Royalties and Book Pricing

How is the price of my book determined?
How much royalty do I earn from each book sold?
How does CrossBooks calculate royalty payments?
What's the difference between a Web sale and Channel Sale?
When is the price of my book determined?
Can I purchase copies of my book at a discounted price?
What is the volume discount schedule for author purchased books?
Am I paid royalties on books I purchase?
How am I paid for my book sales?
When am I paid? What's the payment schedule (quarterly schedule)?
When is my EFT information updated?
How can I track my royalties and book sales?
Can I split the payment with another co-author?
Can I arrange for someone else to receive my royalty payments?
I've noticed my book being sold as "used" on websites, but I have not received payment; why haven't I been paid?
Why is my book listed at a different price on certain sites?
How do I know that I am being paid fairly for my book sales?
Why does CrossBooks need my Social Security number?
I do not have a Social Security number because I am not a U.S. Citizen. What now?
Will CrossBooks send me a 1099 to report additional income from royalty payments?

How is the price of my book determined?

CrossBooks determines the right price for your book based on genre and page count. This allows us to maximize both the number of books sold and the highest profitability for you. The book price covers the print cost of your book, determined by a fixed cost for the cover and page count, plus the distribution cost and royalty amount. With years of experience in both traditional and self-publishing book sales, we price books to compete with any other traditional trade-quality books on the market, while our authors earn the high royalty payment that they deserve.

For more information about the price of E-books, click here.

How much royalty do I earn from each book sold?

You will receive 50 percent of the payments received from the sales of your e-book, less any distribution and technology fees, taxes and returns. Royalties will not be paid on copies provided free of charge or sold to the author. For more information about E-book royalties click here.

We will help guide you through the book pricing process. Please feel free to email us with any questions.

How does CrossBooks calculate royalty payments?

Royalties are based on the payments we actually receive from the sale of printed or electronic (e-book) copies of your book, minus any shipping and handling charges or sales and use taxes. Also, we offer discounts to retail and wholesale customers, so the royalty amount you receive depends on what type of customer bought your book and any discount they received. Retail discounts range between 36 and 55 percent.

Here's an example of a common sales transaction:
The cover price (list price) for your book is $17.95. Your royalty rate is 50 percent. A retailer places an order for your book through Ingram Book Company, a wholesaler. Ingram, in turn, purchases your book from CrossBooks at a 55 percent discount (our standard discount to wholesalers). Ingram then resells the book to the retailer. Your royalty on this sale of your soft cover book will be calculated as follows:

Retail Sale Example:
$17.95 (SRP "Suggested Retail Price")
- $9.87 (55% Retail Discount)
= $8.08 (Net Retail Discount)
- $4.97 (COGS "Cost of Goods Sold")
= $3.11 (Net “Cost of Goods Sold”)
x  50% (Royalty Rate)
=  $1.56 (Royalty Earned)

Web Sale Example:
$17.95 (SRP "Suggested Retail Price")
- $4.97 (COGS "Cost of Goods Sold")
= $12.98 (Net COGS)
x  50% (Royalty Rate)
= $6.49 (Royalty Earned)

You should be aware that the largest retailers, including Barnes & Noble and Amazon, place orders for CrossBooks titles through Ingram; those orders will appear as wholesale sales on your royalty statement.

What's the difference between a Web sale and Channel Sale?

Web sales are books sold directly through CrossBooks, either through our website or through one of our representatives to an individual. Channel sales occur when your book is sold through another retail channel, such as Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, or when we sell directly to the retailer.

When will I know the price of my book?

When you submit your manuscript to us we are able to determine how many pages your book will have, the genre and the cover cost, all things we need to know to set the price of your book. When we send you the electronic proof of your book we will include an estimated price for your review. The final price will be set at the end of the production process.

Can I purchase copies of my book at a discounted price?

Yes, you can contact us directly to receive a discounted author price for books. Plus, if you order a larger quantity books, you'll receive a volume discount on top of your author discount.

