Literary Law and Agents
with Paul Levine, Esq.

Monday, September 24, 2012 --7:30 - 9pm

FilAm ARTS, 760 S. Westmoreland Ave., Ste. 266, Los Angeles, CA 90005

The nuts and bolts of the business of writing are as essential to a writer’s success as is the writer’s work itself. This seminar will cover:

-The principles of copyright law as the underpinnings of all writing
-What agents and lawyers do, how their functions sometimes overlap or differ, and how they are compensated by their clients
-The process of obtaining an agent and a lawyer, and when and why an agent is or may not be necessary
-The content of a typical collaboration agreement and three reasons why they are an absolute necessity
-A review, in detail, of a typical publishing agreement--royalties, advances, rights granted and rights withheld, etc.
-The editing process: what happens if the publisher rejects the manuscript, the publisher’s ultimate acceptance of the manuscript, actual publication after acceptance, and promotion and publicity

Attendees' questions on becoming a successful book author are welcome!

Speaker: 

Paul S. Levine wears two hats: he is a lawyer and a literary agent. Mr. Levine has practiced entertainment law for over 30 years, specializing in the representation of writers, producers, actors, directors, composers, musicians, artists, authors, photographers, galleries, publishers, developers, production companies, and theatre companies in the fields of motion pictures, television, interactive multimedia, live stage, recorded music, concerts, the visual arts, publishing, and advertising. In 1998, Mr. Levine opened the Paul S. Levine Literary Agency, specializing in the representation of book authors and the sale of motion picture and television rights in and to books. Since starting his literary agency, Mr. Levine has sold over 100 adult, young adult, and children’s fiction and non-fiction books to at least 50 different publishers and has had many books developed as movies-for-television and feature films.