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Rights Reversion: How to Give an Out-of-Print Book New Life with Self-Publishing

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The Indie Way with Erika Liodice

I recently reached out to the Writer Unboxed Facebook Community to find out what writers want to know about independent publishing. Women’s fiction author Densie Webb replied:

“The rights to my first book (with a small publisher) revert back to me in January. I’ve thought about self-publishing, but I don’t have a clue how to go about it.” Densie asked for help evaluating the decision, a simple step-by-step process for self-publishing a book, and inexpensive resources to help her navigate the process.

As a creative entrepreneur, I think Densie has an exciting opportunity on her hands, and I’m thrilled to help her consider her options. But before we dive in, I’d be remiss not to acknowledge that rights reversion is a nuanced topic largely dictated by the author’s publishing contract. We’re not going down that rabbit hole today, but to learn more about rights reversion, check out Authors Alliance’s free guide, “Understanding Rights Reversion: When, Why & How to Regain Copyright and Make Your Book More Available.”

For the sake of exploring Densie’s situation, I’ll assume all rights will revert to her and she will have complete creative control over her work.

Is There Value in Self-Publishing an Out-of-Print Book?

At some point in your writing career, you might find yourself in a position like Densie’s, weighing whether it’s worth your time, energy, and money to self-publish a title that has reverted to you. I liken the situation to owning a rental property and letting it sit vacant. Your book is an asset, and sidelining it feels like a missed opportunity. Assuming the subject matter is not obsolete, you can leverage your book to expand readership, promote other titles, and generate income for the rest of your life and 70 years after your death (if it was created on or after January 1, 1978; learn more about copyright duration).

Rights reversion can open a world of new possibilities for you and your book, not the least of which is a do over. If you didn’t like your publisher’s cover or title, this is your chance to change it. If the publisher only exploited some of the rights it purchased, you now have the freedom to release the book in new formats, translate it into different languages, and expand distribution to new platforms and geographies. This can also be an opportune time to take a bold new marketing approach—or at least update your book’s front matter to showcase your full list of titles and its back matter with a call to action for readers, such as leaving a review, signing up for your email list, and/or following you on social media.

Can Self-Publishing Rejuvenate Low Sales?

There’s nothing like low sales to shake an author’s confidence. But rather than letting it send you into a negative shame spiral, see it for what it is: a symptom. Your job is to uncover a symptom of what?

Conduct a post-mortem investigation of your book’s previous publication lifecycle to identify what went wrong and build a new plan to increase its chances of success.

Consider questions like:

  • How was your book positioned in the market? Did the previous publisher target the right audience? Was it listed in the right categories on booksellers’ websites? Are there opportunities for you to position it differently?
  • How does the cover compare to competitive titles in your category? Does it stand out and grab readers’ attention, or is it a wallflower among the pack?
  • Is the book’s description as compelling as it could be? Does it sound current or outdated? Does it hook readers and leave them wanting more?
  • What did readers think of the story? Read the book’s reviews to learn what resonated with readers and where they felt the story fell short. Is there an opportunity to strengthen the story?
  • What kind of marketing and public relations activities did the publisher use to promote your book before, during, and after its launch? Did you participate in a book tour or blog tour? Did you guest post on relevant blogs and websites or participate in podcast interviews? Did you hold giveaways or price promotions? What promotional activities earned the best results? What types of activities were missing from your mix?

An honest evaluation of your book and its publication lifecycle can help you replicate effective tactics and eliminate or change those that underperformed. It can also expose areas that may require professional support. Just because it’s called self-publishing or independent publishing doesn’t mean you have to go it alone. [Read more…]

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The Guy Who Wrote Fight Club Just Kicked My Ass

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At the beginning of 2020 (which must be about 40 or 50 months ago, right?), I stumbled onto a book that literally changed how I think about writing. During an email exchange with my dear friend and fellow writer Jocosa Wade, she recommended an early novel by Chuck Palahniuk, whom I only knew as the guy who had written Fight Club. I loved the movie by the same name, but had never read any of his novels. To be honest, I’d always been a little afraid to read him, figuring he would be way too … [Read more...]

How (And Why) to Create an Author Mission Statement

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Why do I write? Every now and then I ponder this question, especially on days when it feels like the work far outweighs the reward. When the marketplace feels impossibly crowded. When I’ve left it all on the page and no one seems to notice or care. This question resurfaced recently during my time in quarantine, triggered by watching the healthy heartbeat of my book sales fall to near-comatose levels. By flipping through page after blank page in my day planner, not a speaking engagement in … [Read more...]

How Indie Authors Can Be of Service During the COVID-19 Crisis

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Millions of people around the world are isolated and practicing social distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19. As a result, many are stuck at home looking for ways to fill their time. Indie authors are uniquely positioned to be of service right now. The flexibility and control inherent in the independent publishing model means we can turn on a dime to quickly and creatively respond to the time-sensitive needs emerging all around us. Today, I’m sharing tips to help you identify those … [Read more...]

