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Step 1: Before Signing the Contract

Author: GoodNovel Academy
last update Last Updated: 2024-10-29 19:42:56

# How do I apply for a contract?

To publish a book on our platform, please follow these steps:

  1. Account Registration: Begin by registering an account on our website.

  2. Book Submission: Proceed to upload your manuscript, dividing it into

    appropriate chapters.

Upon initiating a new book entry, both the synopsis and book cover will undergo a review process to ensure compliance with copyright regulations and to verify the absence of inappropriate content. Typically, this evaluation spans 10-14 business days, though the duration may fluctuate based on the current review queue. Once approved, your book will be ready for publication and will become eligible for contract consideration. We kindly ask that you refrain from inundating our editorial team with inquiries during this period.

After contributing more than 5,000 words, navigate to your personal page (accessible by clicking on your avatar) and select the “Apply for contract” option to forward your application. Our editorial team will subsequently evaluate your submission to determine its suitability for a contractual agreement.

#How do you review a book that applied for a contract? 

After you have successfully submitted your contract application, your application will enter our background system and wait in line to be reviewed. It usually takes about 2-4 weeks to review an application. Sometimes it’ll be quicker and sometimes it may be slower, depending on how many books we have under review.

In the world of traditional publishing, you can wait months – sometimes years – for your book to be published. We move much faster than that. We know that you are eager to hear if your book will be accepted, but we expect and appreciate your patience during this process.

For every book, we will read the first 10 chapters before we decide if the book is up to our standards or not, taking into account all aspects of your story, such as background setting, character, plot twists, etc. This is why it’s vital that you submit a detailed outline with your application: we need a strong sense of how the story will conclude in order to make our decision. 

You may be curious about the criteria our editorial team uses to evaluate the merits of a manuscript. We seek excellent stories: they should maintain a consistent pace, incorporate engaging plot developments, contain numerous cliffhangers, present well-developed characters, and convey compelling motives and conflicts. While narratives that don't align with these parameters aren't necessarily of lesser value—after all, literature's appeal is subjective—those that meet our criteria tend to resonate with a broader audience.

To monitor the progress of your application, you can revisit the "apply for contract" section.

Upon conclusion of our assessment, we'll communicate our decision through email or by posting a message on your book's detail page. The editor reaching out to you will be assigned as your dedicated editor for all subsequent submissions. Please do not hesitate to engage them with any questions or clarifications you might have.

#When I upload my book, it immediately says "in review" and won't publish. What does it mean?

All newly uploaded books need to be reviewed first in case there are any copyright issues or pornography involved. If your book has no such issues, then it'll be approved in 1 or 2 work days, please wait patiently until it gets approved. You are still able to add new chapters and edit your book while it's in review.

#I can't publish my book; it says my book cover/synopsis involves infringement/pornography.

When we reject a new book, we always give a reason. you can change your book cover or synopsis accordingly and try again.

# What genres of novels do you accept?

All genres are welcome. Although we have more romance novels right now, we're slowly changing that and trying to make our platform more diverse.

# How many words should I write in each chapter?

We suggest you to keep your each chapter between 1k-1.5k words. This isn’t a hard and fast rule, but readers might balk at chapters that fall short or go too far over this wordcount. You can adjust your chapter's length according to your own needs.

#Are there specific guidelines for book covers?

While authors are encouraged to design their unique book covers, there are essential guidelines to keep in mind:

  1. Copyright Adherence: Please make sure that any images used have the requisite

    permissions or licenses. Unauthorized usage of an artist's work is strictly prohibited.

  2. Content Restrictions: Given our compliance requirements with platforms

    like G****e Play, App Store, and F******k, we uphold strict content guidelines.

    Covers depicting explicit content, including overtly sexual imagery,

    indications of violence (e.g., firearms, knives, blood),

    or elements promoting harmful behavior to adolescents (such as tobacco or alcohol),

    will be deemed inappropriate.

  3. Recommendations: Based on our analysis, a majority of readers demonstrate

    a preference for covers featuring real people. However, please refrain from

    using images of celebrities. 

Your adherence to these guidelines ensures smooth approval during our book cover review process.

#I am underage (under 21), how do I sign a legit contract with you?

If you’re underage, you have to ask your parent (or your legal guardian) to sign a underage confirmation form on your behalf, stating that they are aware of your intention to sign the contract and that they approve it. Then the rest is the same as all the other contracts.

# Can I use my student card as ID?

No. You must use a government issued ID.

# Can non-English books get Exclusive contracts?

We are offering exclusive contracts for English, Spanish, French, Indonesian and Filipino books for now. We’re going to build our multi-language editor team and hope that we can offer exclusive contracts for good stories in other languages the future. If the book is not a translation book from English, we suggest you use one language per account.

#If I have a contract with you for my book, can I translate it into another language and enter into a new contract for the translation?

No. Once you sign a contract with us for a specific language version of your book, we retain the rights to translations of that book. Essentially, if you've agreed to a non-exclusive contract for an English version of your novel and later translate it to Indonesian, both the English and Indonesian versions must maintain non-exclusive status on our platform.

#Can Fanfiction secure a contract?

The short answer is, “No.” While we genuinely appreciate the breadth of content authors wish to share on our platform, when it comes to fanfiction, we are constrained in the contracts we can extend due to copyright considerations.

For book covers, we strongly advise against using images that may infringe on copyright protections.

Public domain intellectual properties, encompassing characters, themes, and narratives, are available for unrestricted use and are eligible for our contract offers. However, recent films, books, and games, including but not limited to franchises like Marvel, Harry Potter, DOTA, League of Legends, and animations such as Avatar, Naruto, and One Piece, remain under copyright protection. Consequently, we're unable to extend contract offers for works based on these properties. Nonetheless, we warmly welcome these contributions to our platform and hope that it serves as a vibrant community for like-minded enthusiasts.

To ascertain the copyright status of the source material for your fanfiction, please consult: https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?DB=local&PAGE=First. Works within the public domain are freely accessible and, if your fanfiction is derivative of them, may qualify for our contracts.


 

 

Comments (2)
goodnovel comment avatar
Bwalya
it's very helpful and well explained
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Zinnygold
A very great explanation
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