Author Alan Dean Foster Demands Disney Pay Him Royalties

Credit: Pixabay.com

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We’re already coming to the end of the month and, I’ll admit, I’m behind on distributing Patreon page benefits. And for that reason I may have to reduce the membership prices for November (members are billed on the first of the month). But, because it has not been at the market value for at least a year, I’m also going to have to raise the price on my short fiction collection, “The Fool’s Illusion”, soon. But there’s a way you can get a free copy now and discounted copies after that and I’ll tell you how in a bit. First, I’d like to talk about one of the biggest sci fi news events going right now which is author Alan Dean Foster’s problem with the Disney Co.

Alan Dean Foster’s Demand to the Disney Co

Alan Dean Foster, the author of numerous books based on the “Star Wars” and “Alien” film franchises, reported to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) that the Disney Co has not been paying royalties due to him. Foster basically started the line of “Star Wars” fiction beginning with the novel adaptation of the very first movie, now subtitled “A New Hope”. He wrote and published the first “Star Wars” novel sequel, “Splinter of the Mind’s Eye”, in 1978--two years before the movie’s sequel, The Empire Strikes Back”, released. When Disney bought Lucasfilm and 20th century Fox, they acquired the “Star Wars” (Lucasfilm) and “Alien” (Fox) franchises. This included the rights to the books. 

In a letter to Disney, Foster wrote that when a company buys another company they acquire both its assets and liabilities. In this case, the liabilities are royalties owed to the author. He says in the letter that Disney is only taking the benefits of the assets and not the responsibility for the liabilities. He also says that Disney has gone as far as ignoring requests concerning the issue from his legal representatives. After saying how much he loves Disney’s work, including its movies, amusement parks and the “Disneyland” TV show he grew up with, he does not believe that Walt Disney himself who founded the company would approve of cheating the author out of royalties. 

According to, Mary Robinette Kowal, president of the SFWA which advocates for speculative fiction authors, Disney’s argument is that they’ve only purchased the rights of the Lucasfilm and Fox properties but not the liabilities. She says in her announcement of the affair, “They believe they have the right to publish work, but are not obligated to pay the writer no matter what the contract says.” Along with this, she implies that if they can cheat a long-time, well-known sci fi writer such as Foster then they can easily do that with new, younger writers who do not yet understand contracts. She offers Disney some choices to resolve the breach of contract with Foster and then says “Regardless of choice, Disney must pay Alan Dean Foster.” 

And that’s what I say too: Disney must pay the author. But the company has had a disregard for the human element in art. Ever since around the time Michael Eisner took over as CEO in the 1980s, the company has turned from an emphasis on utilizing its own work based on Walt Disney’s style and vision to one on buying out media properties left and right. It bought out ABC, ESPN, Lucasfilm, Marvel Comics, and lately 20th Century Fox. Along with this, it’s been adding creations from these properties to their own. Walt Disney and the ones who took over his company after his death in the 1960s, overall, relied on their own creations or their own interpretations of other people’s creations such as the fairy tales they adapted into animated feature films. 

Now the company is about imperializing entertainment media rather than providing it. This poor ethic has led Disney to have a disregard for George Lucas and his “Star Wars” films, Walt Disney himself, its employees, artists and the artists of properties it has acquired. And Foster is included in that last category. 

I have not read a lot of Foster’s work mostly because I don’t read fiction based on movie and TV franchises. But that’s beside the point. The point is that I believe in paying the author for his/her hard work. If Disney gets away with exploiting a big name author such as Foster, they’ll too easily get away with exploiting authors who are new and beginning to acquire success. Authors have their rights as human beings and the care of human beings needs to come first, that of mega corporations later (if ever). Like Walt Disney, Harlan Ellison would also probably not approve of this treatment that Foster’s been getting. He would say that Disney has to pay the writer.  

How to Get Free and Discounted Copies of “Fool’s Illusion”

And now let me tell you how you can get your free copy of “The Fool’s Illusion” as well as discounted copies. As I said, I am going to have to raise the price to its market value which is $4.99 for the ebook version. Right now I’m offering the ebook for free through my Patreon page. All you need to do is purchase a Patreon membership at my page for as low as $2 a month and you won’t only get the free book but you’ll also get your name published in a thank you message for supporting my work. Then, when the price of the book goes up next month, you’ll receive discounts on copies. Visit my Patreon page for more details about memberships. 

If you don’t want a membership, then you can purchase the ebook at its now low price of 99 cents either at Smashwords or Amazon. Whichever route you take, the Patreon route or the 99 cent route, I would purchase the book now because it will go up in price by December. If you already have a copy, well then now’s the perfect time to do some early holiday shopping for a loved one!

Next week, I’ll have the Book-To-Movie for the month. Until then, have a Happy Thanksgiving! Yes, there are still some things to be grateful for even during this time of Covid-19. For one thing, we’re alive! 

Do you think the Disney Co should pay Alan Dean Foster royalties regardless of them owning the Lucasfilm and Fox properties? 

Until next time . . .