If an author changes paperback publisher

[Adam]

Does anyone know the answer to this?

If an author changes paperback publisher after, lets say writing 10 books, does the rights of those 10 books go with him to the new publisher or stay with the existing one?

[Jo K]

I'm no author or agent, but I would say it depends on the contract the author signed.  I've heard some stories of publishers getting the sole rights to books once they've published them, but also of authors who have ensured that they retain the rights to their own work, and can re-publish whichever publisher they are with...

[Simon]

Yeah, not sure about this one either. I'd guess that each set of rights for each book is sold separately so once one publisher has them, that's it. I wonder if the author has to buy the rights back if s/he wants to sell them to another publisher?

Hmm...got me thinking now.

[Linda L]

The original books stay with the original publisher.  Trust me it is a nightmare doing back list ordering, some authors are on to their 3rd publisher.  I know one author was trying to get his back list transferred to his new publisher  but no go.  i don't know what the legal ramificatons are but if you were a big author like JK Rowling the original publishers couldn't afford to lose your titles, that is major a loss of income to them.

[PracticeJack]

suppose it depends on the contract u sign when you join that publisher

[Sandra mre]

It does depend.  Although typically, the original signing publisher retains the rights, that can change if the book falls out of print.  There's usually a clause that sees authors regain their rights if the book becomes unavailable for an extended period of time, or choses to buy the rights back.

This is part of the reason there was a backlash against Simon & Schuster's move to maintain backlists through POD technology - because it raised the question of when a book could be considered out of print and whether authors would ever have a chance to regain their rights.  In all honesty, most publisher contracts are so outdated they need to be overhauled, and provisions for the new technology need to be addressed to the satisfaction of the authors guild, because POD is playing a bigger role in how publishers are doing business.

It is hard to move a series, and this is one of the reasons that it doesn't happen often - publishers like to have your backlist.

[Adam]

I asked the question because I bought the new Peter Robinson Paperback and he has changed from Pan to Hodder. Everywhere ( but not Waterstones) I  look I see his Pan Paperbacks discounted to about £1.99. The Works, Tesco, Woolworth etc.

Is this just Pan getting rid of a backlog of books or reprinting and making the most of the copy right?

[Sandra mre]

I asked the question because I bought the new Peter Robinson Paperback and he has changed from Pan to Hodder. Everywhere ( but not Waterstones) I  look I see his Pan Paperbacks discounted to about £1.99. The Works, Tesco, Woolworth etc.

Is this just Pan getting rid of a backlog of books or reprinting and making the most of the copy right?

Most in-store discounts (at least here) are based on the stores rather than the publisher.  Places like Tesco and Costco and Walmart sometimes get a better price right out of the gate, from the distributor, based on volume orders.  If Peter has a new book out, it's probably just a way of moving stock and hoping to capitalize on any buzz around the new book, but this is how I understand things work on this side of the pond, and there are always exceptions to every rule.