What is the volume discount schedule for author purchased books?

As a CrossBooks author, you are able to purchase copies of your book for a discounted price as mentioned in the previous FAQ. You'll also receive a larger discount as you order a greater number of copies. The price of the cost per book depends on the book format and page count.

Paperback Discounts:

Book Quantity

Discount *

1-24

30%

25-49

35%

50-99

40%

100-249

45%

250-499

50%

500-999

55%

1000-1999

60%

2000+

Call for a Quote

Hardcover and Color Book Discounts:

Book Quantity

Discount *

1-24

20%

25-49

30%

50-99

35%

100-249

40%

250-499

45%

500+
50%

* Orders must be for a single title, same print format and ship to a single address; we cannot accommodate mix and match orders. All volume discount orders must be prepaid, and shipping charges are not included. Author purchases do not generate royalties and are non-returnable. These purchases do not include author event discount purchases.

You can see how these volume discounts are extremely profitable if you are in a situation where you expect to sell a large number of books. Let's look at a real-life example:

Imagine that you are speaking at an event where you hope to sell 100 copies of your book which has a suggested retail price of $17.95. With your volume discount, you purchase 100 copies of your books at $9.87 for a total of $987.00:

Quantity: 100

Purchase Cost per Book: $9.87

Subtotal: $987.00

Shipping (approximate): $50.00

Total Investment: $1,037.00

You are free to sell your book for whatever price you choose at the event. So, imagine that you decide sell them for "special discounted event price" of only $15.00 (instead of the regular price of $17.95). Let's assume that you sell all 100 books:

Quantity Sold: 100

Sales Price per Book: $15.00

Gross Total: $1,500.00

Total Cost for Books: $1,037.00

Total Revenue: $463.00

Even if you don't sell all 100 books, you'd only have to sell 69 copies to recoup your investment in the book order.

As you can see, CrossBooks volume author discounts present wonderful opportunities for our authors to compete in the marketplace.

Am I paid royalties on books I purchase?

It depends on how you place the order. If you place an order through a CrossBooks representative and receive your author discount, then no, you will not receive a royalty payment, since you received the royalty discount up front. If you order directly through our website, then yes, you will receive a royalty payment because you will pay full price upon purchase.

How am I paid for my book sales?

We pay the royalties for your book sales by check on a quarterly basis. When royalty earnings for your book reach $75.00 or more, we pay out your royalties. We will continue to hold your royalties until the balance due is $75.00 or higher.

When am I paid? What's the payment schedule (quarterly schedule)?

1st Quarter - Jan. 1 to March 31: Checks are mailed in late May
2nd Quarter - April 1 to June 30: Checks are mailed in late August
3rd Quarter - July 1 to Sept. 30: Checks are mailed in late November
4th Quarter - Oct. 1 to Dec. 31: Checks are mailed in late February

For each quarter, you are paid for the books sold and shipped within the given time frame. If a book was purchased online on March 30, but the book was not actually printed and shipped until April 2, then you would be paid in the 2nd quarter, not the 1st, since the book didn't ship until the 2nd quarter.

You will only be paid once for the original book sale. For instance, if a book is resold in secondhand stores, you will not earn a royalty on the purchase, since we have no way of tracking these sales. Also, you earn a royalty when a retailer purchases your book for their store (when the book is printed), but not when the consumer actually purchases the book off the shelf.

Please note: It requires approximately two months after the quarter closes until the royalty payments are sent to you. We do not receive the information reporting sales through distribution until 30 days after the close of the quarter. Then, we need additional time to verify, compile and send the information to you.

When is my EFT information updated?

We update new or modified EFT information on January 31, April 30, July 31 and October 31. To ensure your royalty funds are transferred to your preferred account, please make sure your account information is accurate prior to these dates. Changes made after these dates will be reflected on the following pay cycle.

How can I track my royalties and book sales?

