Terms & Conditions

Nova Publishers Inc. (trading as "Nova Publishers")
A Virginia corporation
connect@thenovap.com · (703) 249-9257

Effective date: 12 October 2026
Version: 2.1

Version 2.1 updates cover allowances (section 5), payment timing (section 6.4) and ISBNs (section 10). It applies to Service Orders accepted on or after 12 October 2026.

Read this first

You keep your copyright. You keep your rights. You keep your royalties. We are a service provider, not a rights holder, and nothing in this agreement changes that.

We have tried to write this in plain English. Where a clause protects us, we have said so rather than burying it. Section 7 (refunds), section 9 (what we own vs. what you own), section 13 (what we do not guarantee), and section 20 (disputes) are the ones that matter most. Read those even if you skip the rest.

1. Who these terms are between

1.1 These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") are a binding agreement between Nova Publishers Inc., a Virginia corporation trading as "Nova Publishers" ("Nova," "we," "us," "our") and you, the individual or entity purchasing services or using our website ("you," "your," "Author").

1.2 Scope. These Terms apply to thenovap.com and to all services you purchase from us. They do not apply to any other website or business.

1.3 How you accept. You accept these Terms when you do any of the following: create an account; submit a manuscript or other material to us; make a payment, in whole or in part, for any service; or sign a Service Order that references these Terms.

1.4 Order of precedence. If there is a conflict, the following order applies: (a) a signed Service Order or Statement of Work; (b) the Refund and Cancellation Policy, as to any question of refund or cancellation; (c) these Terms; (d) any other policy on our website.

1.5 Incorporated documents. The Refund and Cancellation Policy and the Privacy Policy are part of these Terms and are incorporated by reference.

1.6 Eligibility. You must be at least 18 years old and able to enter a binding contract. If you are contracting on behalf of a company, trust, or estate, you represent that you have authority to bind it.

1.7 Summaries are not operative. The "Read this first" note above, the summary in section 7, and any other recap, bullet list, or table introduced as a summary are provided for convenience only. Where a summary differs from the operative text it summarises, the operative text controls, except that where a summary is more favourable to you than the operative text, you may rely on the summary.

1A. Definitions

"Add-On" means an optional service purchased alongside a Publishing Package or Individual Service.

"Business Day" means Monday through Friday, excluding United States federal holidays.

"Contractor" means a freelancer, agency, vendor, or other third party we engage to perform part of the services.

"Design Commencement," "Final Approval," "Manuscript Submission," "Order Date," "Service Fulfillment," and "Third-Party Costs" have the meanings given in section 2 of the Refund and Cancellation Policy, which apply throughout these Terms.

"Individual Service" means a single service purchased on its own rather than as part of a Publishing Package.

"Publishing Package" means a bundled, multi-stage set of services sold at a package price.

"Service Order" means the written order, quotation, statement of work, or package confirmation that records what you have purchased, its price, and its payment schedule.

"Work" means your book or other creative work in every form and edition, including the manuscript, text, artwork, photographs, audio, front and back matter, title, and all content you supply or authorise for publication.

2. What we do, and what we do not do

2.1 We provide author services. Depending on what you purchase, that may include developmental editing, line editing, copy editing, proofreading, cover design, interior layout and formatting, ebook conversion, print-ready file production, ISBN and metadata setup, distribution setup, audiobook production, ghostwriting, author website development, and marketing and publicity services.

2.2 We are not a traditional publisher. We do not acquire rights in your Work. We do not pay advances. We do not select books for publication on commercial merit and then own them. You are paying us to produce and distribute your book, and you remain its owner and its publisher in every sense that matters.

2.3 We are not a literary agent, an accountant, or a law firm. Nothing we say about copyright, contracts, taxes, or business structure is professional advice. Get your own advisers.

2.4 We are not a distributor of record, and except for direct sales through our own online bookstore, we are not a retailer. We set your book up with distribution partners. Those partners, and the retailers they supply, make their own independent decisions. See section 13.

3. Your project, and what each side has to do

3.1 Service Order. What you have bought is defined in your Service Order or package description: the deliverables, the revision allowances, the price, and the payment schedule.

3.2 What we will do. Perform the services in your Service Order with reasonable skill and care, using our in-house team and, for specialist work, qualified contractors; keep you informed of progress; deliver each milestone for your review; and meet the revision allowances in section 5.

