{"id":297,"date":"2021-01-13T18:32:06","date_gmt":"2021-01-13T18:32:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squeezethatlemon.net\/?page_id=297"},"modified":"2021-02-15T18:30:20","modified_gmt":"2021-02-15T18:30:20","slug":"maximise-your-income-as-as-author-illustrator-etc","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.squeezethatlemon.net\/index.php\/maximise-your-income-as-as-author-illustrator-etc\/","title":{"rendered":"Ten Starter Steps"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Ten Starting Steps - How to Maximise Your Income as an Author, Illustrator, etc.<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Do you want to maximise your income as an author,\u00a0 illustrator or other type published work contributor such as translators, narrators, etc.,? Are you unsure about what’s available to you right now? We at Squeeze that Lemon feel that maybe there is not enough awareness amount authors \/ writers, illustrators etc. about claiming more money from things like Public Lending Right (PLR), secondary use royalties for photocopying,\u00a0 and other sources of passive (well sort of passive) income for their published and\/or broadcast work.\u00a0 So we decided to share with you all we knew, and we don\u2019t pretend to know it all.\u00a0 Below is our ten starter tips that we would like to share share with you.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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We have been doing this for authors \/ illustrators for some time and have been helping them shamelessly squeezing that lemon for all its worth.\u00a0 It can makes a reasonable difference to their income and, therefore, can be true for other illustrators, authors etc. too.\u00a0 If there are any ideas or schemes, that are legal that is, that we have not mentioned below then please get in touch as we are always learning more and would love to share as much as possible with everyone else so that they can Squeeze that Lemon too. Thanks.<\/p>

As you start reading through the ideas below you will begin to realize that you are going to need a register of all your published and broadcast work in the format that you can easily refer to and abstract information from as needed.\u00a0 For more on how to create a register of all your published and broadcast work please follow the link to my page on how to\u00a0Create an\u00a0Asset Register, a Log of All Your Published Works, from Scratch.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>

Reading the below back we can see that we have written this from an illustrators view, however, authors and other contributors can copy the ideas and do the same through their affiliated organisations.\u00a0 We have also now created separate articles for as many of the headings as we can to share as much of the details as we know, links to these can be found at the bottom of this page.\u00a0 Most of our information comes direct from the websites of the collecting societies or from our correspondence with them.<\/p>

Enough talking, time to get down to it, here are some tips and ideas to follow to help you maximise your income as an illustrator, author, translator, narrator, etc., you make your own luck in life so let\u2019s do this:-<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Recommended Reading : How to Create a Register or Log of All Your Published Works, from Scratch.<\/a><\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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1) Join the UK Public Lending Rights (PLR) System.<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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This is the Public Lending Rights through UK libraries.\u00a0 Basically every time a book of yours is taken out of the library you get a few pence.\u00a0 This does not sound much but it quickly adds up to hundreds if not thousands of pounds.\u00a0 There is a cap of about \u00a36,600 that any one illustrator, author etc. can claim.\u00a0 This is funded by the UK government.<\/p>

Once you have joined add every book you have done.\u00a0 The criterion is that if a book has a unique\u00a0International Standard Book Number (ISBN)<\/strong>\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0then add it.\u00a0 So if you have Paperback, Hardback, Board book, eBook or any different variation of that book, it will have its own ISBN number.\u00a0 You will have to input the same book multiple times for each separate ISBN.\u00a0 If there are 10 versions put all 10 in.\u00a0 Put in the Welsh and Scottish Gaelic versions too and keep going \u2026. You only need to input the information once and then it is there forever.\u00a0 You get statements and payment once a year.\u00a0\u00a0For more information and details please read our separate page on PLR by\u00a0clicking here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>

For more information on how to start collating your ISBNs\u00a0click here \u2026.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Recommended Reading : How to Claim Public Lending Rights.<\/a><\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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2) Irish Public Lending Rights.<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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As the UK has a reciprocal agreement with Ireland we can also claim Irish PLR through PLR UK.\u00a0 You can claim via the UK PLR system and it is done automatically (make sure you have checked all the right boxes to claim). You don\u2019t get anywhere near as much but nevertheless it is very very welcome.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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3) Other Public Lending Rights Schemes.<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Illustrators, authors etc. in the UK and Ireland\u00a0can also claim PLR from some other countries that the UK has reciprocal agreements with such as Austria, France and a handful of others.\u00a0 Though interestingly\u00a0 for illustrators you can only claim via\u00a0ALCS<\/a><\/strong>, which is the Author\u2019s Licensing and Collecting Society.\u00a0 There is a formula they use which to this day we have not figured out, but it words and we are thankful for all they do.\u00a0 The upshot is some books are accepted with the correct royalty percentage and others not and we have no real understanding as to why.\u00a0 Hey that is life and we are not complaining at all.\u00a0 For more information and details please read our separate page on PLR by\u00a0clicking here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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4) Secondary Use Royalties.<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Authors of books, magazines, journals and scripts can make claims for money due for secondary use of their work through the Authors\u2019 Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS<\/a><\/strong>).\u00a0 \u00a0ALCS collects two main types of income for everyone who writes or contributes to books, magazines and journals.\u00a0 The first, and biggest of the two, is licences issued by the Copyright Licencing Agency (CLA), which offers licensing options for businesses, educational institutions, and government agencies for copying or scanning works, and licences issued by the Publishers\u2019 Licencing Service (PLS) to licence reproduction rights on behalf of its member organisations.\u00a0 The second is from the overseas PLR from countries the UK has reciprocal agreements with.\u00a0 Basically in a nutshell for UK and Irish authors and illustrators etc. to claim payments from PLR systems operating in a number of other European countries such as Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Austria, you need to register your works with ALCS who administer the reciprocal PLR agreements with other countries.\u00a0 As ALCS allows you to register not only books but also any contributions you have made to magazines, journals and scripts, you don\u2019t just need a full list of all you books\u2019\u00a0ISBN<\/a><\/strong>s, you will also need the\u00a0International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)<\/strong>\u00a0<\/a>for any magazine or journal your work has been published in too.<\/p>

