11.   Book contracts typically reserve half of the payment for the submission of an acceptable manuscript, and multimillion-dollar advances are often divided into several smaller payments.

12.   - After two days of bidding last week, Salon columnist Courtney Weaver signed a six-figure book contract with Doubleday.

13.   -- As he promised, Speaker Newt Gingrich submitted his proposed book contract for review by the House ethics committee.

14.   A book contract?

15.   A book contract is still in the offing, but agents are no longer talking about a seven-figure advance.

16.   A literary agent had recently called about a possible book contract.

17.   A six-figure book contract?

18.   Almost immediately, Stringer called back to ask for a book contract.

19.   But, minus the MBA, the book contracts, and the singing, it is also vaguely familiar to any working woman.

20.   Common Cause joins a growing list of those calling for some sort of independent evaluation of the book contract.