3.3 What you will do. Deliver your manuscript and all materials in the formats we specify; respond to requests for information, feedback, and approval within a reasonable time; give clear and consolidated feedback within your revision allowance; and pay on schedule.

3.4 One point of contact. Please nominate one person to give us feedback and approvals. Conflicting instructions from multiple people are the most common cause of project delay and of revisions being consumed unproductively.

3.5 Timelines are estimates. Any schedule we give you is a good-faith estimate, not a guarantee, unless a Service Order expressly says otherwise and states a remedy.

3.6 Our team. Your book is edited and designed by our in-house editors and designers. For some specialist work, such as narration or software development, we may engage vetted contractors. We remain responsible to you for their work under these Terms.

4. Delays, non-responsiveness, and dormant projects

4.1 Your delays do not count against our timelines. We are not responsible for delays caused by your non-responsiveness, late delivery, or delivery of materials that do not meet the specifications we gave you. Days during which we are waiting on you do not count toward any quoted timeframe.

4.2 Deemed approval. If we request written approval of a milestone and you do not respond within 15 business days, we may treat that milestone as approved. Before we do, we must send at least two written reminders, spaced at least 5 business days apart, and the 15-day clock runs from the later of the approval request or the second reminder.

If we deem a milestone approved, we will notify you in writing, and that notice must state plainly that your refund tier has changed and what it has changed to. You may reverse a deemed approval within 5 business days of that notice, at no charge and with no consequence (see section 5.3.1).

4.3 Hold. If we have been waiting on you for more than 90 consecutive days despite at least three written attempts to reach you, we may place your project on hold, with prior written notice.

4.4 Reactivation. You may reactivate a held project within 12 months at no charge, subject to our production schedule. After 12 months, our then-current rates apply.

4.5 Archiving. We keep working files for held projects for 24 months from the date of hold, then may archive or delete them, with at least 30 days' written notice to your account email first.

4.6 No hold fees. We do not charge storage fees, hold fees, or reactivation penalties within the periods above.

4.7 Our delays. If we cause a material delay, tell us in writing. If we do not resume material work within 30 days, you may terminate and receive a refund of amounts paid for the undelivered portion, without regard to the refund tiers or the 90-day limit.

5. Revisions: actual numbers

Most companies in this industry will not tell you how many revisions you get. We will. Unless your Service Order says otherwise, these are the allowances included in your package price:

Cover design: on the Launch package, 2 initial concepts, then 1 round of revision on the chosen concept; on Launch Pro and above, 3 initial concepts, then 2 rounds of revision on the chosen concept
Interior layout / formatting: 2 rounds of revision after the first typeset proof
Copy editing / proofreading: 1 pass, plus 1 round of author queries and corrections
Line / developmental editing: 1 full pass, plus 1 revision pass after your rewrite
Ghostwriting: 2 rounds of revision per chapter or per agreed section
Author website: 2 rounds of design revision before launch
Audiobook: 1 round of pickup corrections after the first full proof listen

5.1 What a "round" is. One consolidated set of feedback from you, delivered together, and our response to it. Feedback sent in several messages over several days on the same deliverable counts as one round if it arrives before we start work on it. Once we begin acting on your feedback, further feedback is the next round.

5.2 What is not a revision. These are scope changes and are quoted separately: changing the book's title, subtitle, author name, trim size, binding, page count, or genre after approval; adding or removing chapters, illustrations, or sections; rewriting material after an editing pass is complete; changing creative direction after concept selection; correcting or replacing source material you supplied incorrectly; or any change to a file after Final Approval.

5.3 Approval closes a stage. When you approve a stage in writing, that stage is closed. Reopening it is a scope change. This is how we protect the schedule and the price for you and for every other author in the queue.

5.3.1 Deemed approvals are different. Where a stage was approved only by operation of the deemed-approval rule in section 4.2, and you reverse it within the 5-business-day window, that reversal is not a scope change, does not consume a revision round, and carries no fee. Your refund tier is restored as though the deemed approval had not occurred.

5.4 Extra revisions. Available at our then-current hourly or per-round rate. We will always quote you before we start.

5.5 Our errors are free. If we introduce an error (a typo we created, a file built to the wrong spec, a design element that doesn't match what you approved), we fix it at no charge and it does not consume a revision round. This applies whether the error is found before or after Final Approval.

