I apologize- but how much do you make as a writer?

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Darzian

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I am really sorry for asking this. Some people may look upon me as a money-greedy guy but it is not so. I love writing and I spent 9 months, planning my first fantasy novel and I have just started to write it. I love writing.

I have my university studies to balance as well so progress won't be too fast. But I was really interested in knowing how well writers actually get paid. For a semi-successful novel, how much would you expect to earn? It is difficult to find accurate info on this so I'm posting it here. I am aware that most royalty payments are usually 10 % of the book's price.

Please be honest. This would be real eye-opener for me. I can't wait for the day when my novel sits on a bookstore shelf, but I can't help wondering if I'll have any significant financial benefits.

Thank You!!!
 

SPMiller

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I'm not sure advances & royalties for sf/f in particular are different enough from any other genre to justify having this in such a specific forum. Perhaps a port to a better place? :D

(Answer to your question: vast majority keep day jobs and/or supportive spouses.)
 

J. Weiland

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The easy answer would be: The more you sell the more you earn.

Also, of course it depends on the publisher and the content of the contract you've signed with that publisher.
 

rugcat

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Tobias Bucknell did a survey some time ago about the average advance for a SF/F novel.

I've heard most authors don't earn out their advance. I've also heard less about half do. I've also heard that it's an artificial stat, with almost no meaning.

Take your choice.

Actual figures about money made from writing are hard to come by.
 

Doodlebug

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Not to be discouraging or anything... :Sun:

I've been writing for twenty years and have published over a dozen stories, yet in all that time have made enough to buy a tank of gas.

I really hope things go better for you, but it never hurts to have a college degree and a good paying job!
 

waylander

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A reasonably succesful fantasy author spoke to my writing group. This author has had 9 novels published in the UK and US in about 12 years, most of which have been been sold in translation to a good number of other countries. An individual year's income varies depending on whether an advance was received that year however they reckoned that it averaged out to £25k /year (on which they have to pay tax ) naturally
 

Tom Johnson

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That is a tough question to answer. I've got a manuscript sitting on a desk at TOR, which would be a good sell, if it is ever accepted. In the meantime, I'm still receiving royalties on books that have been out for three years, so the final figures are not known. Some Quarters are nice, others are low. Like someone else said earlier, keep your day job (LOL). A friend of mine is a writer-for-hire, and sells nine or ten novels a year to major paperback publishing houses, and still drives a ten year old car and lives no better than any of the rest of us. There is a reason why we write, and I don't think it's for the money! (LOL)

"The Weed of Crime Bears Bitter Fruit!"
 

Gillhoughly

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This is for romance books--and they tend to be the BIG earners simply because they have more sales.

Show Me the Money.


Always assume you'll earn the least amount of money as shown on that website. It's less heartbreaking.

My first book sale netted me just over one thousand dollars, and that was in the late 80s. I landed a multi-book contract, but the advance was small compared to three years of queries, rewrites, and time I put in.

Sadly, things have not improved much since then. New writers usually get squat.

I've a long track record with one house, but the last book they bought was for less than half of what they offered on the previous one a few years ago. I was told the industry is in the toilet, and they're tightening things up. My agent--who happens to be excellent at her job--said to take it, I need my name in the stores again.

They will send me one half of the advance in a few weeks.

It will be enough to cover my mortgage and living expenses for about two months.

I will see another chunk of the advance in about 6 months.

It will be enough to cover mortgage and living expenses for ONE month.

I'll see the balance in about 18 months from now when it hits the racks.

It will be enough for (guess what?) for about 1.5 months.

Damn skippy I'm writing as fast as I can to sell something else.

And yes, I totally still have a day job.
 

Ruv Draba

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If writing displaces your income then it's prudent to know what it's worth so you know how much you can afford to do.

I did some sums once, and worked out that even if I sold every short story I ever wrote at pro rates, I'd still be losing thousands of pre-tax Aussie dollars per story, compared to my day job.

It's either a hobby or a labour of love, or you're a fluke, I reckon. :)

From what I've read, staff writers on TV series do quite well, but you're writing to specification there.
 

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Speaking of day jobs...

I used to dream of being able to write full time. I think a lot of my fantasies came from watching television or movies wherein the writer character sits in her office in her gorgeous house overlooking the mountains (ocean, forest, fill in the blank) and types words without care (that is, when she's not in NYC dining with her agent - publicist, whatever - at the finest restaurants in town).

If I have a bone to pick, it's with writers who portray fictional writers in such a way. On screen, writers are either fabulously successful or suicidally desperate to get published. I've never seen a writer character in a show or a movie who lives like the other 98% of us.

