Please would someone advise me if I'm allowed to e-publish my mother's many books following her death last year? She bequeathed copyright of them in her will
Please would someone advise me if I'm allowed to e-publish my mother's many books following her death last year? She bequeathed copyright of them in her will
Although I've set up my own publishing concern, it's got some pretty wacky ideas about copyright and royalties.
The one time I had such intimate dealings with an established publisher that I could see the contract on offer (already into this century), it contained the following conditions:
a) They bought ALL the rights (including film and [theoretically] "merchandising") and paid me 60% of what they got out of selling rights to translations in other countries.
b) I was NOT allowed to translate my own book into languages that I speak fluently (with the exception of English [the original was in Catalan, and the publishers based in Barcelona]). The editor and I share 3 languages: Catalan, Spanish, and German; and I assume that he wanted to be paid for translations into the other 2. (This is one of the reasons that I didn't sign: I have read some TERRIBLE botch-ups of translations and didn't want that happening to MY book. The translator's fee was NOT the issue: I could have presented it to him, as long as I'd been allowed to do my own translating.)
c) The publishers placed themselves under an obligation to reprint my book every time that their stocks of the previous addition fell to 25% of that print-run. Failure on their part to do so within 6 months and ALL rights were to revert to me.
The 2 points that are relevant to your situation are a) and c). a) works against you (the original publisher would retain e-book rights: even if signed BEFORE the advent of e-books, the contract would stipulate "in ANY form"... which would cover e-books); c) works for you (if out of print, the rights would revert to your mother: in this case, you).
HOWEVER, these the the terms of MY potential contract... in 2011 (+/-)... in a foreign country. I have no idea what the terms of your mother's contract(s) are. You'll have to study them CAREFULLY... or get someone else to study them for you. There are a few points to consider:
1) Did she sell the actual copyright to any publisher? (Worst case scenario!) In this case, the copyright does NOT belong to you, despite your mother's will. Even if the publishers have ceased to exist, the copyright would belong to its their liquidators... unless a clause in the contracy specifically states otherwise.
2) is there a clause like c) (above)? (BEST case scenario!) ALL rights should (by now) have reverted to your mother and now be yours.
3) Have the publishers gone out of business? (2nd-best scenario... unless the answer to 1) is "yes".) In this case, you being the copyright holder, you should be able o publish the books in any form you wish. But that's just MY opinion. You should get legal advice on this. Do free-legal-advice organisations still exist in Britain? Even if they do, they might limit their time to more needy cases, so you might have to pay for this. As the DAUGHTER of a published writer, you MIGHT be allowed to join the Society of Authors and avail yourself of their advice. It would helo if your mother was a member...
4) Are the publisher's still existant and the contracts without the clause c)? You're going to have to deal with the publishers. They might be helpful, they might not.
5) Important! Each contract might be different. Even 2 contracts with the same publisher might stipulate different conditions. (An already-successful author can hold out for more favourable conditions in a contract for a new book. On the other hand, later contracts might be LESS favourable to the author, because ther publishers' lawyers have thought up ways to fill old loopholes.)
6) All this is just my NON-erxpert opinion.
You're going to have to do your homework (or pay some swot to do it for you), I'm afraid.
Best of luck!
Jimmy Hollis | Dickson, thank you SO much for making time to help with my query. May I please give a little more information, which may clarify things: Mum was an internationally published writer between 1962 and the late 80s - more than a dozen novels, reproduced in several languages covering fiction based on historical fact, crime novels and assorted romantic mystery thrillers. Along with copyrights to all books bequeathed solely to me in her will, I also hold over 100 first editions of her books. All are now out of print. I'm 65 years old with no family to pass on these books to. I would LOVE to make these publications available on say Kindle purely so that my mother's literary success is available to current and future generations. Royalties from them is of little or no interest to me; giving pleasure to readers who enjoy beautifully written books is my prime motivation. In your opinion, would I still have to get permission from the original publishers to digitise the books? I really am at a loss as to where to start, so again, my sincere thanks for any guidance with 'next steps' that you're able to give me. Appreciatively, Anne-Marie
3 minutes later: Just occurred to me to ask: Have they already been published? And I've just noticed that "e-" in "e-publish"
If she signed [a] contract[s] with a publisher and you want to know if your owning the copyright frees you from all obligation to said contract[s] / sign with another publisher, the answer would be "no". You'd have to abide by the terms of the contract[s] that she signed.
Check with the original publisher whether the rights they acquired were universal (film, foreign translations, etc.) This would mean that THEY have the right to e-publish, but that they'd have to pay you the royalties. Modern contracts tend to be like this, but her contracts might pre-date that practice. Get hold of the contracts and read themcarefully. If in doubt, you'll have to pay for a lawyer to clarify.