They’re all reborn, what’s wrong with being a little more almighty?

Chapter 196 You have to shout "Sir"

In the American literary world, McCarthy is indeed very popular. A letter of recommendation directly increased the royalties from 6% to 9%, which is the maximum for ordinary writers.

This price has already met Zhang Wei's psychological expectations. Zhang Wei also knows very well that it is almost impossible for Amazon to give a higher price, because 10% of the royalties is the threshold for best-selling authors.

But Zhang Wei did not agree immediately. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Mr. Thomas, thank you very much for your trust. I am also very satisfied with the 9% figure, but I have another plan. I don't know if you have any." Not interested in listening."

"Speaking!"

"I wonder if you are interested in signing a gambling agreement with me." Zhang Wei smiled slightly and continued: "I only want 5% of the royalties, but for every 1 additional copies sold, I will receive an additional 15% of the royalties, with a cap of %,how do you feel?"

"Please wait a moment, I'm going to get a calculator." Thomas said and ran outside to get the calculator.

Zhang Wei sighed helplessly. The old American's arithmetic skills were really worrying. Such a simple arithmetic requires a calculator.

After a while, Thomas came in with a computer, paper and pen, and began to write specific numbers on the paper.

"The starting royalty is 5%, if you sell 6 copies, it's 7%, if you sell 8 copies, it's 9%, if you sell copies, it'll be %, if you sell copies, it'll be %."

What do you think is the chance that a new work by a newcomer will sell half a million copies? I think the vast majority of newcomers’ works can sell 10,000 copies!
According to this plan, as long as the sales volume is less than 9 copies, the royalties will be 9%, which is definitely more cost-effective than you giving me a % royalty directly.

Zhang Wei chuckled: "That's why it's called a gambling agreement! There has to be a loss and a profit, and that's called a gambling agreement. Have you ever seen the banker and the gambler at the gambling table both win money? There's always a gamble, and that's it. Do you know winning or losing?

Thomas nodded slightly, Zhang Wei's words still sounded very reasonable.

Amazon's own channels can of course arrange traffic and place advertising spaces according to their own intentions, so as long as the quality of the work is excellent, it is easy to make a work popular by providing more traffic and increasing exposure.

But under normal circumstances, just selling 15 copies is not enough for a writer to get % of the royalties. In addition to sales, many other aspects must be considered, such as personal reputation, influence, etc. "

Selling less than 10,000 copies and charging only one dollar, this is obviously a free whoring clause for the publisher!
For Zhang Wei, this clause is actually just an empty favor. With the quality of "The Hunger Games", how could it be impossible to sell less than 10,000 copies!

The gambling agreement proposed by Zhang Wei requires selling 9 copies to get %, which is equivalent to setting an almost impossible task for himself.

What's more, this is a new work by a newcomer, so the possibility of selling half a million copies is slim. But the publisher has a high probability of winning the bet.

A 15% royalty is the highest industry standard in any country’s publishing market.

Calculated this way, I need to sell the fifth 10 copies before I can get 15% of the royalties, and I need to sell the 55th copies before I can get % of the royalties, and so on. Then for the first copies, you can save a total of % of royalties! "

For example, if you sell 6 copies, the royalties will be calculated at 7%. For the second 7 copies sold, the royalties will be 6%. For this 1%, we only calculate the second copies, and the first copies. It’s still %, no need to pay me an extra %.

"Well, let me take a step back to show my sincerity. Just now I said the starting royalty is 5%. Now I can add another one. If the sales volume of "The Thirst Game" is less than copies, then I will only give you a symbolic royalty. Collect one dollar in royalties!" Zhang Wei said.

With Amazon’s channel capabilities and a little advertising, it’s not difficult to turn half a million copies into one million copies, and one million copies into two hundred copies, right? By then your profits will be enough to make up for your losses. "

So calculated from this level, if you only sell 15 copies of the book without bringing additional influence and brand effect, and give you a % royalty, the publishing house will definitely lose money.

With this in mind, Thomas fell into deep thought. He began to weigh the pros and cons and consider whether to agree.

At this point, Thomas suddenly stopped.

Already very excited to see Thomas, Zhang Wei decided to increase the stakes again.

Just listen to Zhang Wei say: "Mr. Thomas, if you think it is too troublesome to calculate, I can make some concessions. For every 50,000 copies sold, the royalties will be calculated separately.

After all, Amazon's channels are different from traditional book publishers. Amazon's book publishing mainly relies on its own platform for sales.

Even if the quality of "The Thirst Game" is excellent, and even if it is recommended by Cormac McCarthy, a great literary figure, it will be clear that it can open the champagne if it can sell 100,000 copies.

The temptation of having sex for free is huge. When Thomas heard that it was possible, Thomas finally nodded: "Mr. Zhang, your sincerity deeply moved me. We can accept this gambling agreement!"

Thomas was slightly stunned. He could understand the plan Zhang Wei mentioned, and it could save 55% of royalties in total. With his poor calculation skills, he couldn't figure it out for a while.

