Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Savage Collectors My next book

Sorry that happened. It's too bad for you and too bad for advancing any more scholarship on the 99. Write them a turd of a book and then tell them to publish it where the sun don't shine!

me thinks the value of your signed copies just went up.Sorry to hear of your troubles . were I you i would approach those collectors and carry on with what you planned so the info and pics are recorded . They could then be used in a future publication by another author..

norm

They covered all the bases. I thought about writing something with a bunch of out of focus pics and grammatical errors. They would turn this down but that doesn't cancel the provisions of the contract. Even if they reject a book I still have to submit any future books on a similar subject to them.

David,
I don't "mean" to be a devil's advocate, but did you NOT READ the contract? From what I have been told, Brower ran into similar problems. MANY copies of his book simply ended up in a dumpster. Sorry for your turn of events.

Very sorry to hear this. My wife bought your book for me as a Christmas present and it's been invaluable to me as a tool to document my small 99 collection. I was looking forward to the book on engraved guns as I don't see many and can't afford them.

Best of luck on however you decide to proceed.

mike

OK this may sound crazy but call into Clark Howard. The guy is brilliant when it comes to this kind of stuff, predatory whatever. He can helo you. This isn't the first jar of pickles. Hell, call the show. Clark Howard

I'm not familiar with Clark Howard. David

Nationally syndicated radio talk show host who deals in part with personal financial matters....

WYO,
What is the title of your book?

Anyone know the title?

Alexander Hamilton, John Jay and James Madison wrote the federalist papers under the pen name "Publics". Of course we know that now, but nobody knew it then.

That being said, these guys obviously didn't need the money and had other motivation. The point being, some things just need to be said and some books just need to be wrote.

Anybody that knows what you know could "write" the book.

And consider this, there are way better ways to get paid than writing a book. I'd say if money is the only motivation, then let it go. Easy for me to say, but nevertheless, would enjoy the book and sure it would be remembered long after and enjoyed by many after the writer of said book was gone.

Doug Murray's book, your first book and Roger C. Rule's book being perfect examples among many others.

Just saying...

+1 on 99guy's idea of letting someone else "write" the book. The effort you put forth should be rewarded. I too would like to see a book on the engraved guns, mostly just to drool over all the great pictures that would be in it. But also to learn more in case I get a chance at one for a bargain price someday.

I guess I can put my pen down and quit writing the Great American Novel. (Y'all would've liked it- 99 toting lawmen, sniping on the Western Front, gold treasure, love lost and found, and the answer to "Why are we here?". Think Hemingway's Nick Adams and Robert Jordan in a James Lee Burke novel.)

The first thing I looked for when I got "the book" was what kind of paper was it written on. Glossy thick high quality, magasine paper. The kind that takes good clear pictures, and a book you want to keep for a long time. Aside from the contents, the paper was the most important part. That's probably what made the book so expensive. Dave shouldn't have trouble finding a way to collect royalties on his next book, if he realy wants to write one. I just hope it's on the same high quality paper.

"A Collectors Guide to the Savage 99 Rifle". Send David a PM, I think he still has a few he will sign for you. You can go to the on line auction sites also, Joe.

Was real busy yesterday and didn't get back on the forum last night.
I have about 70 copies left. I sign, number and inscribe them to the buyer. I'm in the 430 number range and when I hit 500 I won't be numbering them but will sign and inscribe. Send $65 for the cost of the book and shipping to: David Royal, p.o. box 1271, Pinedale, Wy., 82941. You can get it cheaper on Amazon but it will not be signed, etc. My royalty is about $1.61 from Amazon sales. I make more on my personal sales.
I wrote the book because I wanted to, not to make money. The publisher really teed me off by discounting a large portion of their sales just enough that the discount was paid for by the reduction of the amount of my royalty payment. The 3% reduction cost them nothing and reduced my payment by more than 50%. I am bound by the contract on the first book for the next two "works" I write on a "similar" subject. I am not going to let that publisher publish the next book. They are greedy jerks. The editing was ridiculous and their marketing people didn't contact any of the retailers I recommended. They did do a good job on the book as far as quality goes. I would like to write the next book and don't care if I recoup all my expenses. I just can't see letting the publisher walk all over me now that I know what they are up to.
I just reread my first post. I'm repeating myself something we old people do.

David,
Don't worry about repeating. If you can prevent just one other person from getting ripped off it is well worth repeating over and over.

How hard to submit "two "works" I write on a "similar" subject." before the book on Savage engraving?

David, if the contract locks in right of first refusal, maybe it doesn't lock in the terms and conditions of the royalty terms on future books . If not, the terms might be negotiable, and your new terms would be so high they would refuse. Once refused, I would think you would be free to shop it.

You may have something there Keith.