Legal Question in Intellectual Property in Ohio

Re: author-publishing agreement

Your written contract governs, and should be negotiated by an experienced attorney, who is also sometimes a literary agent. There is no "normal". Some authors are paid only when sales occur (royalties) and some are given multi-million dollar advances and guaranteed payouts.

If this is important to you, you should take steps NOW to protect yourself from getting ripped off. You can be SURE that the publisher has legal counsel working for them.

Re: author-publishing agreement

As David Anderson states, your agreement will govern. You should have a right to audit the publisher's books and records. Your agreement may include a "next work" provision giving the publisher certain rights to your next work but advertising in advance of a title and in the face of, as you say, having the first right to where, when, etc. is unusual at best and may be a breach of contract, at worst. Run, don't walk to an experienced attorney. I disagree with David Anderson about finding a lawyer who is also a literary agent as that invites conflicts of interest and possible ethical compromises. I am handling a case like that right now. If you don't already have an attorney and wish to discuss, please feel free to contact me.