Due to editorial disagreements with her publishers, bestselling author Cornelia Funke is self-publishing her next book—the third volume in her Mirrorworld series. Her publishers also agreed to revert rights on the first two books. (Read more about the disagreement at Publishers Weekly.)
Funke won’t be working alone. She’s partnering with Mirada in Los Angeles, and she’s worked with them before. Mirada bills itself as a studio designed for storytellers. You’re more likely to see Mirada unveiling a virtual reality experience with Google, or producing a cutting-edge advertising campaign with a celebrity, than publishing books. However, Mirada could be just the right partner for a children’s book author interested in reaching and engaging children in innovative ways.
Funke told Publishers Weekly, “I’ve always felt that Mirada made my work breathe.” (That inspired her publishing company name, Breathing Books.) Her book production and distribution will be handled by Mirada, who doesn’t yet have a distributor to the bookstore market.
The Funke news comes not long after thriller novelist Steve Hamilton ended his relationship with longtime publisher St. Martin’s Press.
Bottom line: This move makes sense for a bestselling author who clearly seeks more creative control and also wants to do things a traditional publisher isn’t suited for. She continues to work with traditional publishers outside the US/UK and see that more “traditional” revenue. Keep reading for more practical information about rights reversion if you’re considering how to make the same moves as Funke.
Jane Friedman has spent her entire career working in the publishing industry, with a focus on business reporting and author education. Established in 2015, her newsletter The Bottom Line provides nuanced market intelligence to thousands of authors and industry professionals; in 2023, she was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World.
Jane’s expertise regularly features in major media outlets such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, NPR, The Today Show, Wired, The Guardian, Fox News, and BBC. Her book, The Business of Being a Writer, Second Edition (The University of Chicago Press), is used as a classroom text by many writing and publishing degree programs. She reaches thousands through speaking engagements and workshops at diverse venues worldwide, including NYU’s Advanced Publishing Institute, Frankfurt Book Fair, and numerous MFA programs.
