At dusk, the orange glow of the sunset illuminated 76th Street.
Han Li waved out the car window as she left Kate's apartment.
"Philly, Kate voluntarily lowered the royalty rate. She probably figured out that we were helping," Han Li softly asked after securing little Jessica in the backseat.
"Maybe!" Philly chuckled while driving.
When they discussed the publishing agency terms earlier, Kate had waived her manuscript fee and reduced the royalty rate from 15% to 12%, leaving only the highly improbable film adaptation rights. Philly thought Kate and her brother were both great—neither seemed greedy.
"Philly, do you think the company might lose money on this deal?" Han Li asked with concern.
"Don't worry, Emily. Kate's fairly well-known, and her novel's quality isn't bad. As long as we control the marketing and distribution costs, we might even turn a profit," Philly said, especially now that Kate had voluntarily lowered her royalty share, increasing the company's potential profit margin.
"Alright, but you know old Schwartz is going to give you a hard time again," Han Li sighed softly.
"Hmph! Handling publishing agency matters is my job, but old Schwartz always has something to say. He's overstepping his boundaries," Felix grumbled.
"Don't argue with him when you go to the office, Philly. After all, he's your elder," Han Li gently advised.
"Yeah, I know," Felix muttered.
The next day, Felix went to work and asked his assistant to draft a publishing agency contract. He sent his editorial and legal teams to negotiate the signing with Kate.
Just as he finished giving orders, an elderly man with graying hair stormed into his office. It was the publisher's chairman, old Schwartz.
"Young Mason, look at what you're doing! You're actually planning to publish a vampire novel? I'm seriously questioning your professional judgment!" Old Schwartz shouted, pounding his fist on Felix's desk.
Felix wiped the spit from his face, irritated. "Old Schwartz, this is my job. I don't need to explain it to you."
"Hmph, your job, your job. Ever since you took charge of the company's publishing business, the performance has declined year after year. That proves your incompetence!" Old Schwartz criticized bluntly.
Felix furrowed his brow, his face darkening in frustration.
This publishing house had been co-founded by his grandfather, Harold Mason, and old Schwartz's father, Lot Schwartz.
Harold Mason had been a professor and librarian at NYU, while Lot Schwartz was an antiquarian bookseller—one had talent, the other had money. Together, they founded Greenwood Publishing in 1965.
Harold became the chief editor, managing editorial and publishing affairs, while Lot handled marketing and distribution.
Through the efforts of two or three generations, the small press had grown into a mid-sized publishing house valued at over a hundred million dollars. After several mergers, it became a shareholder-owned company.
The Schwartz family held 42% of the shares, while the Mason family owned only 26%.
According to an agreement made by their predecessors, old Schwartz served as chairman, overseeing distribution and sales, while Felix was the general manager, responsible for the publishing business.
In recent years, as the internet and e-books had become more popular, the print book market had suffered greatly. The company hadn't published a bestseller in years, so declining performance was inevitable.
Felix didn't think it was entirely his fault, but old Schwartz liked to nitpick, hoping to pressure Felix into giving up the general manager position.
Not wanting to argue, Felix sighed and said, "Old Schwartz, you've got heart issues. Let's sit down and discuss this calmly before you trigger a heart attack."
"Are you cursing me, you wicked Mason boy?" Old Schwartz's mustache bristled in anger as he prepared to hurl more insults. Suddenly, he felt a twinge of discomfort in his chest. He took a deep breath and slowly sat down, looking pale.
Felix grinned to himself and poured a cup of coffee, setting it in front of the old man.
Old Schwartz took a sip and immediately spat it out. "Ugh! Damn it, Mason! Are you trying to burn me alive so you can take my chairman position?"
Felix rubbed his temples in exasperation. The older the man got, the more unreasonable he became.
"Old Schwartz, do you know why I'm publishing this novel?"
"Because you're blind!"
"..." Felix took a deep breath. "Old Schwartz, I'm not going to argue with you. The reason I'm publishing this book is actually personal."
"Personal?" Old Schwartz blinked his gray eyes. "Young Mason, aren't you afraid I'll fire you at the next board meeting for admitting that? No, no. You're too cunning for that. You've got to be setting me up for something, right? Trying to trick me into a trap?"
Felix facepalmed, realizing this conversation wasn't going anywhere.
