Contracts & Royalties... HELP MEH!

[p00t]

So, I've been doing work-for-hire GD projects for this company for a while now. We've developed a great relationship, and I feel they're loyal to me as a designer. I've never had a need for contracts with this company until recently... and I have NO idea where to start.

Here's the deal: I have designed 2 characters that will likely end up on product sold at Walmart. Naturally, I'm thinking ROYALTIES!! However, I'm not sure if they're planning on sharing royalties or just paying for the images outright. So, my question is:

How can I determine what my work is worth, in this kind of scenario? What is an average artist royalty percentage? And if they're interested in purchasing the images outright - how much (more than my typical hourly rate) should I charge? How much do lawyers charge to help with contracts?

I appreciate their loyalty, and don't want them to be turned off by a contract. But in this case (and very possibly future cases), I feel it's *very* necessary. ANY help is appreciated, thanks guys!!!

[PrintDriver]

When you say 'work for hire' are you under contract with them as such (did you sign something provided by them)?

If you do standard work-for-hire under the client's contract, usually whatever you produce belongs to the person who hired you. Including cartoon characters worth more in royalties than time.

PrintDriver is a grande format digital print dude. His advice/opinions may not apply to the 4color/offset/web world of printing

[p00t]

No, there have been no contracts between us *at all*. What I mean by work-for-hire, is that they give me the projects' specs, and I whip something up for them. I'm not concerned at all with contracts when I'm designing advertisments & low key logos.

But now, this is the first instance of an actual character design, where $$$ from royalties is a real possibility. I just need to find some resources to help me decide how to write a contract that everyone will be comfortable with.