Ever wondered about your options when working with multi-book publishing deals? Join me as I navigate the nuances and typical expectations in the publishing industry. We’ll explore a few scenarios you might encounter—including how right of first refusal clauses can be both a blessing and a hindrance.
Hello, Jane Cleland here.
The question is, “When you sign a two or three book deal contract, do you get to choose books two and three?”
It depends. It depends on the author. It depends on the deal, of course. So let me go through a couple of scenarios.
Typically, if we’re talking about a three-book contract or a two-book contract, you’ve written the first book and you’ve written a synopsis for a follow-on book—for example, in a mystery series. Based on that synopsis, they’ll offer you a two-book deal. If you’ve written two synopses, they may offer you a three-book deal. Well, then you don’t really get to choose what you’re going to do next. You’re going to do those books based on those synopses.
Now, could you say, “I think I have a better idea,” when it’s time to produce book two and do another synopsis? And could they say yes or no? Yes, that’s certainly possible. Absolutely.
Another scenario is that they are so stunned and in love with book one—perhaps as a standalone—that even though you don’t intend it to be a series, they just want to lock you down for the next couple of books. In this case, yes, you will have some flexibility, but they will want to be consulted about it.
You know, most publishing contracts typically have a right of first refusal. So if they pass on your next book—even without a contract—you’re free to then take it and try to market it elsewhere. But in terms of multiple book contracts, it’s unusual that you would have anything open-ended. It would typically be within a genre, a style, or part of a series.
Good luck with it!
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