⊠oh look itâs FanLib 2.0.
And while they may be soliciting fanfic, their TOS says:
1.1 Work means all or part of the [ ] or its derivatives originally created or written by Author, who owns complete copyrights of such Work under any applicable law or regulation.
4.2 Author guarantees that they shall not plagiarize or infringe another personâs legal rights and that the Work is completely original.
4.3 Author shall uphold the reputation of Dreame and will not engage in activities that harm Dreame nor its interests.
This is a HUGE WHOPPING RED FLAG (argh, why canât I do red text on a PC?) Nope, nope, NO HELL NO - never never NEVER accept any contract that says you will not engage in activities that harm â[company] or its interests.â
This means authors canât even say, âugh, this posting schedule is rough.â Canât tell other people your manager is abusive. Arguably, canât talk to a lawyer if theyâre not paying you on time!
(Courts tend to allow for that. Can you afford a lawyer to defend that right, as well as your right to get paid?)
4.4 Author agrees to provide necessary assistance or support for Dreameâs marketing and promotion for the Work, including without limitation necessary information or other promotional materials.
AGAIN HELL NO. This means you never get paid, because they insist youâre supposed to bear the full cost of marketing. They can even charge you for marketing your work! âWe made an ad for YouTube; it cost $4,500 to produce. Pay up.â
4.5 Author can self-publish the Work in paperback form only and all earnings will be Authorâs own. However, Author shall not publish or sell the Work on any other third partiesâ online platforms. If Author wishes to publish or sell the Work on a third partyâs platform, Author must get Dreameâs express written permission by giving prior written notice to Dreame. Any future earnings made in this way shall be charged a further 30% commission by Dreame.
Aaah⊠wot? You can publish in paperback (but not digital forms?), but you⊠canât sell on Amazon? AND Dreame wants to insist on a 30% commission? (Which is not defined⊠is that 30% of list price, or 30% of net? When and how do they think youâre supposed to pay them?)
This is a VERY BAD WRONG contract.Â