Sophomore Slump or Derailment?

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Nearly every professional writer I know has dire things to say about sophomore novels, and for good reason. You don't have to look very far at both trade and informal reviews to find scathing assessments of this or that writer's "lackluster sophomore effort" or "disappointing follow up" to their popular debut novel. The second novel can feel doomed before you even write it. 2019 was a special year for me, because it marked the publication of my sophomore novel. More accurately, one of my … [Read more...]

Un-resolutions: A New Approach for the New Year

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The promise of a new year usually inspires me to cobble together a list of writing resolutions for the months ahead. But as the possibilities of 2020 glitter before us, I find myself in the mood for something different. Something with flair. So rather than dusting off old favorites, like write 2,000 words a day or finish my novel, this year I’ve decided to put a new spin on a tired tradition. To get the ideas flowing, I called on our ever-helpful Writer Unboxed Facebook community to learn how … [Read more...]

Overcome Fear to Unbox Your Best Writing

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Few things in life fill me with as much fear as writing (and I’ve gone skydiving, held an alligator, and entrusted my heart to another human being, so that’s saying a lot!). Ironically, or maybe not, there are even fewer things that bring me as much joy. There are magical days when I sit down to write and the words just flow. (Ah, those days.) More common are the days when writing feels like a battle. When I lock horns with my story and must wrestle every word onto the page. Whether the … [Read more...]

Author Up Close: Elizabeth Bell—A Quarter-Century in the Making

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For my final installment of my Author Up Close series in 2019, I’m sharing a Q&A with Elizabeth Bell. Elizabeth and I e-met after both finaling in a writing award competition. Elizabeth is a craft genius—no surprise there; she has an MFA from George Mason University and works in the school’s library. When I caught up with her she was launching her novel, Necessary Sins, a James Jones First Novel Fellowship finalist. Her 26-year journey to publishing is fascinating, and our Q&A provides … [Read more...]

How to Write While Not Writing

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Fifteen years ago, I made a commitment to pursue my dream of becoming a published author. This commitment was backed by a promise to write every day. The next morning, I woke before sunrise and got started. As the week progressed, I squeezed in time wherever I could. I lived up to my promise for a solid week. Maybe two. And then my commitment began to waver. Daily became biweekly. Biweekly became sporadic. Soon my abandoned writing goal was met with the same self-criticism as an abandoned … [Read more...]

Are You a Student?

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A few months ago, my husband and I attended a tour of architecturally significant homes in Sarasota, Florida. Inside the residences, we were left to explore and discover their treasures for ourselves. The experience was heightened by the presence of local artisans at work. For people who love real estate and art, it was a gift inside a gift. Open the door to the mid-century modern home on Siesta Key and you would be greeted first by floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked a mangrove-lined creek … [Read more...]

Breaking out of the Genre Pigeonhole: Tips From a Romance-Turned-Mainstream Novelist

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Under the pen name Anna Schmidt, Jo Schmidt has written over thirty novels that have collectively sold over half a million copies. She is also the author of Parkinson’s Disease for Dummies and several books on eldercare published by AARP. Her latest novel, The Winterkeeper (March 2019) is her first literary fiction release. A former marketing and communications professional for two international corporations who has also taught at the college level and run a Mom-and-Pop adult daycare business … [Read more...]

Big Publishers, Small Publishers, and Contract Negotiations

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In a previous post, I wrote about the ‘red lines’ that authors and publishers alike might encounter in book contract negotiations. In this post, which like the earlier one is drawn from a conference paper I presented late last year, I look at another important question for authors: Are big or small publishers easier to deal with when it comes to contract negotiations? In my home country of Australia, the size and importance of the small and independent press sector has grown exponentially in … [Read more...]

Whose Character Is It Anyway?

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Recently my latest creative pursuit, a departure from my stalled work in progress, has started bumping against a writerly controversy about which I had previously been only vaguely aware, that of authors receiving sharp pushback on their characters and in some cases their entire story concept because of perceived cultural disrespect or disregard. And though my pursuit has to date been a personal one, I still found myself chafing under what at first seemed arbitrary and potentially insurmountable … [Read more...]

Author Up Close: Linda Seed’s Self-Publishing Success

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Welcome to the second installment of Author Up Close, the series that explores several authors’ paths to publishing. If you missed the first in the series, a Q&A with author Fiona Zedde, you can read it here. There are probably as many articles about the perils of self-publishing as there are about the “fall” of traditional publishing. Most of these articles lack nuance and are more concerned with promoting a perceived “right” way to publish while disparaging the “wrong” way. In reality, … [Read more...]