Regular readers of this blog might remember that in September 2008 I blogged about YouWriteOn’s offer to publish the first 5,000 writers who submitted their work, and that I wrote a few more blog posts about YouWriteOn in the subsequent months. YouWriteOn’s publishing scheme was ill-conceived and badly organised: few books were actually published by…
Tag Archive: youwriteon
Manuscript Display Sites
The concept behind a manuscript display site is simple: provide writers with a forum in which to display their work, in the hopes that an editor or agent will come browsing and discover a literary gem hiding among the HTML. Over the years plenty of these sites have come and gone so that now, new…
Writers' Message Boards And Online Communities
There are lots of places on the internet where writers gather: I’ve written some general posts about them here. Many writers’ message boards include a discussion forum and an area where writers can receive feedback and criticism on their work, but some of them are far better than others: it all depends, I think, on…
YouWriteOn and The Bookseller Blog
Last week, I was invited to write a response to a piece on The Bookseller Blog about YouWriteOn’s publishing scheme. My contribution has just gone up, and you can read it here. Many thanks to all of you who provided information and helped with the research: naturally, I’m not going to out any of you…
YouWriteOn and Arts Council England: What's The Connection?
There’s a lot of confusion over who runs YouWriteOn, and how it’s related to Arts Council England. People seem to think that YouWriteOn is run by Arts Council England, organised by Arts Council England, or part of Arts Council England in some other nebulous way, but this is not the case: YouWriteOn’s only apparent connection…
YouWriteOn’s Free Publishing Offer: An Update
Last autumn, YouWriteOn’s “free publishing deal” attracted a lot of attention from writers and industry watchdogs. It was discussed on several writers’ message boards; Victoria Strauss of Writer Beware blogged about it; and so did I. The deeply sceptical felt that it was at best an ill-thought-out scheme or at worst, a cynical vanity publishing…
Manuscript Display Sites
There are all sorts of manuscripts display sites available on the internet, like the infamous YouWriteOn, and HarperCollins’ Authonomy. Anyone can register with these sites and download a chunk of their work which might then be reviewed by other members; in return, you review their work and everyone gets a little feedback. Both YouWriteOn and…
Cover Price, Gross or Net?
Royalties can be calculated in all sorts of ways. They’re usually calculated as a percentage of the selling price, which seems pretty straightforward: but there are all sorts of ways that things can get complicated, and it’s essential that writers check their contracts carefully and ensure that they understand all that it implies. A percentage…
Selling Books To Book Shops (Part II)
I’ve made no secret of my opinion of the YouWriteOn publishing scheme: but now that some writers have signed up to it, how can they persuade bookshops to carry their titles? Before they even consider phoning their local store, it is absolutely essential that the writers concerned find out two things: which wholesaler or distributor…
YouWriteOn Publishing: What’s In It For The Writer?
Following yesterday’s post about the cost of publishing with YouWriteOn, I’ve been asked how writers can work out for themselves whether or not this is a good deal. Because we don’t know how YouWriteOn will define the “printing costs” it mentions in its contract we don’t yet know what share of the revenue will be…
YouWriteOn's "Free Publishing Offer": Who Will Pay?
Clause 8 of the contract for YouWriteOn’s latest publishing scheme states, “The Author shall receive a 60% net royalty on all sales of printed copies of the Work that the Publisher receives. The net royalty for each book sold is after printing costs. YouWriteOn will set the retail price. Author royalties are not paid on…
YouWriteOn Publishes The 5,000
The UK-based writers’ website, YouWriteOn, is offering publication by Christmas to the first 5,000 writers who submit their work. That’s right: 5,000 books. By Christmas. Writer Beware has already blogged about this in an article called 5,000 Writers. Unsurprisingly, Writer Beware has come down pretty heavily against the scheme. I’d also advise everyone to steer…