Deciding whether to sell your copyright is one of the most important choices an author makes. You may need cash now. You may want a publisher to handle marketing, translation, and distribution. However, complete copyright sales aren’t the only option; you can also sell or license specific rights (by language, country, or format) and retain the rest. That middle path often gives you the best of both worlds: income and reach without signing away everything you’ve created.
Below, I’ll walk through the real benefits and trade-offs of selling rights, how partial-rights sales work, where PubMatch and the Stable Book Group fit in, and how CombinedBook’s services, from targeted campaigns to a high-impact New book display, help authors promote their work while retaining the rights that matter.
Why authors sell (and what they actually sell)
There’s more to “selling your copyright” than meets the eye. You can sell:
- Translation rights (e.g., Spanish translation for Spain and Latin America)
- Territorial rights (e.g., US rights, UK rights, Australian rights)
- Format rights (audio, ebook, print)
- Dramatic rights (film & TV)
- Merchandising or serial rights
Many authors retain English-language or world-English rights, then sell translation or regional rights to publishers who are best positioned to know those markets. That way, your book reaches readers worldwide while you retain creative control at home.
Pros: Why selling rights can make sense
- Immediate income and cash flow. An advance or lump sum for a specific territory can fund your next book, marketing expenses, or living costs.
- Local market expertise. Foreign publishers bring language skills, cultural nuance, and local marketing channels, often essential for a successful translation.
- Distribution of muscle without the headache. Selling rights can get your work into local bookstores, libraries, and media in ways you likely couldn’t manage alone.
However, remember that what you sell is gone (for the term you agreed to). So brilliant authors sell selectively.
Cons: what you risk and how partial sales soften the blow
- Loss of control over sold rights. If you grant exclusive rights in a territory, the buyer decides how the work is marketed and priced there.
- Limited upside. If a sold-rights edition becomes a worldwide hit or the basis for a major adaptation, your future earnings depend entirely on what the contract promised.
- Reclaiming rights can be tricky. Unless you negotiate solid reversion clauses (including time limits, sales triggers, or out-of-print provisions), reclaiming rights later can be challenging.
Selling only translation or territorial rights reduces those risks. You retain the rights that matter most to your long-term plans while opening up strategic new revenue streams.
PubMatch, Stable Book Group, and where to offer rights
Rights marketplaces, such as PubMatch, are specialized platforms where authors, agents, and publishers connect to discover and acquire rights. Listing specific rights (for example, “Spanish-language rights Spain & Mexico only”) helps you target the right buyers.
The publishing landscape continues to evolve, with new distribution partnerships and publisher collectives making it easier for small publishers to enter new markets quickly. That can be good news: increased visibility and more potential buyers for the specific rights you want to sell.
How CombinedBook helps you sell smarter – and keep what matters
If you’d rather not assign global copyright, CombinedBook offers an alternative path:
- Targeted marketing campaigns that build sales and presence for the rights you keep (for example, world English).
- Rights-ready materials, clean metadata, sell sheets, and localized marketing assets you can use on PubMatch or in rights pitches.
- Event placement and new-book displays that attract agents and foreign publishers without forcing you to transfer ownership.
- Global distribution channels, so you don’t have to sell certain rights just to reach readers overseas.
- Long-term promotion so your retained rights continue to earn and grow in value.
CombinedBook’s blend of marketing and distribution means you can use services like New book display placements and specialized book marketing services for self-published authors to raise your book’s profile, making partial-rights deals more attractive and valuable.
A simple checklist for a partial-rights sale
- Decide which rights you will definitely keep (every day: world English).
- Choose what to offer (language, territory, format). Be specific.
- Price and term: set an advance/royalty basis and a term length. Negotiate reversion triggers.
- Scope the license: exclusive vs. non-exclusive; digital vs. print vs. audio.
- Use a rights marketplace (such as PubMatch) and prepare a concise, rights-specific listing.
- Consult a publishing lawyer or agent before signing.
Real example (short and practical)
You keep world English rights. You offer French translation rights for France and Canada on PubMatch. A small French house offers a five-year exclusive license with a clause that grants the rights to revert if sales fall below X copies in a year. You accept. CombinedBook continues promoting your English edition, while the French publisher handles translation, local promotion, and distribution.
Final thoughts – pick the path that fits your goals
Selling rights can be a smart move, but selling selectively is often a more innovative approach. Use marketplaces like PubMatch to sell only the rights you don’t want to manage, and use CombinedBook’s book marketing services for self-published authors and New book display opportunities to boost your book’s value without giving up control.
Want help creating a rights plan that aligns with your goals? Contact CombinedBook for a complimentary rights-readiness review and a customized marketing plan that preserves the rights you want and markets the rest strategically.
