The Battle For E-Rights

In case you haven't heard, literary agent Andrew Wylie, who hasn't been happy with the terms publishers have been offering for e-rights, has decided to open up his own publishing venture and Random House (no doubt the biggest of the Big Six) isn't too happy about the whole idea. What does this mean for us "emerging writers"? Who knows exactly. Sure, some are already prophesying the downfall of print, but it's hard to imagine that will happen very soon. In terms of Wylie and large advances though, this is definitely worth thinking about:

In what may just be a good piece of publishing apocrypha, Wylie himself is reported to have said that if an author ever earns out an advance, he hasn’t done his job. Whether that’s accurate or not, industry players will readily agree that Wylie is among the best in the business in getting publishers to pony up. But by choosing to publish his own e-book editions, isn’t Wylie moving his business a step away from his prime customer (the editor with the fat corporate checkbook) and a step toward the fickle tastes and maxed-out credit cards of consumers?

Time, as always, will tell.