1980 My literary era

"The Death of Yura" has received praise from "Contemporary" editor Rong Shihui and editor-in-chief Qin Chaoyang. Publishing it is no longer a problem, but the specific situation depends on the typesetting to determine the final publication time.

On the other hand, the spy novel Lin Weimin sent to "Zhongshan" magazine also received a reply.

The letter was written by editor Yu Zhaohuai, who was also the one who initially picked Lin Weimin out of many submissions. He later became Lin Weimin's editor-in-chief.

The content of the letter was very simple. After some review, the editorial department unanimously decided to publish Lin Weimin's novella.

Lin Weimin couldn't help but smile when he read the end of the letter, because Yu Zhaohuai mentioned the royalties in the letter.

Lin Weimin's standard remuneration this time is 8 yuan per 1,000 words. The full text of his novella is more than 82,300 words, which is equivalent to 664 yuan.

In this day and age, an ordinary worker's salary can reach more than 40 yuan, which is considered a middle-to-high income. 664 yuan is equivalent to the salary of an ordinary worker for more than a year, which is a huge sum of money.

Lin Weimin was full of expectations for the "money bill will arrive in the near future" mentioned in Yu Zhaohuai's letter.

There is still a future as a writer!

After tasting the sweetness, Lin Weimin's mentality swayed again.

Yu Zhaohuai was right. The day after receiving the letter, Lin Weimin received the manuscript fee bill.

It was just after lunch at that time, Lin Weimin went to the gate of School D to collect the mail. When he came back, everyone saw the mail in his hand.

They are all in this business, and many people can see the word "Zhongshan" on the envelope at a glance.

When I asked Lin Weimin, it turned out that the manuscript had been adopted and the manuscript fee slip had been sent.

When someone shouted, several classmates from the boys' dormitory nearby came over curiously, and asked Lin Weimin to open the email in anticipation.

Speaking of why everyone is so excited, we have to start with our country’s royalties system.

At the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the economy was poor and weak, and social prices were volatile. A popular payment method at that time was to calculate royalties in real units.

When an article is published, if the remuneration is 6 yuan per 1,000 words, the publishing company will convert rice, coal, cloth and other physical items into the remuneration you deserve, and pay you in kind instead of cash.

By 1953, the Government Affairs Council formulated domestic standards for payment of royalties based on the Soviet Union’s “l printing quota system” royalties policy. That is: 60,000 to 180,000 yuan (old currency) per 1,000 words for a manuscript, and 40,000 to 130,000 yuan (old currency) per 1,000 words for a translation manuscript.

By 1955, the People's Bank of China abolished the old currency and issued new currency (10,000 yuan in the old currency was converted into one yuan in the new currency). The remuneration system then changed to: 6 to 18 yuan per 1,000 words for manuscripts and 4 to 13 yuan per 1,000 words for translations.

According to the price level at that time, the average monthly salary of ordinary workers was only twenty or thirty yuan. Rice and pork were sold at a few cents per kilogram. Writers could earn royalties per thousand words for their manuscripts. The manuscript fee is still relatively high, ranging from 6 to 18 yuan.

Then in July 1958, the Ministry of Culture issued the first unified regulations on royalties. This regulation is called "Interim Provisions on Remuneration for Books on Literature and Social Sciences" and stipulates 4 to 15 yuan per 1,000 words for manuscripts and 3 to 10 yuan per 1,000 words for translations.

After that, the standard of royalties dropped again and again, until during the buzzing period, most publishing institutions across the country fell into a state of paralysis, and those units that could barely support their operations also automatically canceled royalties. At this point, our country has entered a decade-long period of zero royalties.

After buzz buzz ended, in 1977 the State Publishing Administration restored the remuneration system, stipulating that the remuneration system was 2 to 7 yuan per 1,000 words for manuscripts and 1 to 5 yuan for every 1,000 words for translations. In 1980, the State Publishing Administration slightly increased the basic remuneration to 3 to 10 yuan per 1,000 words for manuscripts and 2 to 7 yuan per 1,000 words for translations.

In the past two years, due to the policy restoration, the standards for author remuneration have changed greatly. Many people in the class have not had a taste of this year's remuneration changes, so they are naturally very curious about Lin Weimin's remuneration.

Lin Weimin opened the email in the expectant eyes of everyone, holding the thin manuscript fee slip in his hand. Before he could see the handwriting on it clearly, Cheng Shixu snatched it away.

"Ouch~more than six hundred!" Cheng Shixu shouted.

Everyone came forward to watch.

"Not bad, it's eight yuan for a thousand words."

"Zilong, this standard is the same as the article you published in "People's Literature"!"

More than a month ago, Jiang Zilong's new work "The Biography of Director Qiao" was published in the second issue of "People's Literature", and the standard manuscript fee was also 8 yuan.

Qu Xiaowei shouted at this time: "Comrades, be quiet, be quiet!"

He waved his hands, suppressed everyone's voices, and then said: "I think that the publication of Weimin's novel is inseparable from everyone's help and support. Now that the royalties have been received, do we have to let this kid To express?"

Several young people in the class immediately echoed: "It's necessary, you have to express it."

Lin Weimin turned his back and scolded Qu Xiaowei, "I'll beat you to death, a turtle grandson. Why did you help me?"

Qu Xiaowei said very bachelorly: "Yes, I didn't help you. But you can't erase everyone's contribution, have you forgotten? Who lit the lamp and burned the oil to proofread the manuscript for you? Who gave you the reference? Valuable suggestions for revision? It’s everyone!”

"That's right!" Others began to cheer and cheer.

Lin Weimin was so depressed that he wanted to vomit blood. Damn it, I lent you the manuscript to read. Are you doing me a favor?

brazen! How shameless!

Angry as hell, his little arms couldn't twist his thighs. Under the fierce public opinion, Lin Weimin still compromised.

He thought to himself that he was going to bleed anyway, so he might as well be generous and said, "Okay, on weekend evenings, let's all go to Bianyifang for roast duck!"

Everyone shouted.

Just when everyone was happy to kill Lin Weimin, Lin Weimin's eyes were fixed on Qu Xiaowei.

This thief, I had already planned to let you go, but you rushed to die, so you can't blame me.

"Hey, hey, I say, everyone, please be quiet, be quiet, and listen to what I have to say."

Everyone suppressed their excited cheers and looked at Lin Weimin.

"I think it's not satisfying to just have a meal at Biafang. I remember last time we punished Qu Xiaowei with a meal, but we still haven't implemented it. How about we take advantage of this opportunity and enjoy it all at once?" "

After being reminded by him, everyone almost forgot about this matter, and suddenly became happy, "Yes, yes, Dong Laishun, I almost forgot."

"It is better for the people to have a good memory and have nothing wrong with it. A cheap meal, a smooth meal, and an open belly."

Qu Xiaowei looked at Lin Weimin fiercely, and Lin Weimin pulled Qu Xiaowei over and whispered, "You kid, think you can run away?"

Qu Xiaowei was angry and helpless, a little regretful of his garrulousness just now.

Lin Weimin looked at his expression with a satisfied smile, but no one knew.

His heart was bleeding.

Come on, let’s hurt each other!