Book sales are reported on the statements distributed with royalty checks each quarter. Sales information is complied after the close of each quarter, and we are not privy to mid-quarter details of channel sales.

Can I split the payment with another co-author?

No, we currently do not offer the option of splitting the royalty payment between individuals due to tax restrictions. You can, of course, do whatever you wish with the royalty payments once you receive them, but such payment deals with co-authors are entirely your responsibility.

Can I arrange for someone else to receive my royalty payments?

Yes, you can, but only if you transfer the rights of your agreement with CrossBooks to that person entirely. They will also hold the copyright for the book, but not the content of the book or your manuscript. If you would like to arrange this, please contact our customer support team.

I've noticed my book being sold as "used" on websites, but I have not received payment; why haven't I been paid?

Often, retailers list books on their websites and advertise that they have "new and used" copies of books. Retailers use this as a marketing tool to entice the consumer by frequently offering a small discount on used versions. This does not necessarily mean that they have an actual copy of your book on hand, which is most likely the case if you have not been paid a royalty for the book sale. If any books are sold to a retailer, you will earn the retail royalty amount that was previously agreed upon.

If a retailer or third party is actually selling a used copy of the book, you would have already been paid for the original sale.

Why is my book listed at a different price on certain sites?

When you purchase a publishing package, your book is circulated to various retail channels through Ingram and Spring Arbor, our distributors. Retailers can list the selling price of your book at whatever price they wish, although most follow the suggested retail price which you select. However, some retailers may choose to list the book higher or lower than the suggested retail price, which is completely within their rights. Regardless of what a retailer sells your book for, you will always receive the retail royalty amount agreed to during the production of your book.

How do I know that I am being paid fairly for my book sales?

You will be provided with a royalty statement showing book sales and royalty payment details. The statements are compiled and cross-examined by multiple parties to ensure an accurate record of royalty payments.

Both our printer and distributor employ independent auditing firms to verify the book sales data. Additionally, a globally recognized accounting firm conducts yearly audits of our finances to ensure accuracy.

If you feel there has been an error in your royalty payment report, you can always contact our customer support team.

Why does CrossBooks need my Social Security number?

We require your social security number to comply with the government's tax regulations. Since you have the opportunity to earn additional income from book sales, the government requires that you pay taxes on the total earnings. The W-9 form allows you to provide a Taxpayer Identification Number, or TIN. If you are publishing your book under your own name or a pen name, your TIN is your Social Security number. If you are publishing under a business name, or you want your royalty check to be addressed to a business, you can enter your employer identification number instead of your personal Social Security number.

If you do not supply your taxpayer ID number, we are required to withhold taxes at the rate of 28% of total earnings. If you supply us with your taxpayer ID at a later date, we cannot return the withheld tax money because we do not retain these funds - it is passed onto the government by law. You can speak to a tax professional about how to report this at the end of the tax year in order to receive a tax return for any additional amount that you are due.

I do not have a Social Security number because I am not a U.S. Citizen. What now?

Even if you live outside of the United States you will still earn a royalty just as our American authors do, but we are required to withhold 30 percent of your royalty earnings. This percentage will be withheld unless you apply for a foreign tax number by submitting a W-8BEN. With a foreign tax ID, we're no longer required to withhold taxes. Any money that was previously collected can be reclaimed with your taxes at the end of the year, but we cannot repay it.

For more information, or to download a W-8BEN, visit www.irs.gov.

Will CrossBooks send me a 1099 to report additional income from royalty payments?

If you earned $20.00 or more in royalties within a fiscal year, we will automatically send you a 1099 statement. (Non U.S. citizens will receive a 1042, very similar to the 1099.) The 1099 reports your additional income in royalties during the 1st, 2nd and 3rd quarter of the current year and the 4th quarter of the previous year. It is the form you need to use to report taxes showing additional earning or contractual work. If the total earned is less than $20.00, then the IRS does not require you to report these earnings, so we will not send you a 1099 form.

If you have further questions that concern taxes, please contact a tax professional.