What's a good percentage for book sales?

Question

When you are making a deal with a publisher, what is a good (or standard) percentage rate for book sales to ask for?

Answer 1

Besides the above suggestions, I would SERIOUSLY suggest asking an agent to negotiate your contract for you. Not only will they be able to get you a better deal, but they may be able to preserve some of your other rights.

For instance, many publishers will purchase the rights to foreign printings of your books. However, they rarely ever do anything with these rights. An agent can negotiate with other companies and actually get your book published overseas, and earn you the money for it.

If you have a contract in hand, then find the best agent you possibly can to help you negotiate!

Answer 2

this varies WIDELY depending on whether you've published before, what the market is for your book (is it a best-selling mystery or a niche book about building your own patio?), how big the publisher is, whether you have an agent, how much competition there is in that particular market to get published, whether you're well-known in the field, etc.

My advice is, after you've written your book and gotten it accepted, find someone else who writes in the same genre you do, and ask them what price is standard.