The news that Jiang Yulou's works will be published in "Contemporary" spread around the school, and even the principal came to visit him in class in a kind way.
There is also a lot of encouragement for him and ardent expectations that he will continue to work hard and reach higher levels.
Many students from well-off families said that they would definitely buy and support him after "Contemporary" is published.
The noise is always short-lived. After school at noon, Ma Xiao and Tang Yuewen surrounded him.
Jiang Yulou looked at the two of them warily, "What are you doing?"
"Stop pretending, let's take a look. I don't believe that the reply from "Contemporary" only contains the letter and nothing else?" Ma Xiao looked at him with a "smile".
Tang Yuewen secretly covered her mouth and smiled. She was also curious and wanted to know whether he had received royalties.
Jiang Yulou looked up to the sky and sighed: "Oh, I made a bad friend by mistake!"
"If you don't do it quickly, I can take action."
Seeing that Ma Xiao was about to take action,
Jiang Yulou was forced to take out the envelope again, which contained not only a manuscript acceptance letter from "Contemporary" magazine, but also a remittance slip for his manuscript fee.
In 1977, the National Publishing Administration issued the "Notice on the Trial Implementation of Press and Publication Remuneration and Subsidy Measures", restoring the 10-year-old remuneration system that had been abolished. The notice stipulated that a low remuneration system should be implemented, and remuneration should be paid in one lump sum based on the quality and word count of the work. The price for a manuscript is 2 to 7 yuan per 1,000 words, and the price for a translation is 1 to 5 yuan per 1,000 words.
Large periodicals and magazines like "Contemporary" are owned by People's Literature. They have large print runs and great influence. They are located in a big city like the capital. They have more funds and the standard of remuneration is generally higher than that of small magazines.
Jiang Yulou's "Li Shisan Pushing the Mill" has a total of more than 27,000 words. The amount on the remittance slip is 189 yuan. "Contemporary" magazine gave it according to the standard of 7 yuan per 1,000 words, which is a lot. It’s equivalent to a year’s salary of an average worker in the city.
Even compared with Sun Shaoan who runs a brick kiln, he is not far behind. Sun Shaoan and Xiulian only earned six or seven hundred yuan a month after working hard. He can write more than one or two articles a month.
Now can be said to be the best period for writers in recent years. Relatively high royalties and low prices have made literature a dream for a large number of aspiring young people. It was during this period that a group of new people emerged in the literary world, such as Yu Hua and Wang Xiaobo. , Shi Tiesheng, Chen Zhongshi, Jia Pingwa and others all entered the literary world during this era.
In the next few years, royalties will continue to rise. If by next year, the National Publishing Bureau will formulate new royalties, appropriately increase the basic royalties and return them to the previous level. For manuscripts, they will increase to 3 to 10 yuan per 1,000 words, and for translation manuscripts, It is 2 to 7 yuan per thousand words. At the same time, the royalties for printing runs are restored. The royalties for each printing are 1 to 20,000 copies, and 5% of the basic royalties are paid for every 10,000 copies.
By the 1990s, the good days of writers were over. Prices continued to rise. Although the basic royalties were higher than before, the royalties for articles with the same number of words could buy fewer and fewer things until the 21st century. For the first time, there are very few writers who can work full-time at this stage.
Almost all of those writers are members of the Writers' Association or the Academy of Literature. They have a stable salary, and the royalties are another source of income. Otherwise, they would not be able to support themselves with the royalties alone.
"Guigui, more than a hundred yuan, Louzi, you are worth a fortune!" Ma Xiao looked at the numbers on the remittance slip and could hardly close his mouth.
Not to mention Tang Yuewen, she had already transformed into a little fan girl, looking at him with admiration.
Jiang Yulou emphasized: "What's the difference between a thousand words and seven yuan for a thousand words?"
"Anyway, you've made a fortune, shouldn't you show something?" Ma Xiao chuckled.
"The Yulou family's conditions are not good and life is not easy, so let's forget it."
Tang Yuewen felt sorry for Jiang Yulou and didn't want him to waste money.
"Yue Wen still feels sorry for me." Jiang Yulou said with a playful smile.
Tang Yuewen blushed with embarrassment and lowered her head, not daring to look at him.
Just when Ma Xiao thought that this rich man had lost his fortune, Jiang Yulou said again: "I won't be able to treat you to a big meal with this little money, but it will be okay to eat a mutton steamed bun. How about it? Do you want to go?" "
As he spoke, he turned his eyes towards Ma Xiao.
"Go, I'll definitely go. As long as we can eat out, we won't choose." Ma Xiao said with a smile.
Tang Yuewen also nodded. The mutton steamed buns are delicious and not expensive, and Jiang Yulou's small treasury can also accept them.
"That's it. Let's go. Come with me to get the money first."
In this era, remittances are made through the post and telecommunications offices, and the post and telecommunications offices in various cities are also the most popular units.
The three of them walked all the way to the post office. Jiang Yulou had been here before and knew the way.
Entering the post office, he went straight to the counter.
"Hello comrade, I want to withdraw money."
Jiang Yulou took out the remittance slip from the envelope and handed it to the elder sister at the counter.
"Withdrawing money, right? I didn't know how to come earlier. It's already dinner time."
The eldest sister muttered without raising her head.
It's the same for all state-owned units these days. Don't expect to look good on you. If you don't feel cold, you are already working hard.
Jiang Yulou also understood, so he was not impatient. As long as you get the money, everything is easy.
The lady at the counter took the remittance form and casually scanned the unit and amount on the remittance form. One hundred and eighty-nine yuan, "Contemporary" magazine, royalties?
Um? Royalties? The eldest sister was stunned for a moment.
She didn't care whether there was more money or less. There were a lot of people withdrawing money at the post office. It was not like she had never seen large remittance orders before, but this was the first time she saw royalties.
Hey, this is novel enough.
So the eldest sister raised her head for a rare moment. She was shocked when she saw that the writer who could get more than 100 royalties was actually a young man, even younger than her son.
This made her feel sour.
Now it has been changed, and after going through a special period, the value of intellectuals is increasing day by day, and writers are the objects of worship among intellectual youths. Wherever they go, others have to call them teachers.
This status is only slightly worse than that of a master in the government.
The attitude of the lady at the counter improved a lot, and she said kindly: "Teacher Jiang, wait a minute, I will handle the money withdrawal business for you right now."
"Comradeship is serious. I am not a teacher, I am just an ordinary writer." Jiang Yulou smiled honestly.
After withdrawing the money, the three of them came out of the post office. Ma Xiao kept looking around him.
"What's wrong with you?"
"Tsk, I'm already a teacher now. If you write a novel, your status will be really different."
Tang Yuewen stared at Jiang Yulou, looking proud.
Jiang Yulou smiled, patted the money in his pocket, and said confidently: "Let's go and have a good meal with my brother."
Mutton steamed bun shop is a famous snack in Shaanxi, and there are several in Yangping County.
The three of them went to a well-known restaurant in the county and had a delicious meal.
Jiang Yulou only felt that his whole body felt comfortable after eating.
So beautiful!
