ALL prices set for your book are determined by us as well as individual retailers. Oftentimes, retailers will choose to discount a book and we DO NOT have any control over that.
We DO NOT receive 100% of the list price of your book. Every retailer and distributor takes their percentage which varies by retailer and distributor, and then we receive what is left over. We pay you net royalties on what we receive.
As noted in your contract, we pay royalties on the following schedule:
If Publisher receives payment in January, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of February.
If Publisher receives payment in February, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of March.
If Publisher receives payment in March, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of April.
If Publisher receives payment in April, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of May.
If Publisher receives payment in May, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of June.
If Publisher receives payment in June, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of July.
If Publisher receives payment in July, then Publisher pays Author by the last of August.
If Publisher receives payment in August, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of September.
If Publisher receives payment in September, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of October.
If Publisher receives payment in October, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of November.
If Publisher receives payment in November, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of December.
If Publisher receives payment in December, then Publisher pays Author by the last day of January.
Our statements note when payment was received by us and on how many units sold. We cannot include a “sales period” as it varies by retailer/distributor—eBook royalties are generally paid to us within 60-90 days after the sales have occurred and print royalties are generally paid to us within 120 days after the sales have occurred. However, for example, Kobo remits royalties to us approximately 45 days after a sale has occurred BUT a $50 CAD threshold must be met first before we receive payment, so their payments include various sales periods. It would be extremely confusing if we included all of that information as there is not an exact “sales period”.
We are no longer able to give sales updates outside of our monthly royalty statements. It’s simply not feasible with everything else we’re doing behind the scenes and we are already paying out royalties monthly. Most publishers pay quarterly or even biannually, and their authors do not see any sales numbers until that time. Another reason we do not want to give pre-order or sales updates outside of our royalty payment period is because readers can cancel pre-orders and Amazon allows readers to return ebooks…so, if readers cancel their pre-order or your book is returned, you’re going to be disappointed if we say one number for units sold and then you see a lesser number of units sold on your royalty statement.
With the above said, please see below an example of when royalties are expected to come into us:
If your book is released in January, the earliest we will see royalties come in on that release is in March. So, if your book releases in January, please do not email us asking for your royalties in February because we have not even received payment yet. With our schedule, if we receive the payment in March then we will remit due payment to you by the last day of April.
You are responsible for ensuring we have the correct payment details for you on file at all times. If you provide us with an incorrect PayPal email address or incorrect bank account information, we ARE NOT responsible for your error. If you get a new PayPal email address that you want us to remit your due payments to, inform us immediately. If you get a new bank account that you want us to remit your due payments to, inform us immediately. We are not responsible for any of your errors. Thank you for understanding.
Harbor Lane Books 