"Personal" question(s) to John Jarrold

[Gary Compton]

Hmmm, I think we were in danger of slipping into Carry-On Film territory there ...

But maybe that's not a bad thing: "Carry-On Chrons" ... It has got a bit of a ring to it. Perhaps we should all collaborate on the script.

Ah, if only Sid James was still around ...

I got this from John's homepage, there is a likeness maybe he could stand in for him.

I'll do Kenneth Wiliams - "Carry on Chrons" here we come!!

 

[Sylvetra_Snake]

I can't tell the difference. Honest I can't!

 

[Gary Compton]

I can't tell the difference. Honest I can't!

Are you on the Newcastle Brown Ale Sylvetra Snake?

 

[Sylvetra_Snake]

I cannot stand the taste of beer, it is a man's drink really. I drink mostly white wine and cider, and vodka and cocktails and that is about it. I don't drink that much either, sadly, i think i have a drink problem actually, the problem is i DON'T drink.

 

[Gary Compton]

You sound like a cheap night out thats not meant to be sexist.



XXX

 

[Gary Compton]

I can't tell the difference. Honest I can't!

I have laughed all night about this comment. If she was serious its the funniest thing I've heard for a while...bless her it made my night.

I can just imagine her saying.

'That agent John Jarrold is the double of Sid James.' she said with a serious look on her face. 'Never!' the lonely woman at alcoholics annonamous replied.

Gone to bed with pains in my side...tee and several hee's

 

[John Jarrold]

If you've all quite finished...!!!???

 

[Gary Compton]

Still laughing

I apologise unreservedly to John Jarrold, Sid James and Sylvetra Snake

You've got to smile though!!

 

[John Jarrold]

Onwards! More questions, please...

 

[Flemcodogmusic]

Here's one that I've been wondering about lately ...

If a hypothetical writer gets paid an advance of £5000, but only manages to sell £2000 worth of books ... is the writer then in debt to the publisher for the remaining amount?

(Not that it's a problem I can see myself facing anytime soon ...)

 

[John Jarrold]

No, the advance is not repayable - once it is paid to the author (usually in parts on contract, delivery and publication), it is theirs. But it is an advance against royalties, so no royalties accrue until the advance is earned out in sales, foreign rights deals, etc.

 

[Gary Compton]

So on that level of advance, how many sales would be considered a success and what could an author earn on that particular book if it went worldwide etc?

 

[John Jarrold]

Sorry, no one answer, as ever. Every book is different. It's impossible to pin these things down, Gary, so don't try! It ain't like selling baked beans, as I've said before. One book might sell in twenty overseas territories, another in one or two.

But in terms of sales on the major, UK edition, on an advance of £5000 - if you were publishing a paperback original - you might want to sell around 15,000 copies between the UK and its export markets (mostly the Commonwealth).

 

[Gary Compton]

So you know somebody like Ian Rankin, I read somewhere on his website that he sells 500,000 copies per book. Was that me misreading or would that be true.

Also the top ten sellers you see in book shops are they around the 15,000 sales mark or hundreds of thousands?

 

[John Jarrold]

Top ten novels in the UK are usually selling hundreds of thousands of paperbacks.
They also receive advances of FAR more than £5000 - and I'm sure what Ian Rankin is saying is true.

But if we are talking about first novels, expectations have to be sensible. It took Ian Rankin many years to break out, as it does most authors.

 

[Gary Compton]

Top ten novels in the UK are usually selling hundreds of thousands of paperbacks.
They also receive advances of FAR more than £5000 - and I'm sure what Ian Rankin is saying is true.

But if we are talking about first novels, expectations have to be sensible. It took Ian Rankin many years to break out, as it does most authors.

Yeah I read his first published novel only sold under a 1000 copies and its just been re-released.

Thanks John

 

[Gary Compton]

Congratulations John on 1000 posts...gold watch in the post!!

 

[John Jarrold]

Hoorah! And thanks to all of you for the questions. Keep 'em coming!

I don't have any alcohol in the house, so I shall toast myself with a nice cup of tea...

 

[Gary Compton]

Hoorah! And thanks to all of you for the questions. Keep 'em coming!

I don't have any alcohol in the house, so I shall toast myself with a nice cup of tea...

I'll send a bottle of broon down to you - special delivery.

 

[Sylvetra_Snake]

I was wondering that if an agent asked for more of my book (fingers and toes crossed), would it be all right for me to offer a re-written prologue and a longer word-count?

I am currently adding to the story to tie up a few loose ends and to extend the word-count a little longer. Also, i felt the prologue lacked a lot of the strength the rest of the book has. I wrote it a long time ago so the style was quite different and weaker as a result.

I don't think it will matter too much as i reckon i will get no's from the agents i have sent it to. No biggy, i think i received about twenty no's on my first ever novel, though i can look back and see why lol. It has been a month as well and no replies so i will move on now. I got the Writer's and Artist's yearbook 2009 and it has many agents in it. See what happens.