Chapter 42

5% royalties indeed can be considered a fair price for a new author, as many newcomers don't even have the qualifications to receive royalties, and they directly sell their work for a few hundred yuan per thousand words, like selling cabbages.

If one wants to make money by writing books, unless they have a significant background or the quality of the book is extremely high, it's very difficult to earn royalties from a debut work.

However, Lin Han didn't have such compromising thoughts. The novel he had was one that had been a bestseller for several decades on Earth. "I, Robot," since its creation in the 1950s, has been sold in dozens of countries around the world and translated into major and minor languages.

Even in the 21st century, several publishers in mainland China have completed translations of it, naming it as part of the "Galaxy Empire Series." It has even been hailed as a "science fiction bible" by Jiangsu Literature and Art Publishing House, with high sales on websites like JD, Dangdang, and Amazon, making it one of the favorite extracurricular reads for children.

Naturally, sales in Europe and America have steadily increased. Thanks to the stimulation from the sci-fi movie "I, Robot" starring Will Smith, this novel, which had been published for fifty years, once again made it to the top ten of the New York Times Best Seller list around 2004, creating a legend in the world of science fiction.

The only books that could firmly surpass this one are Jules Verne's "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" and "Journey to the Center of the Earth," which are listed as required reading in textbooks.

If Lin Han were to hand over the simplified Chinese publication rights like this, the original author might want to strangle this wasteful son.

Previously, he had discussed the issue of royalties with Chen Jiaxuan, so he had some understanding of these ratios. Knowing that his book would sell millions of copies or more, if he didn't haggle, it would truly be a waste.

So he said, "Mr. Zhao, as an ordinary new author, I think it's already a good thing to get published. But I also have a literary agent who has already contacted 'Science Fiction World.' The introduction and the first chapter of this novel will be published in the December issue. I wonder if this will affect the publication?"

Zhao Han's expression didn't change. He felt a bit sorry in his heart. What does a new author need a literary agent for? Everyone knows that those agents are just vampires, trying to extract more benefits from the publishers.

For a publisher to successfully publish a book, they need to invest a considerable amount of human and material resources, including editors, designers, typesetters, proofreaders, printers, distributors, and financial staff, none of whom can be missing.

An author's royalties are not based on profit but on sales. For example, if a book is priced at 30 yuan and sells 10,000 copies, with a 5% royalty, the author would receive 30 * 10,000 * 5% = 15,000 yuan.

If the sales volume is very low, calculating the author's fee based on royalties might not be as good as a one-time buyout. Therefore, on Earth, many publishers have struggled, relying on selling book numbers and receiving sponsorships to survive.

Fortunately, in this world, copyright protection is good, and piracy doesn't dare to easily show its head. Moreover, the reading atmosphere is particularly good, and most publishers can operate profitably.

If the retail price of a book is 50 yuan, the publisher can only make about 5 yuan, with the rest being costs, including author fees, proofreading fees, rental costs, raw material and auxiliary material costs, typesetting costs, printing and binding costs, publishing losses, editorial fees, management fees, financial fees, and operating expenses.

But bookstores and online book purchases often have discounts, and few novels are sold at the listed price, usually at 70-80% of the price, which naturally reduces the profit margin.

Those in the publishing industry know that books are not necessarily sold out once they are printed. There are always returns, unsold stock, and damaged goods. Most publishers have a write-off rate of around 10%, and some as high as 20%, which is a significant loss.

Finally, taxes cannot be forgotten. The current tax rate of 1.13% also eats into the profit, so publishers are not as profitable as people imagine.

As the saying goes, "thin profit but high volume." The more books sold, the lower the printing cost, so the more popular the book, the more profitable it is.

Li Wenyuan mentally praised Lin Han. If this book only signed a 5% royalty, it would be a huge loss. As long as Renmin University Press promotes it a bit more seriously, they could gain a novel with quite good sales.

Lin Han is not short of publishers to contact. The quality of "I, Robot" is his biggest bargaining chip, and a discerning person would definitely not let this go.

Zhao Han also saw the potential for this novel to be a bestseller, so he took out a business card from his pocket and said with a smile, "Little Lin, if you have time this afternoon, we can invite your agent to discuss this matter. It's better to get the novel published sooner, as many of us are eagerly waiting for the next parts!"

"No problem, I'll message her right away. We can sit down and talk about it later," Lin Han shrugged. At this moment, the waiter started serving the dishes, so he continued, "Let's eat first; this is the most important thing."

Chinese people usually conduct business over meals and drinks. Today, Zhao Han restrained himself from drinking because he would be negotiating with the agent later. If he drank, he might accidentally reveal his bottom line, which would be a big problem.

After lunch, the group parted ways. Li Wenyuan saw Tong Yonglie off from Renmin University, while the other two professors returned to work. Only Lin Han, Zhao Han, and Liu Jun from Renmin University Press remained, chatting in a nearby teahouse.

Renmin University Press is a well-known brand nationwide. It was the first university press established after the founding of New China, but it is now semi-independent, operating as a publishing group with many subsidiaries, such as the Economic Publishing Division, Business Management, Law, Examination, Education, Academic Publishing, Audio-Visual Publishing, Applied Technology Division, and the Popular Book Publishing Center.

Zhao Han happens to be the vice president in charge of the Popular Book Publishing Center, which mainly publishes books for the general public, such as novels, autobiographies, various translations, and guides, making them more accessible and understandable compared to specialized books.

When Chen Jiaxuan arrived in her Maserati, Lin Han finally breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't good at dealing with people, especially such old foxes who were constantly trying to probe his bottom line.

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