NYTimes Bestseller Accuses Simon & Schuster of Fudging Sales

The author of the New York Times bestseller Knock ‘Em Dead series alleges Simon & Schuster Inc. and one of its imprints shortchanged him out of royalties for years.

Martin Yate said that Simon & Schuster had at least two datasets and used one with deflated sales numbers and phony returns to calculate its royalty payments while keeping a more accurate database for itself, according to his complaint filed Wednesday in the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Yate alleged that he demanded the audit that revealed the datasets in 2022 after trying to resolve “perceived reporting ...