What is PLR?

You might have heard authors or illustrators mentioning PLR. It is FREE money! FREE joy!

Let me break it down for you… (for UK author/illustrators)

PLR stands for Public Lending Right.

Every time your book is borrowed from a public library, you get a small amount of money.

How much?

The amount changes a little every year but it’s roughly around 11 pence per loan.

I know that sounds tiny but, over the course of a year, it can really add up. And you don’t need to give your agent (or the VAT system) a share of it.

Children’s books get a lot of PLR, because children can take out 10 books from a library and there are no library fees for late returns so parents often get out a solid stack at once. So, if you are a children’s author, it’s PARTICULARLY worth registering.

The maximum PLR you can get is around £6,600.

Why is it capped?

PLR money comes out of a central fund (of around £6.4 million, administrated by the British Library). Each author gets a share of the fund. If it wasn’t capped then authors like James Patterson would pretty much take all the fund cos they are borrowed so often.

(Fun fact! PLR was created in 1979 after a campaign by your union, the Society of Authors, and others, and the SoA continues to call for reforms to the system eg for volunteer libraries to be included, and for a larger central fund.)

Which libraries are counted?

Currently, PLR is based on ‘sample libraries’ and the data is estimated based on those … BUT it will be moving to count every library soon. Which feels much fairer.

I’m working ‘flat fee’ Can I get it?

‘Flat Fee’ work is when you don’t get a royalty. You have ‘assigned the copyright’ to the publisher (more on this another time).

You can still get PLR even if you do not own the copyright, as long as you are named on the title page.

If you are working flat fee, the Society of Authors recommends you have this phrase in your contract:

The assignment of copyright is without prejudice to any rights the Contributor may have under CLA, PLR and any other similar collective licensing agreements.

What kind of books are eligible?

PLR covers print books, e-books, audio books. The narrator gets a share too.

Does it continue after my death?

Morbid point, I know, but YES! Your estate will continue to get PLR until 70 years after your death – which means your kids/other beneficiaries could get a sum every year. That’s a lovely reminder for them of you, and your work.

How do I register?

You register on the British Library website (https://www.bl.uk/plr)

You add your book and put in your % share. This % is about whether you are the sole contributor eg if you have written a picture book, your author share is 50%, and the illustrator’s share is 50%.

If you have written a chapter book, you can ask your agent/publisher how the rights are split OR make a reasonable estimation eg an author share of 80% for minimal illustrations, 60% if there are drawings on every page.

You have to register every new book by the end of June each year.

On my Instagram I’ve shown a speedy way of checking whether you have remembered to register all your books.

I put a recurring alert on my calendar for mid-June so I check my PLR registrations every year. Each time I find a few new editions I didn’t know about.

When will I get paid?

The PLR statements come out every January. The payments are made in February.

Any other reason I should register?

I cannot stress enough the pure JOY of seeing that someone has borrowed your book.

When the statement arrives, you see every loan. You can imagine all those people skipping out of the library with YOUR book in their hand. It fills me with happiness.

So – go register!

Any questions? Ask me in the comments