"Well, say something, Mason! I'm curious to see what kind of scheme you've cooked up for me," Old Schwartz said, stroking his beard with amusement.
Felix took a moment to gather himself. "Old Schwartz, do you know who the author of this novel is?"
"Who? Some woman named Kate, right? She's not Princess Kate, is she? Hahaha!" Old Schwartz laughed at his own joke.
Felix stared at him without blinking, waiting for the laughter to subside.
"Uh... hehe." Old Schwartz coughed awkwardly. "Alright, alright. So, who's this Kate?"
"Do you know supermodel Kate Kelly?" Felix asked calmly.
"A model? A model wrote this book?" Old Schwartz blinked, then leaned forward conspiratorially. "Hey, young Mason, is this model your lover? Is that how you're trying to win her over? If that's true, you definitely wouldn't admit it to me. You must think I'm senile!"
"It's true."
"She's really your lover?" Old Schwartz jumped up, pointing a finger at Felix's nose. "How dare you, young Mason! You've been married to Emily for less than five years, and Jessica isn't even one year old, and now you're messing around? Do you have any conscience?"
Felix wiped the spit from his face again and sighed, "I said Kate's a supermodel, but I have no personal relationship with her."
"You think I'll believe that, you shameless boy? You probably cheated on Jenny the same way, didn't you?" Old Schwartz sneered.
Felix was at a loss for words. He'd dated Schwartz's daughter Jenny when he was 18 or 19, and they'd parted amicably. That was more than ten years ago, but old Schwartz still hadn't let it go.
"Old Schwartz, calm down," Felix said. "Kate is Luca's sister. You understand?"
"Luca? Who's that?" Old Schwartz was getting confused. This young man was clearly trying to cloud the issue with names.
"Superman Luca. Remember now?"
"Wow! The one who saved little Jessica? I've been wanting to meet him and thank him for saving my granddaughter. When are you inviting him over for dinner?"
Though Old Schwartz despised Felix, he adored little Jessica. Every time he saw her, he'd plant kisses on her cheeks, making her cry while he laughed gleefully.
Felix felt safe sharing the truth with old Schwartz because of Jessica. He believed the old man would understand.
"Luca's still recovering, but once he's well enough, I'll invite him over. Now, do you understand why I'm publishing this novel?"
"You think I'm senile, don't you? You're doing this to thank Luca, aren't you?"
"Exactly," Felix said, relieved to have explained everything.
"Hmph! I've got to say, young Mason, you're much dumber than your father or grandfather. If you want to thank him, you could give him money, offer him a good job, or do something else. But this? This is just dumb."
Felix didn't argue, instead calmly saying, "Kate's a supermodel. Last year, she was ranked ninth on the global supermodel income list, earning 5.5 million dollars—more than our publishing house's annual profit. Do you think they need money?"
"Is that so?" Old Schwartz stroked his beard, falling silent.
Felix continued, "Kate's a supermodel, so regardless of the quality of her novel, it's going to have a market. As long as we control the print run and marketing costs, we won't lose money—maybe we'll even make a profit."
Old Schwartz shook his head. "You'd need to sell at least 10,000 copies to break even. Can this book sell that many?"
Felix frowned. The answer was no.
In recent years, Anne Rice, the "mother of vampires," has published a series of vampire novels, including "Interview with the Vampire," "The Vampire Lestat," "Pandora," "The Vampire Armand," "Blood and Gold," "Blackwood Farm," and "Blood Canticle."
These novels have achieved remarkable sales. Last year's "Blackwood Farm" and this year's "Blood Canticle" have consistently ranked in the top ten on The New York Times Best Seller list. Currently, "Blood Canticle" even holds the fifth position.
The popularity of this series has led to a surge in the number of aspiring vampire novelists. Statistics show that more than one-fifth of the manuscripts received by major publishing houses are vampire-themed. Consequently, editors have developed an aversion to vampire stories. This is the primary reason why Kate's novel has been overlooked.
Furthermore, the market is saturated with vampire novels, making it extremely challenging for a new one to sell even 10,000 copies, even if the author is a supermodel like Kate.
"Young Mason, even though your approach is foolish, I support you!" Old Schwartz patted his shoulder and left the office with his aged, hunched back.
Watching his retreating figure, Phoenix smiled faintly.
"Ned, go and sign Ms. Kate Kelly!"
"Yes, Mr. Mason!"
(End of Chapter)