Moreover, the plan I proposed is generally beneficial to your publisher. As you just said, you have to sell 15 copies to get a % royalty.

If a work can sell 500,000 copies, it means that the quality of the work is very good and it definitely has the potential to hit higher sales.

Of course, if it is a relatively popular work, we will also cooperate with third parties and invest in third-party channels.

After pondering for a moment, Thomas said: "Mr. Zhang, according to your plan, if 15 copies are sold, then the royalties will be increased to %.

If a work can sell 500,000 copies, it must be of high quality. If more resources are invested in making this book popular, the efficiency will increase exponentially, and the publisher will definitely not lose money.

"Sales of 10 copies is %, which is the standard for best-sellers. In the North American market, the minimum threshold for best-sellers is copies for hard-cover books and copies for paper-back books.

Seeing Thomas hesitate, Zhang Wei thought he could add fuel to the fire.

"If there are 15 copies, do we have to give %?" Thomas frowned slightly.

But what is certain is that the new plan proposed by Zhang Wei did make concessions and saved publishers a lot of money.

But writing a super best-selling book is only one of the conditions for receiving 15%. The market influence of the work, the reputation of readers, the author's popularity and brand effect, etc., are all conditions for receiving 15% of royalties, and they often need to be met. , the publisher will give 15% of the price.

Thomas continued to calculate, from 11% of 15 copies to % of copies.

"Is there a trap in this?" Thomas West thought to himself, and then he patiently continued to calculate.

If it is a hard cover book, half a million copies can be considered a super bestseller, but if it is a paper book, it must sell at least one million copies to be considered a super bestseller.

The price he could give before was 9%, but now the plan proposed by Zhang Wei requires selling 9 copies to get %. This calculation is definitely more cost-effective for the publishing house.

Even if I am extremely lucky and sell half a million copies, your publisher will not lose. Those big writers who can get 15% royalties may not be able to guarantee that each book will sell copies, right?

Unless there are some special circumstances, such as requesting a manuscript specifically for a certain celebrity, or writing a customized article, it is possible to exceed this standard.

There are many new works in the American publishing market, and competition is fierce. For new authors, selling 10,000 copies is considered a success, and 200,000 copies is an unimaginable thing.

If it were published as a paperback book, it would still be 50,000 copies short of reaching the standard of a bestseller! However, the difference of 50,000 volumes is not very big and is acceptable. "

At this time, Thomas almost nodded in agreement. But as the saying goes, if something goes wrong, there will be a monster. How can others give you profits for no reason?

……

Zhang Wei had obtained the results he wanted, and left the publishing house with great satisfaction.

The original Hunger Games novel series had sold over 30 million copies before the film adaptation.

Later, after it was adapted into a movie, the box office of 26 billion also boosted the sales of the novel. Global sales reached 8000 million copies, of which the North American market definitely accounted for the majority.

Based on this sales volume, a 15% royalty can be as high as nine figures in US dollars.

According to the gambling agreement, the loss of the first 500,000 copies was only a few hundred thousand dollars, certainly not one million.

Giving up a million for a nine-figure gain is certainly a good deal.

As for whether "The Thirst Game", a new work by a newcomer, can stand out in the American book market, Zhang Wei is not worried.

Because the original Hunger Games was also a new work by a new artist when it was published.

The debut novel of the original author, Susan Collins, is actually another of her works, the "Dungeon" series. But "The Hunger Games" was published earlier than "Underground".

In other words, "The Hunger Games" is her earliest published work, and it can definitely be regarded as a new work by a newcomer. It's the same work, and it's also a new work by a newcomer. There's no reason why "The Thirst Game" shouldn't be popular.

What's more, there are also recommendations from literary masters.

……

When Zhang Wei returned to Princeton, he received the good news from Professor Shi. His dormitory and visiting scholar status had been approved.

The dormitories at Princeton University are in very good condition. There are single rooms and double rooms. The rooms are equipped with basic household appliances such as microwaves and small refrigerators.

As a visiting scholar, Zhang Wei can enjoy a suite by himself, with a living room, an independent bathroom, and a small kitchen. There is even a constant-temperature wine cabinet in the kitchen.

With the official status of visiting scholar, Zhang Wei can finally do scientific research projects at Princeton University.

……

Department of Molecular Biology, this is Professor Shi’s territory.

Professor Shi summoned all his experimentalists together.

"Today, a visiting scholar came to our Department of Molecular Biology. In the future, he will work with everyone, engage in project research, and will be responsible for a project independently." Professor Shi said.

Hearing that this visiting scholar was actually able to take charge of the project independently, expressions of astonishment appeared on everyone's faces.

Princeton University has the world's top scientific research level, and there is no shortage of top scholars in the school. Those who can independently take charge of projects are not the world's top talents.

A visiting scholar, a pure foreign monk, can actually be responsible for a project at Princeton University. This can only show that this visiting scholar is a world-class person, and his level must at least exceed the average level of Princeton University.

Just think about it, if you can't even reach the average level of Princeton University, why should they let you, an outsider, be in charge of the project? If you have those resources, you can leave them to your own people!
Whose academic level can exceed the average level of Princeton University, who is not a top academic person!

