Oh, what a landmark moment this is. Firsts are always wonderful, of course – pressing ‘publish’ for the first time, seeing your book in print for the first time, hitting #1, getting your first ‘fan’ email from a happy reader. And now another first – an actual payment from PLR. Check out the screenshot below:
You’re scratching your head now, right? You’re either thinking ‘What the hell is PLR?’ or you’re thinking ‘Why is she getting so excited about a payment of two pounds and six pence?” Or possibly both 😉
So, in case you don’t know already, here’s a brief explanation of PLR from the website:
Public Lending Right (PLR) is the right for authors to receive payment for the loans of their books by public libraries.
Under the PLR system in the UK, payment is made from government funds to authors, illustrators and other contributors whose books are borrowed from public libraries. Payments are made annually on the basis of loans data collected from a sample of public libraries in the UK … To qualify for payment, applicants must apply to register their books.
Over 22,000 writers, illustrators, photographers, translators and editors who have contributed to books lent out by public libraries in the UK receive PLR payments each year.
All four of my published-in-print books are available in libraries – I know this because I made it happen by taking copies into my local library and making myself known to the acquisitions team at Shrewsbury. There are also copies of two titles in Milton Keynes libraries, because they are of local interest. (Can’t Live Without and The Family Trap are set there.) Interestingly, I also happen to know that copies of Can’t Live Without are regularly borrowed from Shrewsbury library – but take another look at the statement above. Copies of CLW borrowed = zero. How can this be?
Check out how the loans data is calculated:
For UK PLR, a representative sample of book loans, consisting of all issues from selected public libraries in the UK, is recorded. This is then multiplied in proportion to total library lending to produce for each book an estimate of its total annual loans throughout the country.
So, what this means is that PLR uses statistical sampling – they look at loans across certain libraries and then extrapolate the total as though this is representative of loans across all libraries. Which is fantastic … if your book is available in one of the sampled libraries.
And here are the libraries – the ‘hot’ libraries, if you like – for 2014/2015.
I already knew that Murder at the Maples – my first Flora Lively mystery – was doing well in libraries. At least, I’d deduced this by the number of copies ordered in paperback each month (between 5 and 10), and that these books weren’t all going out to Amazon customers. I figured libraries were ordering them, and this fits with the target demographic of cosy mysteries – library readers love a good mystery. So I wasn’t surprised to see the figure of 31 loans, although I was delighted!
It means that libraries other than Shrewsbury are stocking this title, and it means that library members are borrowing the books regularly. To know how much this means to me I guess you’d need to know that I worked in libraries for years before publishing my first book, and to have my books on library shelves is wonderful to me. I did an author event at Whitchurch library in the summer for the release of Cupid’s Way, and it was great to talk to readers. One lady asked me when Murder at the Maples was coming out in large print because all her friends had read it and she was desperate to read it but could only read large print books. Those are the moments when you wish you had an agent to sell your large print rights because you just know that book would be a massive hit.
I imagine you’ve already figured out one of my goals for this coming year? That’s right – to target the sampling libraries and get copies of my books in as many of them as possible 🙂
Let’s give the final word to PLR, while I wait for that lovely landmark payment of £2.06 to drop into my bank account. It’s a start!
If you have contributed to a book which is lent out by public libraries in the UK and the Republic of Ireland and wish to apply to register for UK and Irish PLR schemes, How do I apply for PLR? will provide you with further information and guidance.
Joanne Phillips 
January 22, 2015 at 11:04 am
That’s interesting: I had no idea the calculations rely on ‘sampling’. But congratulations! To get any amount from libraries must be so satisfying! To know that your books are being borrowed and read and bringing pleasure to so many.
January 22, 2015 at 5:53 pm
Thanks Marina. No, it’s interesting isn’t it? And it must work, I suppose.
January 22, 2015 at 11:49 am
Well done Jo, that’s fantastic! And very informative! 😀
January 22, 2015 at 5:54 pm
Thanks Elaine 🙂 Have you spoken to your local library yet? x
January 22, 2015 at 6:30 pm
Erm no… my books aren’t doing well at the mo. Mostly my fault – I started a new job a couple of months ago and haven’t done any promo for weeks. Just really tired a lot of the time – the job is going well but it’s taking it out of me.
This was such an interesting post though and I hope that if I got to the point where my books were popular enough for me to approach libraries with a view to having them stocked, that your advice would come in handy! x
January 22, 2015 at 12:04 pm
Congratulations. I’m filling out the form to register for mine today…
January 23, 2015 at 3:47 pm
Thank you – and good luck registering (the forms are a bit long-winded if I remember rightly).
January 22, 2015 at 12:16 pm
Out of small acorns…. I’m really proud of you. Well done X
January 23, 2015 at 3:47 pm
Thanks Jez 🙂 Shame we can’t add a few noughts on, but one day, huh? x
January 22, 2015 at 1:17 pm
Thanks for this great (and informative) blog post. PLR is something a need to investigate. It’s the way forward and I’ll be taking copies to my local library hi suss them out.,
January 23, 2015 at 3:48 pm
Thank you 🙂 I think authors supporting libraries is one way to try and help keep them open. Imagine a world without libraries – horrible!
January 22, 2015 at 1:42 pm
I love getting my PLR statement at this time of the year, too, Jo! It’s a real treat, isn’t it?
So far though, my earnings are from the original hardback and large print versions of my first novel, Blood-Tied, which was published by Hale, and which I’ve since re-published as an Indie author in paperback. My mission this year is to get the second Esme Quentin mystery, The Indelible Stain, into libraries, starting with Devon, where I live, which has several copies of Blood-Tied in HB and LP. I’m hoping that will stand me in good stead! It would be great if they were to add to their supplies of Blood-Tied, too, by buying a few paperback copies.
