Thread by @TheBookMaven

We're back! Charles Duhigg for the defense. #DOJvPRH

"Mr. Duhigg, do you have a job?" #DOJvPRH

Yes, he does, and is describing his career in journalism now. #DOJvPRH

Duhigg responds to question about whether or not he's won any awards. . . Let's talk Pulitzer! #DOJvPRH

Duhigg says he's "a little nervous" and defense asks him to speak a little more slowly. #DOJvPRH

Duhigg explains that his editor, Andy Ward, is at Little Random, part of PRH. #DOJvPRH

Duhigg discusses the process of selling a nonfiction book on proposal ("The Power of Habit"). #DOJvPRH

Duhigg's story about how he got Scott Moyers at The Wylie Agency to notice his writing shows how actually random (pun NOT intended) a publishing journey can be. #DOJvPRH

"Does that mean you don't, typically, as an author, ask your agent for blow by blow from editors?" Duhigg says yes. Says he trusts agent to let him know what he needs to know. #DOJvPRH

Says Duhigg: "To be great, you really need an editor that makes [your writing] great." #DOJvPRH

Duhigg received a $750K advance. Is now explaining the advance-payout process. First check: $115K (first of four). "That was about what I was earning as my salary at [The New York Times}."

"I wrote this book to make money," says Duhigg. #DOJvPRH "I wrote this book to sell millions of copies. . . because that's what allows you to make money." #DOJvPRH

"Did you have an expectation of what a publishers would pay for 'The Power of Habit'"?

No. #DOJvPRH

"The biggest issue is not the advance. . . it's the editor. . . because that's what will allow me to sell millions of copies," says Duhigg. "There's so many things that matter more than the advance. You make so much money from things beyond the advance." #DOJvPRH

"How did 'The Power of Habit' perform?"

4 million copies here/more overseas #DOJvPRH

Duhigg says Andy Ward made his book a success. . . everything from strategizing chapters to line-editing each sentence to editing "again and again and again" a good editor, he says, "is sitting by you for every page" #DOJvPRH

Duhigg talks other ways PRH made book a success. 15 cover mocks. 2 marketers and a PR. "those people worked tirelessly" for POWER OF HABIT. Sales staff: "This is how you talk to the Costco in Des Moines. . . but Books Are Magic in Brookly, you talk to them differently." #DOJvPRH

Duhigg goes on to talk about support post-writing/editing, "the book has to earn that support." #DOJvPRH

"The only thing that matters more than writing is gossiping about book stuff." (He's being cheeky.) #DOJvPRH

"Mr. Duhigg, do you measure the success of THE POWER OF HABIT by the advance you received?"

"No. The goal of being a writer is to write something beautiful and true that people want to read. If you do that, they will buy it. And you will get the royalties. . . (etc.)" #DOJvPRH

"Mr. Duhigg, did you earn out your advance?"

Yes. . . and he's made over five million dollars from North American royalties.

Moving on to SMARTER, FASTER, BETTER about the power of productivity.

"How did you sell your second book?"

Phone call w/editor. . . who then talked w/agent. . . no proposal ("I do not recommend doing that because it makes writing the book really hard")

Duhigg speaks really quickly. . . trying to keep up! #DOJvPRH

The new advance "meant that we got to buy a house," says Duhigg. #DOJvPRH

Size of second advance, which Duhigg has said was the same as first, did not affect his decision to sell to Andy Ward. He wanted to work with Ward again. #DOJvPRH

"An author doesn't want to negotiate, right?" Duhigg says his second book sold out its advance and has made about one million dollars in North American rights. #DOJvPRH

Duhigg says for his first two books rights outside of North America equaled his advances but royalties and speaking fees higher. #DOJvPRH

Duhigg is talking about other ways authors make money. He is working on a third book and has sold that book. It's about the science of communication and conversation. He sold it to Andy Ward. Advance of $2 million dollars. "Because I want to work with Andy."

"Not only do I enjoy working with Andy, but I'm going to sell the most books with Andy. . . I don't work for Random House, I work for Andy Ward." #DOJvPRH

Duhigg says he would follow Andy to another publisher "unless he went to some far-right publishers, but Andy wouldn't do that!" #DOJvPRH

"I could have received far far more" of an advance, says Duhigg. Told his agent he'd be happy if they could get more than $5 million. No one offered that formally, but other publishers have made clear that if he's ever unhappy they would welcome Duhigg's move. #DOJvPRH

Negotiations: "Andrew Wylie does them on my behalf." #DOJvPRH

Duhigg explains how PRH audio division made money from his books but did not pay any of his advance and talks about how he asked agent Wylie to renegotiate with Audible. . . #DOJvPRH

Duhigg talks about minimizing risk on both sides and why that means taking a lower advance is smart, selling books into the future is "the end of the rainbow" for him #DOJvPRH

Duhigg says, of his current $2 million advance, Andrew Wylie was able to get it b/c "he could squeeze blood from a rock." "He can't help himself."