6. Prices, payment, and taxes

6.1 Prices. As stated in your Service Order. Prices quoted are valid for 30 days unless we say otherwise.

6.2 Payment methods. We take card payments and bank wire through our bank merchants. All amounts are in United States dollars.

6.3 A note about payment method and your protections. A card payment can be disputed with the bank that issued the card. A bank wire generally cannot be reversed by your bank, so this refund policy is your route to a refund if you pay that way. If you want the protection of a card dispute process, pay by card. We would rather you knew this before you chose than after.

6.4 Payment timing. Payment is due upfront in full when you accept your quote, before work starts. For packages priced over $5,000, we may agree a milestone payment schedule, which will be set out in your Service Order. If you cancel, any refund is worked out under the Refund and Cancellation Policy.

6.5 Late payment. Where an amount is more than 15 days overdue we may charge a late fee of $50 per overdue invoice, and the overdue amount accrues interest at 10% per year, or the maximum rate permitted by Virginia law if lower. We may suspend work on overdue accounts after written notice. We do not report author accounts to consumer credit bureaus.

6.6 Third-Party Costs. ISBNs, printing, shipping, advertising spend, stock licences, narration fees, and similar costs are either included in your package or billed separately as stated in your Service Order. We will tell you before committing your money to a third party.

6.7 Taxes. Prices exclude applicable sales, use, or VAT taxes, which we will add where required. You are responsible for your own income taxes on royalties.

6.8 Recurring charges. Where a service renews automatically, we disclose the price, the renewal date, and how to cancel before you pay; we remind you before each renewal; and you can cancel online, in your account, in the same way you signed up.

7. Cancellation and refunds

Refunds are governed entirely by our Refund and Cancellation Policy (thenovap.com/refund-policy), which is part of these Terms and which controls over these Terms on any question of refund or cancellation (section 1.4).

The following is an illustrative summary only. Where it differs from the Refund and Cancellation Policy, that Policy controls. Please read the Policy.

Publishing Packages use a four-tier ladder: your money back less an administrative retention before you submit your manuscript; 50% after submission but before Design Commencement; 25% after Design Commencement but before Final Approval; none after Final Approval. Subject to a 90-day outer limit from your Order Date, which does not apply where the delay is ours.
Individual Services are refundable, less the retention, until we begin work, and non-refundable after.
Third-Party Costs already irrevocably committed are deducted. Where we later recover such a cost, we pass the recovery through to you.
If we decline your project, terminate for our own convenience, or cannot deliver, you receive a full refund of all amounts paid, including the administrative retention, less only Third-Party Costs irrevocably committed at your written direction. See Refund and Cancellation Policy, section 5.1.

8. Your manuscript, your rights

8.1 You own your Work. YOU RETAIN ALL RIGHT, TITLE, AND INTEREST, INCLUDING COPYRIGHT, IN AND TO YOUR MANUSCRIPT AND ALL CONTENT YOU SUPPLY. We claim no ownership interest in it. We acquire no rights of first refusal, no options on future works, and no rights in sequels, adaptations, translations, or derivative works.

8.2 Our licence is narrow and non-exclusive. You grant us a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to reproduce, format, adapt, and transmit your Work solely to the extent necessary to perform the services you have purchased and to arrange distribution you have authorised. This licence is irrevocable for the duration of the engagement (so that we can finish work you have paid for) and, as to distribution you have authorised, continues until takedown is complete. It then ends, except (a) as needed to complete distribution takedowns, (b) as needed to comply with law, and (c) as expressly provided in section 8.5.

8.3 We do not take exclusivity. You remain free to publish, sell, license, or distribute your Work anywhere else, in any format, at any time, including in competition with the distribution we set up for you.

8.4 We do not train AI on your manuscript, and we do not sell it to anyone who would. Nova does not use your manuscript, your materials, or your personal information to train, fine-tune, or evaluate artificial-intelligence or machine-learning models, and we do not sell or license your Work to any third party for that purpose. We require our contractors, by contract, not to submit your manuscript to any AI tool whose terms permit training on submitted content. See section 12 for how AI is used in production.

8.5 Promotional use. We would like to show your cover, title, and a short excerpt in our portfolio and marketing. You grant us a non-exclusive licence to do that during the engagement and afterwards. You may withdraw this at any time by emailing us, and we will remove you from our materials within 30 days.