This is like foreign players going to play in the NBA. If you are not as good as Americans, why should they want you? They just want Americans.

Therefore, the international stars who can gain a foothold in the NBA are very strong and must be above the ordinary standard of the NBA. Otherwise, the All-Star Game will be restructured into Team USA vs. Team World.

"Now, please give me a round of applause, Mr. Zhang Wei." Professor Shi deliberately increased his volume and shouted into the office inside.

"Your name is Zhang Wei? Are you also Chinese?"

"I didn't say which university I'm from. Is the school not that good? I'm sorry to say."

"Did you notice? Professor Shi called him 'sir'."

"This means he is a man!"

"It's not a gender issue. Professor Shi is not called professor."

"Then he's not a professor!"

"But Professor Shi doesn't use a doctor. Isn't he even a doctor?"

"This is impossible! How come you can come to Princeton University and be responsible for a project alone, but you don't even have a PhD!"

A few people in the back row were discussing in low voices, but they still applauded. At the same time, they looked at the door of the office to see who this foreign monk was.

Finally, the door opened and Zhang Wei walked out.

"So young!"

"He's still a high school student, right?"

Everyone showed shocked expressions.

Orientals are inherently younger than Westerners, not to mention that Zhang Wei is really twenty years old. If he hadn't been over 1.8 meters tall, he might have been regarded as a junior high school student by these foreigners.

For someone like LeBron James, eighteen years old looks like twenty-eight. This is considered normal. Think about the two former No. 1 picks in the NBA, Oden and Ayton, who looked like fourteen-year-olds at twenty years old. Ten years old.

The most exaggerated thing is Isaac Bonga of the German team. He was born in November 1999, one month shy of being born in 11. Some people will definitely believe him when he says he is 00 years old.

These are all black people. If you were a white person, the situation would be similar. If you are a little bald and have a big beard, Chinese children will dare to call you grandpa when they see you.

"You are so young, let alone a professor, you really don't even have a doctorate."

"You're not even a Ph.D., why should you come to Princeton University to take charge of an independent project?"

"Don't you understand this? I have a backstage!"

"Maybe he's a relative of Professor Shi! Isn't Professor Shi also Chinese?"

"I don't think Professor Shi is the kind of nepotistic person, right? What's more, if he can independently take charge of the project, it must be approved by the school. There should still be a backend!"

Some people were discussing in low voices, but at the same time, several hostile eyes were already looking at Zhang Wei.

It was obvious that they were jealous of Zhang Wei for being able to take charge of a project independently.

Top universities like Princeton University bring together top talents from all over the world, and internal competition is definitely fierce.

It is no exaggeration to say that everyone here was once a proud son of heaven. They were like stars above the moon in their hometown, enjoying the best resources.

However, after arriving at Princeton University, these former proud students are likely to be just little Karami. There are people everywhere here who are smarter than them and work harder than them.

Many people finally get a doctorate. They started out as a scientific research dog and worked as a lecturer or assistant professor. After a long period of practice, they did not have the opportunity to be independently responsible for projects until they became associate professors.

However, the young Zhang Wei in front of him has risen to the top in one step and can directly take charge of a project independently.

How does this make the experimental dogs who are still going through life feel embarrassed?

I am the proud son of God. I am so smart and work so hard, but if you don’t have the backing, no one will be balanced.

Everyone looked at Zhang Wei, the bitterness and helplessness were like cold steel needles, piercing deeply into their hearts. Anger and disappointment grew and fermented rapidly, wrapping around their hearts like dark vines, making it difficult to let go.

The atmosphere in the room instantly solidified, and there was an atmosphere of resentment, like an undercurrent, silent but powerful. The lively atmosphere that everyone had gathered together seemed to have been blown away by a gust of cold wind, and the surrounding area fell into an awkward silence, leaving only silence in the air.

Professor Shi noticed everyone's expressions. He was not surprised by this situation. He had made it through a little bit back then, so he could understand everyone's mood.

Professor Shi also knew that as long as Zhang Wei's scientific research results were mentioned, the situation would turn 180 degrees in an instant.

In the field of scientific research, results are king after all. As long as you can produce awesome scientific research results, age will never be a problem, and your peers will not look down upon you because of your age.

And the younger you are, the more powerful you are. In this field, young scientists who have achieved results will only attract more admiration.

Zhang Wei is used to this situation. When I was in Tsinghua University for the first time and was responsible for a project alone, the graduate students didn't call him by his first name. Some even called him "Xiao Zhang."

However, after he made results, the word "teacher" was added to his name.

Whether it is Teacher Zhang Wei or Teacher Xiao Zhang, they are both respectful titles!

Now, facing the results of everyone's resentment, Zhang Wei is not worried at all.

Although Zhang Wei is not a professor and does not have a Ph.D., he knows that as long as his scientific research results are published, the experimenters on the scene will respectfully call him "Mr. Zhang" and call him politely. "Sir"!
(End of this chapter)