Did you donate a copy of any of your books to start the ball rolling, Jo, as ALLi suggest? Or did the library buy them in after you approached them?
January 23, 2015 at 3:52 pm
Hi Wendy,
I offered to donate originally, but Shropshire Libraries were happy to buy in themselves. I did give a copy of Cupid’s Way to Whitchurch library, just to say thank you for all their support, and they then have to send that off to head office to be processed. Lindsay (below) seems to have had a different experience, but I used to work in lots of different libraries and they always accepted public donations of good quality, loanable books, which just had to be processed through the system (catalogued, given a protective cover and barcode etc) before they could hit the shelves. As far as buying books goes, most libraries will need to buy copies via their central system – usual via Bertrams at some point – so won’t be able to buy a copy directly from you, the author.
January 23, 2015 at 4:25 pm
Thanks, Jo. Different areas have different systems, I guess. No doubt I’ll find out when I approach my local library.
January 22, 2015 at 1:59 pm
It’s a thrill, isn’t it, Jo? Well done for making a start. I’ve just had my third one, and I was amazed to find The Piano Player’s Son had 355 loans, considering – as you say – the sampling system. I know it’s in some local libraries, but I don’t think it’s further afield.
By the way, Wendy, I was willing to donate a copy to my local library, but they said they wouldn’t be allowed to accept it, as all the books have to go through the system! Eventually the ‘system’ worked in my favour!
January 23, 2015 at 3:55 pm
Wow, well done, that’s awesome! Fascinating to find out whether that figure has been extrapolated from loans from only your local libraries – which library authority does Evesham/Worcester come under? I don’t think they’re on the list, which would indicate a much wider reach – brilliant. xxx
January 24, 2015 at 12:13 pm
Thanks, Jo. Yes, I’d love to know. I know it’s in Worcestershire and Warwickshire libraries, but not sure otherwise. Difficult with this sampling system. I did quite well with Unravelling too, so it’s something of a mystery to me!
January 23, 2015 at 4:28 pm
That was handy, Lindsay! 🙂
January 24, 2015 at 12:16 pm
It was because a couple of libraries asked me to give talks, Wendy, and in the end they must have decided it would be silly not to have copies of the books available.
I used to look at that library list on the internet you mentioned – a very easy way to check where your books are and annoying it seems to have disappeared.
January 22, 2015 at 2:57 pm
Thanks for the explanation of PLR, Joanne. If I ever self-publish in print rather than just Kindle I’ll bear that sampling in mind – very useful to know!
January 23, 2015 at 3:55 pm
Thanks Sally 🙂
January 22, 2015 at 4:13 pm
Now that you’ve explained, this IS exciting news! Congratulations! And good luck with the other libraries!
January 23, 2015 at 3:56 pm
Thank you 🙂 It’s one of those jobs I really must get round to doing!
January 22, 2015 at 10:06 pm
Very interesting, Jo! I think they must rotate the choice of libraries each year. Enjoy spending your £2.06!
January 23, 2015 at 3:57 pm
Thanks Alison. I had the old list saved somewhere but I can’t find it now. Definitely the Telford and Wrekin entry was the same, so I’m not sure if they do rotate it. I’m going to put it towards a Costa coffee 🙂
January 23, 2015 at 4:40 pm
There used to be a website with an interactive map of the UK which gave you a direct link to that county’s library catalogue but it seems to have gone by the wayside. It’s fairly easy, though, to find the catalogues via google to check which counties/authorities/districts have your books and which libraries they’re in. Devon moves the copies of Blood-Tied around every so often to different libraries within the county. Nice to nip in and take a copy off the shelf to browse! (How sad am I?) 😉
January 23, 2015 at 7:39 pm
That’s not sad, that’s completely normal! Even better if the copy of your book isn’t on the shelves – that means it’s being borrowed 😉
January 23, 2015 at 5:37 pm
My whole region (East Midlands) doesn’t appear to be represented! That’s a poor do 😦
January 23, 2015 at 7:37 pm
That’s the problem with this system, isn’t it? If you are getting lots of local borrows but not represented for the sampling you show up as zero – just like the Can’t Live Without example above. Not good.
January 23, 2015 at 6:23 pm
Thank you, Jo. This is so useful for authors, and even publishers! I knew about the sampling but it’s immensely helpful to be able to direct authors here to get a much bigger overview.
Generous and informative as always 😉
January 23, 2015 at 7:40 pm
Thanks Helen, that’s so lovely of you 🙂 I do like to be helpful (and I spend so much time researching this kind of stuff it makes me feel better if I can share it). x
January 23, 2015 at 6:26 pm
Have you also applied for Irish PLR? separate form but also worth it. I spend a lot of time telling print writers to apply , amazed how many do not know about it. Well done you!
January 23, 2015 at 7:41 pm
Hi Carol,
I keep seeing the banner on the website when I log in so I must get on and do it. Thanks for the prompt, and hopefully other authors reading this will realise too.
x
January 26, 2015 at 2:38 pm
Thank you Jo, this is so useful – I’ve also applied for Irish PLR. #usefulinfo
January 28, 2015 at 6:40 pm
Fascinating. I didn’t actually know that authors got paid for library loans, much less that sampling is involved (that seems strange, if a book is highly local in flavour). But this is a wonderful achievement for you and most of us writers still get excited at coming across our book anywhere physical. Great post.
January 30, 2015 at 2:00 am
We have a similar system in Canada. I’m eagerly awaiting my PLR cheque in the mail. I think it’s a great system that encourages authors to sell or donate books to libraries where they can be more widely read.