CO-AUTHOR PROJECT TERMS OF USE

Last Revised:  02/07/2024
*Upon securing confirmation of investment for a co-author seat, the co-author hereby agrees to the following Terms of Use.

Terms of Use & Co-Author Agreement between Balance + Bliss and the user responsible for reviewing the terms of use and agreeing to such terms by way of completed payment registration for the collaborative author project in question, (herein, "The Co-Author")

*Should the project in question include a "Lead Author", all terms stated below that fall under "The Publisher" will also herein include the responsibilities of the "Lead Author."

LENGTH OF PROJECT
The collaboration between “The Co-Author” and “The Publisher” shall begin upon mutual agreement of project alignment followed by payment of at least the first instalment of the Co-Author Investment Fee, or pay-in-full option per Co-Author’s choice. The collaboration will be in effect until the full project has officially been launched and published on the KDP/Amazon platform. The average LOP is between 9 and 12 months; in some cases the LOP may be extended due to unforseen circumstances, but that has not yet happened in the history of projects of this scope with The Publisher. The Publisher is not responsible for the project length increasing and will do so as required based on the circumstances of the current project. Publishing is a complex industry with varying deadlines and extentions.

PROMOTION
The Co-Author and The Publisher are equally responsible for promotion, marketing, advertising and spreading the word about the new project, especially in anticipation of the project launch date. The Co-Author should be active on at least one social platform in order to execute adequate marketing techniques with provided material as well as their own user-generated content pertaining to the launch of the project. 

TIMELINES
The Publisher will submit general timelines for chapter submissions and is available for guidance and support throughout the writing process. The Co-Author is responsible for submitting their chapter of minimum 3000 words, maximum 5000 words by the agreed-upon deadline for submissions. The Co-Author will receive plenty of notice prior to deadline date announcements and may request coaching from The Publisher at any time. 

SUBMISSION DEADLINE(S)
The Publisher will give The Co-Author a minimum of three (3) months notice prior to the final submission deadline. In order for publishing to stay on time, all Co-Authors involved in the project MUST submit their chapter by the final submission date. The Publisher may extend a courtesy 15-day extention IF REQUESTED IN ADVANCE BY The Co-Author. Extensions are not guaranteed and if the final deadline is missed The Publisher has the right to move forward with publishing procedures without The Co-Author's work and will not be required to submit refunds on prior payments due to The Co-Author's failure to comply with timelines. The Co-Author is always encouraged to communicate in advance with The Publisher regarding any unforseen circumstances that may affect submission deadlines being hit. 

Submission will occur through a provided online link and the Co-Author is responsible for finding support for technology-related issues or roadblocks should there be any issue with submission. The Publisher is not responsible for adjusting systems and processes in lieu of the Co-Author's technology skill level. 

PHOTOS
The Co-Author will agree to submit at least 1 high resolution individual photo to be used for marketing, promotion, and inside the book to begin The Co-Author’s chapter section. Preferably this will be a professionally taken photo within the last 1-2 years. The Co-Author will also be responsible for completing any information forms required for the project. If the Co-Author does not complete the forms by the required deadline, their photo(s) may not be included in initial marketing.

PUBLISHED WORK
The Co-Author’s name will appear on the cover of the published work. The Co-Author may be on the front and back cover together, only the front cover, or only the back cover. It will depend on the cover design and is at sole discretion of The Publisher.

PAYMENTS
The Co-Author is responsible for all agreed-upon payments per selection upon registration. If a payment is missed, a separate invoice will be sent by The Publisher and prompt payment must be completed. Payments are a requirement of holding an author seat in the project.

RIGHTS / REVENUE
Once submitted to The Publisher, the contributed chapter will become property of Balance + Bliss for the sole purpose of inclusion in the agreed-upon collaborative work. The Co-Author may not re-print or re-publish this work without advanced written permission and consent from The Publisher. The Co-Author agrees to submit content in the form of Word or Pages in the amount previously decided upon, generally between 2000-5000 words.

Authors can generate revenue by purchasing copies at wholesale and selling them at retail. Co-authors have full ownership
over the revenue generated from their book-selling campaign. Wholesale costs of the book are $8-9 per book depending on the size/number of authors. (this cost is inclusive of printing and shipping). Co-author projects sell for a retail value of $33 making the profit margin available for authors over $20 per book. There is no maximum or minimum amount of book purchases required; each author is able to choose whether they which to sell their books after the launch period. Authors are welcome to manage their own book sales, or alternatively, opt out of selling books altogether; it is never a mandatory aspect of the experience and selling (or not) is always her prerogative. All authors will be coached on how they can incorporate their book into their existing brand or business, and what kinds of avenues they may explore in order to create relationships and build sales among their networks and local areas. Co-authors do not receive revenue from book sales on Amazon.

The Publisher will own rights to the entire work and any collected revenue from KDP/amazon.com will remain with The Publisher and/or Lead Author. The Co-Author has the opportunity to create a potential consistent revenue stream through sales of wholesale books and digital e-book that can be posted on personal websites and landing pages, sold in local book stores, sold at events through vendor-ship, etc. Coaching and training will be provided on how to maximize this opportunity once the books are in the launch phase.