8.6 Testimonials. We will only use your name, likeness, or testimonial with your separate written permission, and you may withdraw it at any time.

9. Who owns what we produce

This is the section most companies leave vague. Here is our position in full.

9.1 What you receive and own outright. Effective on full payment of amounts due for work actually performed, we hereby assign to you all right, title, and interest, including copyright, in and to the following deliverables, and will execute any confirmatory assignment you reasonably request:

The final print-ready interior PDF
The final print-ready cover PDF
The final EPUB and any other distributable ebook files
The final audiobook master files, where purchased
The flattened, high-resolution cover image in the formats needed for retail listings and marketing
All metadata for your book

You may use these files anywhere, with any printer, with any distributor, forever, with no further payment to us. You do not need our permission to leave and take your book with you. This applies whether the engagement ends because it finished, because you cancelled, or because we terminated it.

One practical exception: if your book uses a Nova imprint ISBN under section 10.1, files carrying that ISBN and barcode must be reissued under your own ISBN before you use them elsewhere. We will supply an ISBN-free version of your files at no charge so you can do that.

9.2 What we keep. We retain ownership of our own working materials: layered and editable design source files (for example, InDesign and Photoshop working documents), our layout templates and style sheets, our internal production tooling, our project management systems, our house style guides, and our name, logos, and imprint marks. These are our means of production, not your book.

9.3 Custom illustrations and commissioned artwork. Where you have paid separately for custom illustrations or commissioned artwork, we hereby assign to you, effective on full payment, all right, title, and interest, including copyright, in and to that artwork, and will execute a confirmatory written assignment on request. Editable source files for commissioned artwork are included.

9.4 Licensed third-party assets. Stock images, fonts, and similar assets are licensed, not owned, by whichever of us bought the licence. We will tell you what is licensed and on what terms so you know what you can and cannot do with it.

9.5 If you want the source files. Layered design source files are available for purchase at our then-current rate. We will never make your access to your finished, usable book conditional on buying them. You always get everything you need to publish, print, and sell.

9.6 We will not hold your files hostage. Section 9.1 files are released on full payment of amounts due for work actually performed. We do not require payment of future, unearned, or cancelled fees as a condition of release. Filing a refund request, disputing a charge, or complaining about our work is never a reason for us to withhold your files. The only exception is the narrow one in section 16.4, which requires a claim actually filed in a court or arbitral forum.

10. ISBNs and publisher of record

10.1 Nova's ISBN by default. Unless you ask otherwise, we assign your book an ISBN from Nova's own block, with Nova Publishers as publisher of record, and your copyright page reads "Published by Nova Publishers". This is included in your package.

10.1.1 Your own ISBN, if you prefer. You may instead (a) supply your own ISBN, or (b) have us purchase an ISBN registered in your name, with you as publisher of record. The credit then reads "Production by Nova Publishers". The cost of an ISBN bought in your name is a Third-Party Cost under section 6.6.

10.2 An ISBN registered in your name is yours. We do not retain any interest in it and it moves with you.

10.3 A Nova imprint ISBN stays with the Nova imprint. If you later move your book elsewhere, you will need a new ISBN for the new edition. This is how ISBNs work everywhere, not a restriction we invented. We will tell you this before you choose.

10.4 Copyright registration. Where purchased, we file in your name as claimant. Registration is with the U.S. Copyright Office and its timing is outside our control.

11. Distribution

11.1 Non-exclusive, always. Any distribution we arrange is non-exclusive. You may distribute the same Work through any other channel at the same time.

11.2 Retailers decide for themselves. Distributors, wholesalers, libraries, and retailers, online and physical, are under no obligation to stock, order, re-order, carry, list, price, promote, or display any book. Their decisions are their own, made on their own criteria, and we do not control them and cannot compel them.

11.3 Retailer terms change. Retailer and distributor requirements, royalty rates, category structures, promotional programmes, and content policies change without notice and without our involvement. Changes may require file resubmission or metadata changes, which may carry a fee.

11.4 Takedowns. You may request removal from any channel at any time. We will submit the request within 5 business days. Retailers typically take 4 to 6 weeks and sometimes longer to complete a takedown. Listings, cached pages, reviews, and third-party marketplace entries may remain visible indefinitely. This is outside our control.