Having said all of that, my point is that you don't have to hate your day job!

I worked for a daily newspaper for seven years (writing fiction during my time off). I loved this job. I eventually quit it to raise my kids, and now I'm teaching part-time at a two-year college (still writing!) and I love this job, too.

Day jobs have a lot of advantages that writing full time doesn't offer (at least I don't think it offers since I've never gotten that far ;)). Having a day job means that I interact with people - something I can't do when writing. It means steady income. It means taking my mind off of my writing, so that I don't obsess about my sales or lack thereof (which I tend to do in the summer months when I'm not working.) Having a day job means that I am introduced to new ideas via my colleagues or students. It keeps me mentally stimulated.

I've gotten to the point where I depend on my day job as much as my writing to help me keep my sanity. If the muses ever bless me enough to make me wealthy from writing, I can't honestly say that I'd still teach, but I know I'd miss it.

The best thing you can do for yourself right now, Darzian, (besides finishing that novel!) is to find a day job that you enjoy. Best of luck!!
 

veinglory

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I love my job too. I could possibly make enough to get by if I write full time, I mean I write maybe a 100 words a day right now. But I really prefer my current career. It allows me to write as much as I want on the topics I want and treat any earnings as bonus.
 

Bo Sullivan

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I've probably made enough to buy a couple of pizzas and a bottle of wine. I've been researching and writing history for years and years. I keep my day job and it keeps me sane. It means less time for writing, but I retire in four years anyway. Then I can set my mind to writing full time. In the meantime I use part of my earnings to promote my books.

That said, I started writing because I felt isolated. Writing makes you feel more isolated but there is a reward at the end of it. I write because I love writing and no other reason, although making money out of it would be the icing on the cake.
 

Tom Johnson

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Yes, everything these folks are telling you is straight talk. I would have become upset if someone had said they get $40,000.00 a novel, and write ten books a year (all published). Unless Steven King or one of the big names is on the Board, most of us only dream about that million dollar contract. And writing can be a cruel business. I could tell you about one author who sold four SF novels and one mystery novel to a major publishing house, and then could never sell even a simple short story to a small press magazine. He died at his typewriter, and they found cardboard boxes filled with rejected manuscripts in the trunk of his car. We've got to love this writing game!

"The Weed of Crime Bears Bitter Fruit!"
 

Gillhoughly

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Making enough from writing to quit one's day job is a dream shared by many.

One of my friends managed to do it.

But then she writes 4-5 novels a year, maybe more. She's a solid mid-lister, getting decent advances.

To get to that point she put a ton of effort into her day job, working up the ladder until she was one glass ceiling shy of being a VP.

This gave her the money to buy her dream house and get much of her credit debt paid off.

This week she turned in yet another book, but tomorrow she's going back to her old job. Her replacement had a meltdown and they fired him. She's going to make some real money for the next couple weeks as a contract worker, then walk away to to more writing.

The ONLY way she was able to get to this point was by working her butt off on both jobs. It helps that she's also scary smart and mentally hyperactive.

I agree that the media cliche always seems to present us as a bunch of lazy, eccentric buggers who pace around in a luxury office, groaning while suffering for our art, and evidently getting seven figure advances as a ho-hum matter of course.

I WISH!
 

Judg

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I agree that the media cliche always seems to present us as a bunch of lazy, eccentric buggers who pace around in a luxury office, groaning while suffering for our art, and evidently getting seven figure advances as a ho-hum matter of course.
You mean it's not true?

There go my dreams.

:cry:

:idea:

On the other hand, it is obvious I will be the exception. Right?

Right?

Why is it so quiet in here?
 

badducky

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If you are worried about money, this isn't the career path for you.

Because you will always be wondering about that next check, where it will come from, and how you can increase it, and etc.

You have to be Zen about it to survive as a freelancer, in any position. You keep working, and you keep networking, and you stay Zen about money.

Just focus on the craft. If you start to worry about the money, it can quickly consume you.
 

Darzian

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Actually, guys, I'm currently about to begin my university studies in Malaysia (BSc Biotechnology). I like to write and I just wondered if it would help me manage my fees a bit because we are not quite that well off. I'm already on a 50% scholarship.

Thanks for the replies. I expected as much. What I really want to see is my novel with a pretty cover and title sitting on a shelf in a bookstore. Better still if it becomes available on amazon.com so that I can send the link to all my friends!
 

BradyBones

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So many dream of being a "rich and famous" author. I admit to fostering the dream as well. The problem is that it often doesn't work out that way.

I think I could settle for having my writing loved by many. That would be a real payoff.
 
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