For script writers ALCS also collects several types of income including re-transmission of works broadcast on TV and radio, educational recording and private copying (in most European countries, a levy is charged on the sale of recording and copying equipment. This is usually referred to as a private copying levy and is intended to compensate rights owners for the reuse of their works).<\/p>

ALCS has reciprocal agreements with over 55 collecting societies around the world and makes full use of the European Union (EU) 1992 Directive on Lending and Rental Right established a copyright framework for the recognition of authors\u2019 lending rights by Member States.\u00a0 For more information and details please read our separate page on how to claim secondary use royalties through ALCS by\u00a0clicking here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Recommended Reading : How to Claim Secondary Use Royalties through ALCS.<\/a><\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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5) Designers and Artists Collecting Society (DACS) Payback.<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Very basically Payback is an annual scheme run by DACS to distribute the money owed to visual artists or artists\u2019 estates by various collective licensing schemes, such as TV broadcasts and educational recording.\u00a0 The main money earner here is from the Copyright Licencing Agency (CLA) which sells photocopying licences.\u00a0 So\u00a0when someone in a school, university, public sector organisation or other type of business wants to photocopy pages from a book which features your work, as the creator of the work being photocopied, you are entitled to a royalty.\u00a0 Rather than ask the person to contact you every time they photocopy your work, the organisation pays an annual licence fee that covers the photocopying of copyright-protected works.\u00a0\u00a0The money is then split into royalty shares for different types of creators: authors, publishers and visual artists whose work has been featured in UK publications.<\/p>

As a visual artist, you can claim your royalties through DACS\u00a0Payback<\/a>.<\/strong>\u00a0 Authors etc. can claim the same through their respective organisation. As you can image there is no way of knowing who copied what or how many times. Far too cumbersome.\u00a0 So DACS collects all this money then divvies out the total between all those who apply\u00a0 This again is a form to fill in each year.\u00a0 They decide how much to give you based on a formula, i.e. how many books and how many illustrations, and how many uses of those illustrations, also magazines etc.\u00a0 So you have to add up every illustration you have ever done.\u00a0 So you must keep good records.<\/p>

The good thing is as its now an online form the old one is still there as a reminder and all you have to do is update it if you have done loads more since the previous year.\u00a0 You also have to give example ISBN or ISSN numbers for 3 books or 3 magazines etc.<\/p>

The payments can be several hundred pounds and are paid out once a year. \u00a0For more information and details please read my separate page on how to claim DACS Payback by\u00a0clicking here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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“I register with ALCS, DACS, and PLR. …… I then simply follow the instructions on the website and enter the ISBN numbers. title, author, illustrator etc.<\/em><\/p><\/div>

The websites are all well designed, well managed and easy, but time consuming to complete, especially if you do not update regularly.\u00a0\u00a0It can be very time consuming but it has to be done.”<\/span><\/em><\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Korky Paul – Children\u2019s Book Award Winner and one of the top 50 most borrowed illustrators from UK public libraries.<\/span><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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6) Dutch Public Lending Rights.<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Yes it gets yet more confusing, but visual artists can claim Dutch PLR, but this time through DACS, the Designers and Artists Collecting Society (also photographers).\u00a0 You have to remember to fill in a form each year online and there is a deadline!! Forget and you don\u2019t get.\u00a0 This PLR was introduced only a few years ago.\u00a0 The pot of money is only so big.\u00a0 Also DACS is not sure how much longer this will go on for and may eventually stop altogether.\u00a0 Funding is probably the issue as it is, as usual, government funded.\u00a0 Also with the UK having left the EU this may influence these decisions.\u00a0 So apply while it lasts is our opinion.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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7) German Royalties.<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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New developments, as of 2019 artists and estates can now apply for royalties if their work has been published in Germany, thanks to the partnership between DACS and the German collecting society VG Bild-Kunst.\u00a0 So if you are a UK based artist or estate who has had work published on a German website, in a German book or featured in a German art exhibition, you may be eligible to apply for royalties.\u00a0 The forms are quite straightforward to fill in.\u00a0 There is a deadline for submitting, which is normally in the middle June, however, best to get yourself on the DACS mailing list as things always change. Remember every little bit counts.\u00a0 More information below and on the DACS\u00a0<\/strong><\/a>website.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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