11.5 Royalties: there are two separate paths, and we only touch one of them.

(a) Sales through the Nova bookstore and mobile app. Where a reader buys your book directly from our online bookstore or our mobile app, we collect the payment and you receive 70% of the net proceeds. We retain 30%. "Net proceeds" means the sale price actually received, less payment-processing fees, printing and shipping costs, and any sales tax. We report and pay quarterly, within 30 days of quarter end, once your balance reaches $25.

(b) Sales through Amazon KDP, IngramSpark, and other retailers. Your retailer account is connected to your own bank account. Those retailers pay you directly. We never receive, hold, or take a share of that money, and we have no visibility into it beyond the reports you or the retailer share with us. If a retailer underpays you, delays you, or changes its rates, that is between you and the retailer.

11.6 Retailer non-payment. For bookstore sales under (a) only: if a payment processor or fulfilment partner fails to pay us, we will pass through what we receive and pursue the shortfall in good faith. We do not guarantee amounts we have not been paid. Path (b) does not involve us at all.

12. Artificial intelligence

12.1 We will not train on your work. Restating section 8.4 because it matters: Nova does not use your manuscript or materials to train, fine-tune, or evaluate AI models, and does not sell or license your Work to anyone for that purpose.

12.2 People edit and design your book. Our in-house editors and designers do the editing and design work on your book. We do not use AI to write or edit it.

12.2.1 Services you choose that use AI. Where a service you choose uses an AI tool, such as AI-voice audiobook narration, we use only tools whose terms exclude submitted content from model training. If you would prefer that no AI tool of any kind touches your manuscript, tell us in writing before work begins and we will honour it at no extra charge and confirm it to you.

12.3 A human always reviews it. We conduct human review of any AI-generated or AI-assisted output before it reaches you or your readers. No AI output is delivered to you unreviewed.

12.4 We will tell you. Where a deliverable you receive was materially produced with AI assistance (for example AI-voice narration), we will tell you before you approve it, and you may decline it. Declining an AI-produced deliverable does not consume a revision round and is not a scope change. We will either produce a non-AI alternative at no additional charge, or refund that line item in full at your election.

12.5 Your disclosure obligation. If any material part of your manuscript was generated by AI, you must tell us before we begin work. We do not refuse AI-assisted books. But Amazon KDP and other retailers require disclosure of AI-generated content, and an undisclosed AI book can be delisted after publication. We cannot make that disclosure accurately on your behalf unless you tell us, and we are not responsible for retailer action taken because of a disclosure you did not make.

13. What we do not guarantee

13.1 WE DO NOT GUARANTEE SALES. WE CANNOT CONTROL THE PURCHASING DECISIONS OF CONSUMERS, BOOKSELLERS, LIBRARIANS, REVIEWERS, OR RETAILERS. WE MAKE NO GUARANTEE, PROMISE, OR REPRESENTATION AS TO THE NUMBER OF COPIES THAT WILL BE SOLD, THE REVENUE OR ROYALTIES YOU WILL EARN, OR ANY RETURN ON YOUR INVESTMENT.

13.2 WE DO NOT GUARANTEE BESTSELLER STATUS, CATEGORY RANKING, OR CHART PLACEMENT ON ANY RETAILER, LIST, OR PLATFORM, INCLUDING AMAZON BESTSELLER RANKINGS AND CATEGORY RANKINGS.

13.3 WE DO NOT GUARANTEE REVIEWS, THE NUMBER OF REVIEWS, THE RATING OF REVIEWS, OR COVERAGE BY ANY REVIEW PUBLICATION. WE WILL NOT BUY, SOLICIT, INCENTIVISE, OR MANUFACTURE REVIEWS, AND WE WILL NOT WORK WITH ANY VENDOR WHO DOES.

13.4 WE DO NOT GUARANTEE MEDIA COVERAGE, PRESS PLACEMENT, INTERVIEWS, PODCAST APPEARANCES, SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS, AWARDS, OR FILM, TELEVISION, TRANSLATION, OR SUBSIDIARY-RIGHTS INTEREST.

13.5 WE DO NOT GUARANTEE ACCEPTANCE BY ANY RETAILER, DISTRIBUTOR, LIBRARY, OR CATALOGUE, OR THAT ANY BOOK ACCEPTED WILL REMAIN LISTED.

13.6 WE DO NOT GUARANTEE SEARCH ENGINE RANKINGS, SOCIAL MEDIA REACH, ADVERTISING PERFORMANCE, EMAIL OPEN RATES, OR WEBSITE TRAFFIC.