The Co-Author is responsible for purchasing their own inventory through Balance + Bliss Printing Procedure, and then re-selling the books at a price of their choosing; preferably this is equal to the cost of the product on KDP/Amazon but The Co-Author is welcome to choose their own pricing schedule. Profit margins are anticipated to be between $12-15 on books sold through the inventory model, but profit margins will depend on the individual Co-Author selling rate. No minimum is required and The Co-Author can order / purchase copies of their own at any time in any amount. Requests must be made with at least 30 days notice prior to any event/specific date required, to account for shipping times. The Co-Author will be required to pay invoicing for inventory purchased immediately upon placing the order.

REFUNDS / MISSING PAYMENTS
Co-Author Project payments are not eligible for refunds. Once a Co-Author initiates collaboration with an upcoming project, investments in both The Publisher's time and capital begin for services and contract work related to the project. If a Co-Author decides to leave the project, they may stop payments and cease to continue in the project, but The Publisher is not responsible for refunding any prior payments.

The Publisher is not responsible for a Co-Author missing payments, failing to pay, and or deciding at some point prior to submission/launch that they no longer wish to continue in the project, nor is The Publisher responsible for any refunding/refunds on prior payments at any time should the Co-Author decide to leave the project on their own account. Should the Co-Author decide to cancel payments mid-way through a project, The Publisher is not obligated to include the Co-Author inside the project, nor will any refunds be issued due to a Co-Author "changing their mind" about their involvement. If a Co-Author wishes to remove themselves from the project, that decision will be respected and The Publisher will move forward without the Co-Author. The Co-Author is encouraged to discuss their plans with The Publisher should they have a change in commitment.

Should the project be stopped for any reason initiated by The Publisher, any outstanding payments/recurring payments will be immediately refunded to the remaining Co-Authors in the group in question. It should be clear that this has not yet happened in 8 collaborative author projects between 2019 and 2021 and The Publisher does not foresee this happening to any project in the future, however if a project required closure without completion, the Co-Author would be entitled to stop payments for remaining payments and a refund on previously paid payments UNLESS contractual work had already begun on the project, in which case the cost of the contractual work would be deducted from the collected payments and a refund would be given according to the calculated total remaining. 

PROFESSIONALISM

The Co-Author shall act in a professional way at all times when speaking about The Publisher and their affiliation with the project whenever promoting on social media or any other marketing platform. The Co-Author should execute confidentiality about the processes and procedures within Balance + Bliss and should not share trade secrets or insider information to anyone unless written permission is granted by The Publisher.

Should the Co-Author have an issue, concern or question about services or coaching within the project deliverables, the Co-Author should reach out to The Publisher directly to resolve the issue privately.

SERVICES RENDERED
Each collaborative project includes all services required to take a project from written documents to fully published product. This includes, but is not limited to: editing services, proofreading services, design and layout services, typesetting, cover design, photo editing, font and other asset purchases, contracted time, The Publisher's coaching and mentoring, Facebook Group management, assistant fees, licensing, ISBN acquisition, marketing, promotion, and creative direction. The Co-Author is only responsible for paying their Co-Author Investment and submitting their chapter on time; The Publisher is responsible for all other processes and costs.

COMMUNICATION
Communication will occur inside the designated Co-Author Facebook Group and the Co-Author is responsible for keeping up to date with information and updates inside the Facebook Group as necessary. Coaching and training will come in the form of pre-recorded video modules as well as video calls with the group. The Co-Author should do their due diligence to find information previously provided before asking questions about the project that have previously been answered.

Should this project include a "Lead Author", the Co-Author's primary point of contact is the Lead Author.

RESPONSE TIME
The Publisher and if applicable, the Lead Author will respond to comments and questions during working hours between Monday - Friday, 10am-4pm EST. Should the Publisher or Lead Author receive the question outside business hours, they should respond to the inquiry within 24 hours upon returning to regular work hours. The Co-Author should not continually bombard The Publisher or The Lead Author with the same question if they are asking the question during non-working hours. 

Generally, Co-Authors should ask their questions inside the designated Facebook Group. Please do not contact The Publisher via Facebook Messenger. The Lead Author will provide their preference for communication during the welcome call / kickoff month. Should the Co-Author need to contact The Publisher (after contacting the Lead Author FIRST, of course) they will do so via email correspondence and NOT through Facebook Messenger. The Publisher does not condone or guarantee a response to a message sent through Facebook Messenger. 

TERMINATION
While both The Publisher and The Co-Author mutually intend to have a positive and fulfilling joint venture relationship, there may be a time where one party decides she is no longer interested in being affiliated with this project. Should this happen by virtue of either the Co-Author or The Publisher, the Co-Author is not entitled to any return of past / completed payments should they decide to remove themselves from the project.

If, for any reason, the project should be terminated by The Publisher, a full refund would be provided to all Co-Authors involved. (Note: This has never happened in 3 years, and LeadHer Publishing has facilitated over 12 collaborative books, but this is important to know should anything come up in future. If The Publisher decides to cancel or stop a projects, Co-Authors are entitled to receive any payments back.)

AGREEMENT
As per the terms listed above, “The Co-Author”, hereby agrees to the above stated terms and am ready to move forward with co-authoring a collaborative project hosted by Balance + Bliss. By completing payment and registering for this project, I hereby agree to all the above listed terms.

_______________________________________________________

By registering as a Co-Author in any Balance + Bliss / Lead Author Facilitated project, you agree to the above Terms & Conditions.

Confirmation of your payment through the website / Lead Author’s Website confirms your agreement to these terms.