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Not in the U.S., and it’s a good thing for authors that you don’t. Most books don’t sell well enough to earn back their advances, and if their authors had to pay them back for poor sales, they’d all be broke.

In general, you have to pay back your advance only if you breach the contract you signed — typically, by not delivering an acceptable manuscript.

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Janice Harayda
Janice Harayda

Written by Janice Harayda

Critic, novelist, award-winning journalist. Former book editor of the Plain Dealer and book columnist for Glamour. Words in NYT, WSJ, and other major media.

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