Forum: Author Hangout

The stories were sent to me by his estate. Believe me, I considered the copyright implications of publishing. Once edited, Lazeez has agreed to work with me to publish the stories under Xalir's account. I do not claim any rights to the work and will not make any attempt to profit from them.

One additional consideration. I'm pretty sure that book 4 was not the intended end of the series. If I had to guess, I suspect there would have been six books. Would it be wrong to encourage another author to write a "tribute" ending to the series? The characters are Xalir's intellectual property. Thoughts?

The stories were sent to me by his estate. Believe me, I considered the copyright implications of publishing. Once edited, Lazeez has agreed to work with me to publish the stories under Xalir's account. I do not claim any rights to the work and will not make any attempt to profit from them.

One additional consideration. I'm pretty sure that book 4 was not the intended end of the series. If I had to guess, I suspect there would have been six books. Would it be wrong to encourage another author to write a "tribute" ending to the series? The characters are Xalir's intellectual property. Thoughts?

You're in the clear. When publishing, I'd simply list two authors for the one book, which isn't uncommon, with a note inside explaining how the one author took over finishing the incomplete WiP.

As for continuing an abandoned series, as it's not a significant source of income, I doubt you'll find many authors willing to carry on a literary tradition not their own. Writers are driven to write, but they're not driven to write other people's stories.

Several authors on SOL have completed incomplete post-mortem works, but don't count on anyone dedicated years of their life to carry on someone else's dream (though I'd love if my editors would help make my incomplete efforts publishable, just as a memento to my legacy.

rights to the work and will not make any attempt to profit from them.

My suggestion was based on not knowing how you came into possession of the stories and whether you had the estate's permission.

There is nothing wrong with having another author to write a tribute. Ideally, that person would talk with people who knew Xalir.

I would recommend that the person who might volunteer to do any "tribute" ending first get permission from a representative of his estate prior to writing and then confirm that permission with them by sending the completed tribute prior to posting it.

In legal matters, it's always best to get permissions in writing, just in case you're challenged by someone. However, emails between correspondents granting authorization is typically considered 'proof' in most cases nowadays. Hell, I purchase a LOT of licenses where I have nothing more to prove ownership than a simple email receipt.