Inkitt Novel Submissions: the Contract

Quick advice regarding agency submissions

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Katie-Ellen

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Sep 25, 2014
UK
I got another email from these people today. This is their contract. What do people think? Has anyone here submitted any work to Inkitt ? (deadline today)

I'd feel myself, that I would be putting my head into a bag re COPYRIGHT

Here is what you win, looks pretty good, but what do you lose?
 
That sounds fascinating...but maybe a little too good to be true? Will have to have a dig around and see what others are saying about them.
 
I got another email from these people today. This is their contract. What do people think? Has anyone here submitted any work to Inkitt ? (deadline today)

I'd feel myself, that I would be putting my head into a bag re COPYRIGHT

Here is what you win, looks pretty good, but what do you lose?

Here are my initial thoughts on reading through the contract:

I'm wary of the editing section. Sounds as if they're saying you have a chance to consult with them beforehand, but that the final edits are theirs to make as they see fit. I've never had that experience. The final edits are always mine to accept or reject. Saying your original concept is not altered without your consent isn't the same as saying they will alter or edit the work as they see fit. Further down, it goes on to say they can continue to revise or edit the work as they see fit, through the life of the contract.

You're giving away all rights, including ebook and print (which most publishers do take), but also movie and audio. Plus, I'm not entirely sure what they mean by giving them the right to commercialize the book. Does this mean if they get it made into a mini-series you're SOL as far as any compensation for that? Does it mean if they sell it to a third party, you're stuck with that?

Also, I don't like the fact they can shorten the story and/or include it in anthologies or other reprints. How is the royalty structure for all of the rights you're giving them set up? I don't see that it's spelled out except for book form.

It appears you keep the copyright, but this section is not entirely clear. I'd definitely be sure the copyright stays with the author.

The royalty structure is clear as mud. They can partner with the Big Five to publish your book? Seriously? This needs further exploration and clarification.

The life of the contract is 15 years, or you may terminate if they don't sell 1,001 copies or more within one year.

And I think it's odd they stipulate a specific sum of money they will allocate toward marketing your book. What does that actually mean? Do you owe this back against royalties? It's not clear.
 
Picking up on something in there, here are Tor's Submission guidelines which also reflect a topic that came up last night re diversity in publishing & concerns re accusations of cultural appropriation.
There must be justice and an even playing field (still clannish networks on the Beeb though, aren't there. Dimbleby's, Snows and others )
Story is king, right? Write the story only you can write, and after that, let it fall out as it may.
 
Yes, all of the above. Get back to writing, and submitting elsewhere. I also was offered a contract, only to discover they weren't a real publisher. It happens unfortunately.
 
It's a VC-backed startup. Basically, unless they pivot, they seem to be all about book discovery in reverse, i.e. finding successful titles for bigger publishers to pick up. It's explained here. Interesting idea, but imho flawed in one or two serious ways. You would need a fairly strong appetite for the unknown to go with them at this stage, I think.
 
PS - if I were a gambling man, I wouldn't mind offering decent odds that they'll have to go the author-funded route if/when the VC money dries up.
 
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Quick advice regarding agency submissions

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