Disappointed this is US only. This website must draw people in from worldwide and it doesn't cost THAT much to put a book in thr post even international.
Sweepstake: bit of a moan.
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It has nothing to do with cost. It has to do with legal limitations on where publishers can send books. And by the same token, contests sponsored by publishers in other countries (such as the recent writing contest by Hodder) cannot be entered by US residents.
Too bad with those publishers' legal limitations... hope someday we outsiders be allowed to participate in one sweepstake such as this one. It would be AMAZING, since the chance to meet him at a book signing in our countries this time is around zero 
Not that we are not waiting and hoping and inviting ;-)
Not that we are not waiting and hoping and inviting ;-)I hear you, every time I see UK/US only I'm very disappointed.
As per the Guardian/Hodder competition that is indeed a shame. I guess it is due to keeping entries to manageable levels but I would have liked it to be global. I am not sure about publishers and global distribution. I have often bought books online from US publishers that were either cheaper than here in the UK or not available here at all :/ Oh well I am not au fait with US Law so...
There is SO much more to international rights than any of us could even imagine. It's easy to sit at ones computer and bemoan these things, but the legalities of such things are matters tediously hashed out in the legal offices of publishers all over the world.
I would like someone to explain those international rights and why some publishers can send books internationally while others can't. Just curious. I've been wondering about this for ages, as this is not the only site I've seen with such restrictions. I've seen them on Goodreads also when they run giveaways for readers, some are open internationally but many aren't.
You can take classes on copyright laws and get degrees. It's not something I or anyone can explain to you on a message board. One thing that may help you to understand is that publishers bid for the rights to publish English and foreign language editions of books. Once a publisher holds these rights, then they also own the right to be the only distributor of said book in a certain region. It's a very dry and tedious subject really, but a very important one that is negotiated in the author's contract before the book is ever published.
As for contest rules, that's a whole other issue with its own legalities.
It's one reason why Stephen has a completely different agent to handle just the foreign rights, i.e. because it is so complicated.
OK, I understand that. Thanks for the explanation. But how would one book sent to a contest winner make things more complicated for the publisher? I may have to look into those copyright classes.
There are two separate issues at play. There is the territory where a publisher has the rights to distribute the author's work and there are the differences in the rules for games of chance in different countries or regions.
The latter can be quite convoluted. When I was young, growing up in Canada, a lot of instant-win type contests were nation-wide, except for Quebec, where the rules were so different that the sponsor decided to exclude people from that province rather than change their rules to fit everyone. And that's within a nation -- imagine how convoluted things get when you cross national boundaries. There are issues of taxation, for example -- if the prize is worth a significant amount of money, then you have to declare it on your taxes. But if you're a foreign national...well, it gets complicated.
Then there's the former constraint. A publisher isn't supposed to deliver books to a country where they don't have the publishing/distribution rights. Doubly complicates things.
The latter can be quite convoluted. When I was young, growing up in Canada, a lot of instant-win type contests were nation-wide, except for Quebec, where the rules were so different that the sponsor decided to exclude people from that province rather than change their rules to fit everyone. And that's within a nation -- imagine how convoluted things get when you cross national boundaries. There are issues of taxation, for example -- if the prize is worth a significant amount of money, then you have to declare it on your taxes. But if you're a foreign national...well, it gets complicated.
Then there's the former constraint. A publisher isn't supposed to deliver books to a country where they don't have the publishing/distribution rights. Doubly complicates things.
It would be going into another publisher's territory.OK, I understand that. Thanks for the explanation. But how would one book sent to a contest winner make things more complicated for the publisher? I may have to look into those copyright classes.
Ding ding ding ding. We have a winner!
Publisher A has all English language rights to publish and distribute SK Book in Question in the USA. Publisher B has all English language rights to publish and distribute the same title in England. A contest is held by a newspaper in England and the giveaway is SK Book in Question published by publisher B. Publisher B is forbidden by law to distribute its version of SK Book in Question in the US, as it would be infringing on the rights of Publisher A. Therefore, US citizens are ineligible to enter this contest.OK, I understand that. Thanks for the explanation. But how would one book sent to a contest winner make things more complicated for the publisher? I may have to look into those copyright classes.
Bev, thank you. From what I understand we could benefit from some general rules here when it comes to sending books in another publisher's territory. I'm strictly thinking about books, no prize money or merchandise.
carrie's younger brother, thank you. I didn't need those classes after all.
We might think of books as being something different, but to the international lawyers, books are merchandise and they have a cash value (not to mention an intellectual property component).
Here's a different example -- a lot of British authors' books come out in the UK weeks or months before the US version is available. Try buying it from Amazon/UK and having them ship it to you in the US. No can do! That, too, would be violating territorial restrictions.
Next contest just have a Hunger Games type event. A contestant from each country that publishes King's works would compete. Last one standing wins the prize. Fair is fair.
And I could find a country where it will be legal to host just such an event. So... have King’s people contact my people to get the ball rolling on this.
And I could find a country where it will be legal to host just such an event. So... have King’s people contact my people to get the ball rolling on this.
Yeah, I'll get right on that.Next contest just have a Hunger Games type event. A contestant from each country that publishes King's works would compete. Last one standing wins the prize. Fair is fair.
And I could find a country where it will be legal to host just such an event. So... have King’s people contact my people to get the ball rolling on this.
Next contest just have a Hunger Games type event. A contestant from each country that publishes King's works would compete. Last one standing wins the prize. Fair is fair.
And I could find a country where it will be legal to host just such an event. So... have King’s people contact my people to get the ball rolling on this.
Yeah, I'll get right on that.
I have the flame thrower all warmed up..........just sayin'