is that when you sell all rights, you sell the characters, too.  That means you cannot use those characters in other books. So while 'all rights' or work for hire does show up in nonfiction, it shows up more rarely in fiction.

Why oh why would I EVER want to sell all rights if they even get the characters?
Mary Rosenblum:   Well, David, many people sign those contracts because they don't understand what it means, they're simply thrilled to have sold the book.  There is one publisher whose contract purchased any future books set in the universe of the initial book.  You could ONLY publish with this publisher if you wrote more books in the series.

The  publishers a definitely not looking out for their writers!!!
Mary Rosenblum:   David, publishers NEVER look out for their writers in business. You and the publisher are, in essence, business adversaries.  They want the most money. You want the most money.  You have to negotiate a fair settlement. You both want the book to succeed, yes. But they are looking out for their best interests in regards to the book, not YOUR best interests.   The publisher who bought all future books set in a particular world ensured that if a series took off, like the Harry Potter series, the author could not go to a big NY publisher, but would have to remain with this house.  You really do need to educate yourself. When you read a contract, especially your FIRST contract, let the stars in your eyes dazzle you, let yourself glory in the knowledge that this is your first book contract.....but DO NOT sign it.
Now, shake the stars out of your eyes, take a deep breath, and read it again, really thinking about what it's saying.  Ask a few what if questions.  What if this book really sells a lot. Can I sell the next one to a NY publisher if they ask? What if I want to change publishers? Can I? What are they buying besides first book rights? Electronic rights? Foreign language rights? All rights? If the book is optioned by Hollywood, do they get any of that money if the movie gets made? How much?
Mary, I am curious.. did you happen to learn all this the hard way or did you have some mentor or someone to interpret the contracts for you?[Mary Rosenblum ] Mary Rosenblum:   I learned it by listing to editors and publishers and agents talk, by listening to much more experienced writers talk, when I was starting out, by reading the industry mags and learning from others' mistakes. Why is a very good question to ask.  I have heard lots of horror stories believe me. Authors have sold movie rights unknowingly, only to see the book get made into a best selling movie and get nada. It is SO great to get an acceptance, to hear that the publisher wants your book. As I said....glory in that moment. And then do some homework!
Mary, do publishers make it clear what rights they are buying or are they sneaky about it?
Mary Rosenblum:   They have to be listed in the contract if you're going to sell them. If they're NOT spelled out...what ARE you selling them? Good question.  It can be very expensive to fight about it in court. 

Remember always….think about what YOU need, ask questions, use the internet to do some checking, don’t accept everything you get told!