13.7 Anything anyone told you. No statement by any employee, contractor, or sales representative (spoken, written, or implied, before or after you signed) creates a guarantee of results unless it is written into your Service Order and signed by an authorised officer of Nova. If a result was promised to you and it is not in your Service Order, it is not part of this agreement. If someone at Nova promised you something that is not written down, tell us and we will deal with it as a matter of goodwill; doing so does not vary this agreement or waive this section.

13.8 Editorial judgement. Editing, design, and marketing involve professional judgement and taste. Reasonable professionals differ. Dissatisfaction with a subjective creative choice, where the work meets professional standards and matches the brief you approved, is a matter for the revision process in section 5, not a refund matter.

14. Your promises to us

You represent and warrant, on a continuing basis, that:

14.1 You are the sole owner of the Work, or you have all rights and permissions necessary to publish it and to grant us the licence in section 8.2.

14.2 The Work is original to you, except for material you have identified and for which you hold valid written permission. Any AI-generated material has been disclosed to us under section 12.5.

14.3 The Work does not infringe any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, moral right, right of privacy, or right of publicity.

14.4 The Work is not defamatory or libelous, does not disclose anyone's private facts without permission, and does not falsely attribute statements or conduct to any real person.

14.5 The Work does not violate any law, court order, non-disclosure agreement, employment agreement, settlement agreement, or other contract you are bound by.

14.6 Quoted material, song lyrics, poetry, images, photographs, charts, and other third-party content are either properly licensed by you, in the public domain, or used within fair use, and you have made that determination yourself or with your own legal counsel.

14.7 Any factual, historical, medical, legal, financial, technical, or instructional content is accurate to the best of your knowledge, and any instructions, formulae, or recipes will not cause injury if followed as written.

14.8 All information you give us, including your identity, your contact details, your tax information, and your authority to contract, is true and current.

14.9 Where your Work names, depicts, or photographs an identifiable living person, you have that person's consent to do so, and where that person is a minor, you have the consent of their parent or legal guardian.

15. Content we will not publish

15.1 We will not produce or distribute material that: is unlawful; sexually depicts or exploits minors, or sexualises minors in any way; incites violence, terrorism, or unlawful discrimination against any group; provides genuine instruction for serious criminal harm; constitutes fraud, deceptive advertising, or a scheme to defraud; infringes third-party rights; or is plagiarised or misrepresents public-domain or third-party work as your own.

15.2 What we will publish. We publish adult content, profanity, explicit material, violence in fiction, politically and religiously contentious argument, and difficult, painful, and controversial subject matter. Being uncomfortable is not a reason to refuse a book. Retailers may apply their own, stricter, rules, and we will tell you where we expect that.

15.3 Discretion, and how we use it. We may decline a project at our discretion. If we decline before work begins, you receive a full refund. If we decline after work begins because of a content-guidelines issue, we will explain it in writing, give you a fair chance to substitute acceptable material, and refund you under the Refund Policy. We do not charge a content-evaluation fee for declining a book.

15.4 Where we discover a violation after publication, we may suspend distribution while we investigate. We will tell you what we found and give you an opportunity to respond before any permanent action.

16. Indemnity

16.1 You will indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Nova, its members, officers, employees, and contractors from any third-party claim, demand, action, loss, damage, liability, cost, or expense, including reasonable attorneys' fees, arising out of or relating to: a breach of your warranties in section 14; the content of your Work; material you supplied to us; or your use of our services in violation of these Terms, except to the extent the claim arises from our own negligence, willful misconduct, or breach of these Terms.

16.2 We defend ourselves too. We may participate in the defence with our own counsel at our own expense. You may not settle a claim in a way that admits fault on our part or imposes an obligation on us without our written consent, and we will not unreasonably withhold it.

16.3 Notice. We will notify you promptly of any claim and will cooperate reasonably in the defence at your expense.

16.4 What we will not do. We will not withhold your royalties, suspend your account, or refuse to release your section 9.1 files merely because a claim has been alleged. We may do so only where a claim has been filed in a court or arbitral forum, or where a retailer or distributor has taken action against your title, and then only to the extent reasonably necessary and for so long as the matter is genuinely unresolved. We will tell you in writing what we are withholding and why.

