Negotiations and Contracts: An Excerpt from my book: A Friendly Guide to Writing and Ghostwriring

Negotiation is not about figuring out who is right or wrong. It is about getting the parties involved to agree to embrace the other party’s perspective.

- - - Elizabeth Suarez

Before you begin to ghostwrite a book, there are contracts to sign. I wouldn’t recommend the same agent representing both sides since he or she will most likely be biased toward their own client. You each need to have your own agent or lawyer who can negotiate the deal. That way, you have someone looking out for your best interests.. If the other side doesn’t want a contract at all, you need to insist, even if it’s just a letter that lists the agreements and payment schedules, signed by both parties. If they refuse, something isn’t kosher.

Your fee often comes in two or three payments, such as the first third on signing, the second on manuscript submission and the last payment when the book gets published. Or some variety of that. That’s normal, but don’t leave your payment schedules open ended. Choose exact dates for each one. Even if the contract is clear, they may procrastinate paying you and your representative may have to get tough. I once worked on a book for four months and I still hadn’t gotten my first payment that was due when we initially signed the contract. He kept on negotiating with the publishing house, they were having a hard time coming to terms and I got left out in the cold. He wanted to wait until he got his advance.

When I’d been writing for four months with no payment, I’d had enough. He refused to reach into one of his deep pockets and pay me anything to tide me over so my agent called and told him I would stop writing until he paid me. The client was irate and told my agent he wanted me to go to a therapy session with him. He thought I had a bad attitude. I was gob smacked as they say in England and my agent assured him that my attitude would change dramatically when I got some money. I received my first check after the second was due but I got back to work.

In any negotiation, if you're prepared to walk away, your position will be a strong one, but an agent should know that you have to pick your battles. Some issues are important like payments and deadlines while others don't matter all that much, like word count or a thank you on the acknowledgment page. Remember, this is not about winning. It’s not about who’s right and who’s wrong. It’s about both sides seeing the issues from the other person’s point of view and making a compromise. While you may feel uncomfortable and insulted by what the other side wants, remember that you and your client are not enemies. You are not suing each other for alimony or child support. You’re negotiating the best conditions possible for both sides to create a productive and successful collaboration. If the contract seems fair, you’ll be eager to begin. If it leaves you feeling ripped off, sidelined, or resentful, it will drain your enthusiasm.

Finding a good representative is like having an alarm system installed in your home. If no one tries to break in, the alarm is a comfort. If someone does try to break in, you have security measures in place and chances are you can avoid danger and loss. In the same way, your rep is meant to watch out for you and keep you safe. If the other side is being reasonable, it will be an easy negotiation. If they’re trying to take advantage, your agent should be protecting you.

A legitimate agent shouldn’t demand any upfront fees. They get their ten percent when you get paid and if they ask for money upfront or an unreasonable percentage, go find another one. If it’s a lawyer, that’s a different story. They usually don't take a percentage. Rather they charge hourly, but you’re a writer, not Bill Gates, and paying them upwards of four hundred dollars an hour is prohibitive. I once met with a recommended lawyer whose hourly rate was so steep, I asked him to refer me to someone who was good and charged less. He did, and she turned out to be wonderful. I used her services for many years and I was always satisfied.

Whatever you do, please don't hire your cousin’s fiancé on the cheap or a family lawyer who knows nothing about publishing. Would you go to a heart doctor if you broke your leg? You need to hire someone who understands the publishing world inside and out. This is not the time, however, to hire a shark who bites everyone’s head off. We're not talking about millions of dollars here. If an agent or lawyer is stirring up trouble or treating the other side in a way that you never would, you need to keep looking.

Over the years, I’ve come across agents who are deal makers and others who are deal breakers, expert at ruining a good project before you even get started. The job of a “rep” is to do just that – represent who you are and your concerns. He or she is speaking for you. That’s why he’s called “a mouthpiece.”

Not too long ago, I was working on a book with a high ranking government official who had won a mammoth lawsuit against his employers. He and I were in synch. He was forthcoming in the interviews, we had a great rapport, and when I submitted pages to him, he told me that my writing brought tears to his eyes because it was so accurate. He was anxious to keep on going.

I felt optimistic – until I sent the material to his agent. She was young and green, I would never have chosen her, but this was my client’s first experience in the publishing world and he didn't know any better. The longer we worked, the harder she was to please, asking me to keep changing the text with suggestions that she shifted from day to day. And then she faulted me for following her suggestions. It was an impossible situation.

I think she was a frustrated writer and her constant nagging to keep rewriting the same material became intolerable. Typically, I take no more than two months to write a successful book proposal, I’ve done many of them, but when we were coming up on seven months of rewrites, none of which she would accept, I knew I would have to put my foot down. If her goal was to make sure the book never got written, she was doing a damned good job of reaching it. I liked the client a lot, but it was a dead end and I had to put a stop to it. This agent was an example of a deal breaker who was not qualified to do her job. Incidentally, the book never came to fruition with any writer. The agent had successfully doomed the project and everybody lost.

I had another agent for a short time (not short enough) who was so rude and insulting to the other side, once I had gotten the job, they threatened to fire me. I turned around and fired her. If she had been a standup person, she would have declined her payment since she was the troublemaker. It was no surprise, however, that she refused to acknowledge her bad behavior so I had to pay her, per our contract. At least I got rid of her.