As of 1 January 2013 the Copyright Act of 1978 Section 203
comes into play. This provides for “Termination Rights” where authors can
reclaim their works from their publishers after thirty-five years. These old
backlist titles are a cash cow for many publishers and litigation lawyers are
expecting a flood of complaints from unhappy authors.
There are some big names whose books will be eligible for
termination such as Stephen King, Judy Blume, M.M. Kaye, and John LeCarre. Digital
publishing is a new innovation since 1978, and that gives these authors an
extra impetus to reclaim their rights and self-publish, cutting out the middle
man altogether.
Unfortunately the rules for reclamation of rights are messy
and complicated and obviously publishers are not going to help authors leave
them. Litigation lawyers are anticipating a train wreck as authors try to fulfill
the conditions required. Then there’s the added complication of what happens to
well-known authors who have sold movie rights etc.
It should be fascinating to see how this unfolds.
Helen Woodall
Helen is available to line edit and/ or
content edit fiction and non-fiction. Rates on application.