16.5 We indemnify you too. We will indemnify and hold you harmless from any third-party claim that our own original work product (as delivered by us and used by you as delivered) infringes a third party's intellectual property rights. This does not cover material you supplied to us or changes you made after delivery.

17. Limitation of liability

17.1 TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, NEITHER PARTY WILL BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOST PROFITS, LOST SALES, LOST ROYALTIES, LOST DATA, LOST BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY, OR REPUTATIONAL HARM, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY. This section does not limit either party's indemnity obligations under section 16.

17.2 Cap. OUR TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OR THE SERVICES WILL NOT EXCEED THE TOTAL AMOUNT YOU HAVE ACTUALLY PAID TO US UNDER THE SERVICE ORDER GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM. There is no lookback window: everything you have paid on that Service Order counts, whenever you paid it.

17.3 What is not capped. The cap in section 17.2 does not apply to: (a) our gross negligence, willful misconduct, or fraud; (b) our indemnity obligation in section 16.5; (c) amounts payable as refunds under the Refund and Cancellation Policy, which are contractual payment obligations and are neither capped by nor counted against section 17.2; or (d) any liability that cannot be limited under applicable law.

17.4 Warranty disclaimer. EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY STATED, THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS." WE DISCLAIM ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES INCLUDING MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. We do warrant that we will perform with reasonable skill and care, and section 5.5 means we fix our own errors at our own cost. Nothing in this section disclaims any implied warranty in respect of printed books or other tangible goods where such a disclaimer is prohibited by the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or applicable state law.

17.5 Some states. Some jurisdictions do not allow certain exclusions or limitations. Where that is so, the exclusion applies to the maximum extent permitted and the rest of this section stands.

18. Confidentiality

18.1 We will treat your unpublished manuscript and any material you mark confidential as confidential. We will not disclose it except to employees and contractors who need it to do the work and who are bound to equivalent obligations, or where compelled by law.

18.2 We will tell you promptly if we are legally compelled to disclose your material, unless we are prohibited from telling you.

18.3 This obligation survives the end of this agreement indefinitely as to unpublished material.

18.4 Confidentiality does not cover information that is or becomes public other than through our breach, that we already lawfully held, or that we independently developed.

19. Term, termination, and what happens after

19.1 Term. These Terms apply from acceptance until the engagement ends.

19.2 Your right to terminate. At any time, for any reason, on written notice to connect@thenovap.com. Refunds are governed by the Refund and Cancellation Policy.

19.3 Our right to terminate.

(a) For convenience: on 30 days' written notice, in which case you receive a full refund of all amounts paid, including the administrative retention, in accordance with Refund and Cancellation Policy section 5.1.

(b) For cause, after notice and a chance to cure: where you materially breach these Terms, breach a warranty in section 14, or your Work raises a content-guidelines issue under section 15.1 other than one described in (c). We will give you written notice describing the problem and 15 business days to cure it or to supply acceptable substitute material. If you do not, we may terminate, and your refund is calculated under the Refund and Cancellation Policy section 3 tiers, not forfeited.

(c) For cause, immediately, only where: your Work contains material described in section 15.1 limb (b) (material sexually depicting, exploiting, or sexualising minors); you have committed fraud against us; or you have engaged in unlawful conduct toward our staff or contractors. In these cases Refund and Cancellation Policy section 5.4 applies.

(d) For non-payment: where an amount is more than 30 days overdue and remains unpaid 15 days after written notice.

19.4 What "cause" is not. Cause does not include: complaining about our work; leaving a negative review; disputing a charge; requesting a refund; contacting a consumer-protection agency; or a third party merely alleging something about you.

19.5 On termination, you get your files. On full payment of amounts due for work actually performed, we deliver everything listed in section 9.1 for every completed deliverable, within 30 days. Work in progress is delivered in its current state where usable.

19.6 Distribution wind-down. We submit takedown requests within 5 business days. Retailer timing is outside our control (section 11.4).

19.7 Survival. The following survive termination or expiry: section 6 (as to amounts already accrued), section 7 and the Refund and Cancellation Policy, sections 8, 9, 10.2 to 10.4, 11.4 to 11.6, 12.1, 13, 14, 15.4, 16, 17, 18, 19.5 to 19.7, 20, and 21.