But he says agent's duty is to find the best place for a writer's book, and not to get the highest advance. #DOJvPRH

(Still not sure if I'm threading everything correctly. Thank you for your patience. I will TRY HARD during lunch to get it all sorted.) #DOJvPRH

Duhigg says "Nobody knows who I am" the market is so different now, "you can't be Stephen King, you can't be Malcolm Gladwell, that age is over" #DOJvPRH

He says his only hope is finding a tech geek in "10,000 different ways" i.e., discoverability is the hardest thing #DOJvPRH

He's playing up PRH sophistication in promotion/tools "if this merger goes through. . . PRH wants to make the world better for writers. I think expanding that world for another group, S&S, will be a good thing."

Duhigg admits if PRH offered him a lower advance for his next book? "I'd go on Twitter!" But he believes his editor would threaten to resign in protest. #DOJvPRH

"The thing I know about Andy Ward and PRH is that they love authors. . . to give us the freedom to write what we want to write." #DOJvPRH

No further questions. Cross about to begin. #DOJvPRH

Cross-examination of Duhigg: "An advance doesn't matter that much, right?"

Duhigg: "No, that's not it, it matters, but it's the royalties that matter. The advance is just the publishing house giving me an advance on those royalties." #DOJvPRH

Government is asking more questions about Duhigg's advances, pushing into what those advances helped Duhigg accomplish/finance. #DOJvPRH

"So the advance has helped you with your expenses?"

Duhigg: "Yes. . . and with promotion [of books]."

Duhigg says it's the editing that matters, many other publishers could provide the same marketing/promo as PRH. #DOJvPRH

"You don't seek a higher advance b/c you always expect your book to earn out its advance, correct?"

Duhigg says he expects advance to allow him to take enough time off to write the book. #DOJvPRH

Duhigg: "The best way to sell an old book is to write a new book." He says that's what allows you to keep up a lucrative speaking career. "Some speeches earn my $100K." #DOJvPRH

"If you do not earn out your advance, you do not receive royalties?

Duhigg: "I believe so, yes." #DOJvPRH

Duhigg admits he does not know anything about how often other authors do not earn out their advances. #DOJvPRH

"You don't write a book for the pressure of sales. . . u write a book because you're hopeful. . . that if u write a great book, people r going to read it, and they're going to buy it. This will happen to me. Some book I write will not earn out its advance. But this is a career."

Duhigg starts telling the courtroom that "we could all make more money" -- "You guys are government lawyers!" -- says we all do things b/c we believe in them. #DOJvPRH

Duhigg had mentioned the cons of S&S going to a private-equity firm but now confirms he has no knowledge of that option. #DOJvPRH

Government is talking datanalytics. (Did I spell that correctly?) NOW THINGS ARE HEATING UP. (Joke!) #DOJvPRH

Wait! No further questions? Time for a break? Wait wait. Some questions from the Judge. #DOJvPRH

"Congratulations on your success," says the Judge.

Now she asks, "What if you're an author who didn't earn out your advance but wants to write a second book?" #DOJvPRH

"Also, 98% books are not top sellers? So I feel like you are maybe not typical?" #DOJvPRH

Duhigg responds by talking about his expertise as a journo, saying that there arent' many NYT journos who would write books that wouldn't sell. #DOJvPRH

"You give very interesting testimony. . . but the data would suggest that you're not typical." #DOJvPRH

Duhigg says he would suggest that no one is typical, gives hypothetical examples of other types of writers, incl. those "who write books essentially as a sideline." #DOJvPRH

Duhigg: "There are people who write bad books" #DOJvPRH

"But the focus of this trial is particular and you may be atypical for our purpose," says Judge.

Judge talks about some writers needing more money in advances to offset risk. #DOJvPRH

Duhigg says he thought the group being discussed was top sellers who could rely on post-advance royalties. #dojvprh

Sorry that I'm writing so many shorter tweets today, doing my best over here. . . thanks for following along as I spam you all with scores of tweets. #DOJvPRH

Judge says Duhigg's explanation "helpful," asks "If you were an author who wasn't from NYT, didn't have sense that people wanted your work, bigger sense of risk, would you want a higher advance?" #DOJvPRH

"For anyone else who wants to write multiple books, you don't want to put your publishing partner in a position" where things seem insurmountable. #DOJvPRH

"There's no author who wants to get more money than they can possibly earn out" says Duhigg. #DOJvPRH

BREAKTIME. Back at 11.30. Everyone stretch!!! #DOJvPRH