1979: Reopening Wenhao Road from the Village

"Comrade Wei Dong's article 'The Horse Herder' is indeed of good quality."

A hint of surprise flashed in Su Mao's eyes; she really didn't know about this.

"Editor-in-chief, when would you like to schedule the publication?"

"Immediately send it to the publishing house's editorial office for compilation and application for publication."

"I'll arrange it right away."

Zhang Shouren immediately nodded.

"Thank you, editor-in-chief."

Chen Weidong breathed a sigh of relief and thanked Su Mao.

After the two left the editor's office, Zhang Shouren said with a smile, "Comrade Weidong, it won't be long before you see your article in 'October' in Yanjing. Give me your address and I'll mail you a few copies."

"I would also like to thank Editor Zhang for your great help. However, I may have to go back to my hometown in the next day or two. It is a remote place and I will not be able to receive the magazine in time. Otherwise, I will leave my address in Yanjing and you can mail it there."

"Going back tomorrow or the day after? Just a few more days."

Zhang Shouren asked with some surprise.

"No, my wife just gave birth to a son, I can't be away for too long."

Exceptionally talented, and loyal!

Chen Weidong's image in Zhang Shouren's mind was elevated even further.

"Comrade Weidong, please write down your addresses in Yanjing and the countryside. I'm going out for a bit, wait for me to come back."

Zhang Shouren came to the editor's office again and told him about Chen Weidong's upcoming return to the village.

"Editor-in-chief, how about we settle the payment for Weidong's article first?"

The payment for manuscripts is not "paid as soon as the manuscript is submitted". Instead, it follows the schedule of the publication. Generally, the editor fills out a form and sends it to the finance department as soon as the table of contents for the current issue is finalized.

Payment is only made after the publication is actually printed and the finance department receives a receipt confirming that the sample copy has been received. Only then will the remittance slip be sent to the author, which usually takes another ten to thirty days.

In some remote areas, the time may be delayed a bit. Authors usually receive their royalties in about a month, and the longest delay is two months, rarely spanning into the new year.

"Can."

Su Mao nodded after listening, then took out a form, wrote down the reason, and handed it to Zhang Shouren.

"So, how much is the payment calculated?"

Zhang Shouren asked another question.

在1977年，国家便出台了一份标準：着作稿每千字2-7元，翻译稿每千字1-5元。

Next year, the rates will be raised further, with original manuscripts paying 3-10 yuan per thousand words and translations paying 1-7 yuan per thousand words. At the same time, the print run fee will be reinstated.

By 1984, royalties had been increased again, with original manuscripts earning 6-20 yuan and translations earning 4-14 yuan.

As for royalties based on print runs, it is approximately 8% to 10% of the basic royalty for every 10,000 copies sold; the more books sold, the higher the royalty.

If a book becomes a bestseller and prints 100,000 copies, the print run royalties will be roughly the same as the basic royalties, which is equivalent to doubling the royalties.

At that time, prices were stable and low. Even if you bought a courtyard house in Yanjing, a small one would only cost seven to eight thousand yuan, while a large one would cost ten to twenty thousand yuan.

A manuscript of hundreds of thousands of words can bring in several thousand yuan, which is not a small amount; it's a huge sum of money.

It's important to know that the average monthly income of employees was only a few dozen yuan. Therefore, writers and scholars during this period were relatively well-off because they received royalties.

For example, Chen Mengjia, an expert in ancient writing, is a collector of Ming-style furniture, almost the most in China. This is because Chen Mengjia receives royalties. He wrote a book on the study of oracle bone inscriptions, which was 700,000 words long, and received nearly 10,000 yuan in royalties. He then bought a courtyard house in Qianliang Hutong, Dongsi, specifically for collecting Ming-style furniture.

Actually, Chen Mengjia isn't the highest earner. His book on oracle bone script had a very small print run, resulting in minimal royalties. Meanwhile, novelists whose novels are bestsellers earn royalties based on print runs; it's not uncommon for them to receive tens of thousands of yuan per book.

Therefore, veteran writers such as Shu Qingchun, Zhao Shuli, and Zang Kejia all bought their own courtyard houses. This has sparked opinions from many people who believe that writers' royalties are too high. In 1958, the state abolished royalties based on print runs, and only basic royalties are paid for published books, which will not be reinstated until next year.

However, what I just mentioned are all famous writers. In reality, the vast majority of new writers receive 3 to 5 yuan in royalties, and only famous writers or those whose works are considered important receive 7 to 10 yuan.

"Five yuan."

Su Mao thought for a moment and said that a talented newcomer like Chen Weidong should be given some preferential treatment. Moreover, she heard that the upper limit of manuscript fees would be increased next year, so giving him five yuan now is not too high. It can be considered as a way to win him over.

Currently, major magazines are particularly short of manuscripts, especially excellent stories like "The Herdsman." Therefore, writers must maintain good relationships, otherwise they will easily be poached by other magazines.

Su Mao had experienced this many times before, so he deliberately kept some extra for himself.

"Okay, editor-in-chief, I'll arrange it right away."

"By the way, remember to tell the publisher that 'The Herdsman' will be published in two parts, and make sure to format it properly."

Zhang Shouren immediately understood that although the magazine "October" could easily publish "The Herdsman" all at once, it would require squeezing out the content of reviews, poems, and other short stories.

Although everyone was optimistic about "The Herdsman", they could not encroach on the layout of other departments, so they could only allow "The Herdsman" to be serialized and published.

"I see."

After leaving the editor-in-chief's office, Zhang Shouren went to Chen Weidong's side.

"Comrade Weidong, let me take you to the finance office to collect your royalties. We can also collect the travel expense reimbursement you submitted a few days ago."

"So fast!?"

Chen Weidong was somewhat shocked. He knew that in his previous life, it would take at least two or three months to get reimbursed for business trip expenses, and sometimes, if he didn't have a good relationship with the finance department, it could take as long as six months or a year.

"Aren't you going back to the village? It's too far. Anyway, 'The Herdsman' has already been approved, and since you're in Yanjing, just pick it up."

"Thank you, Editor Zhang."

"I'm a few years older than you, so we're actually about the same age. You can just call me Zhang Shouren or Lao Zhang; that's what my colleagues call me."

"Then I'll still call you Brother Zhang, you can just call me Weidong."

The two went to the window, where there was a note from Su Mao. Chen Weidong filled out the royalty payment form, and the finance department quickly calculated the royalties for "The Herdsman".

The final manuscript of "The Horseman" was 25,300 words long, and the final royalties were a full 125 yuan!

There were a few cents left to reimburse his train ticket there, and they even thoughtfully gave him double the amount, as an advance payment for his return ticket.

No wonder so many people want to be writers, it's because of the money.

This amount of money is enough for three or four months' salary for employees of a large factory.

Even if we were to put it after the millennium, it would be enough for two people to go out for a meal.

"Brother Zhang, it's lunchtime, shall we go out and get something to eat together?"

Chen Weidong extended an invitation to Zhang Shouren, since without the other party, he wouldn't have been able to receive the money so quickly.

He understands this basic social etiquette.

"No need, Weidong. We can just eat something in our cafeteria today. We can eat more after 'The Herdsman' becomes a big hit."

……