20. Resolving disputes

We want disputes resolved quickly, cheaply, and without lawyers wherever possible. This section sets out a ladder. It does not require you to give up your right to go to court, to a jury trial, or to join a class action.

20.1 Step one: talk to us. (30 days) Before starting any formal proceeding, send a written notice to connect@thenovap.com with the subject "Formal Dispute Notice," describing the dispute and what you want. We will respond within 10 business days and both sides will negotiate in good faith for 30 days from the date of the notice.

20.2 Step two: mediation. (60 days) If step one does not resolve it, both parties will attempt mediation before a single neutral mediator, under the mediation rules of the American Arbitration Association or another provider both parties agree to. Mediation may be conducted by videoconference. The parties share the mediator's fee equally, and each pays its own costs. If the dispute later goes to court, the losing party reimburses the winning party's share of the mediation costs as part of the judgment, so the party in the wrong ultimately bears the cost, determined in the only forum that can actually decide who was in the wrong. If no agreement is reached within 60 days of a mediation request, either party may proceed to court.

20.3 Step three: court. Any unresolved dispute will be brought in the state courts of the Commonwealth of Virginia or the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, and both parties consent to that jurisdiction and venue. These Terms are governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules.

20.4 We do not require arbitration, and we do not waive your jury right. There is no mandatory arbitration clause in this agreement, no class-action waiver, and no jury-trial waiver. That is a deliberate choice. Several companies in our industry require all three; we have decided that if we are going to ask you to trust us with your book, we should not simultaneously be narrowing how you can hold us to account.

20.5 Time limit. Any claim must be brought within one (1) year after the claim accrues, or it is permanently barred, except where a longer period is required by law. This period is tolled from the date a Formal Dispute Notice is sent under section 20.1 until 30 days after the ladder in sections 20.1 and 20.2 concludes, so that using this process never costs you time.

20.6 Exceptions to the ladder. Either party may seek injunctive relief in court at any time to protect intellectual property or confidential information, and either party may bring a claim in small claims court, without completing steps one and two.

20.7 A refund request is not a dispute notice. Emailing us a refund request under Refund and Cancellation Policy section 6.1, or raising a billing concern under section 9.1 of that Policy, does not start the clock in section 20.1 and is not a condition precedent to anything. Equally, sending a Formal Dispute Notice does not substitute for a refund request. They are separate processes and you may use either or both.

20.8 Your statutory rights are untouched. Nothing here limits your right to file a complaint with a consumer-protection agency, the Virginia Attorney General, or the FTC, or to dispute a charge with your bank or card issuer.

20.9 Attorneys' fees. Each party bears its own, except where a statute or the indemnity in section 16 provides otherwise.

21. General

21.1 Changes to these Terms. We may update these Terms. We will post the new version here, and for material changes we will email registered account holders at least 30 days before they take effect. Changes do not apply retroactively to work already ordered. The version governing your order is the one in force on the date you accepted these Terms under section 1.3 or on your Order Date, whichever is earlier. We keep dated prior versions and will send you yours on request. Continuing to use our services after a change takes effect means you accept it for future orders.

21.2 Entire agreement. These Terms, the Refund and Cancellation Policy, the Privacy Policy, and your Service Order are the whole agreement and supersede all prior discussions, subject always to section 13.7.

21.3 Assignment. You may not assign without our written consent, which we will not unreasonably withhold, including to your estate or heirs. We may assign to a successor in a merger or sale of substantially all assets, on notice to you.

21.4 Severability. If a provision is unenforceable, it is modified to the minimum extent necessary or severed, and the rest stands.

21.5 No waiver. Not enforcing a provision once does not waive it.

21.6 Force majeure. Neither party is liable for delay caused by events beyond reasonable control, including natural disaster, war, epidemic, labour dispute, utility or internet failure, or government action. The affected party will notify the other and resume as soon as practicable.

21.7 Independent contractors. Nothing here creates a partnership, joint venture, employment, or agency relationship. We are not your agent and you are not ours.

21.8 Notices. To us: connect@thenovap.com. To you: the email address on your account. Please keep it current. Notice is effective on the business day after sending.

21.9 Headings and summaries. Headings are for convenience. Section 1.7 governs the effect of the introductory note and of every summary, recap, bullet list, and table in these Terms.

21.10 Language. These Terms are in English, and English governs any translation.

Contact

Nova Publishers
Virginia, USA
connect@thenovap.com · (703) 249-9257