If you write genealogy content you should consider registering with the ALCS

The following may be of interest to genealogists in the UK who earn some of their income by writing articles for magazines or books.

I have been doing this for a fair few years now, but only last year was encouraged by a publisher to sign up to a body called the Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS) to receive royalties from libraries etc for the secondary rights use of books and magazine articles I have written. The bottom line is if you have written articles and/or parts of books etc which are then copied or used by libraries and other agencies in other ways, including lending rights, you may actually be due a royalty for this, on top of the sum you were paid by the publisher up front.

I thought I'll give it a go, and entered in details of all I've written from 2016-2019 (the most recent period for which such royalties may be available), expecting that I might get a couple of hundred quid if lucky. I've just got word of what I am due in a few days time, and nearly had a heart attack. Suffice to say it was a good idea to register.

If you write for any publisher, you may wish to consider signing up to the ALCS at www.alcs.co.uk and regularly enter details of articles and books you may have written, and give details of both print and e-editions. There is a membership fee (£36), and a commission to pay, but the benefit may outweigh the outlay. Payments are made twice a year, and there may be money you have earned sitting there for the taking.

You will find more about how the scheme works on the website - I hope it helps!

(PS: Next deadline for submissions is November 30th)

Chris

You can pre-order my new book, Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet, at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scottish2 (out April). Also available, Tracing Your Irish Family History on the Internet (2nd ed) at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Irish1 and Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry Through Church and State Records at http://bit.ly/ChrisPaton-Scotland1. Further news published daily on The Scottish GENES Facebook page, and on Twitter @genesblog.