Everyone wonders about the money side of things, right? We all do.
I love and write middle grade fiction. Before I started, I was warned that it is THE most difficult category to sell in. It's been a 50-50 mix from what I've seen. Some authors selling and others not so much.
I'm sure you've seen similar results, too. So, on to the article. There will be more posted a the week goes on. :)
Let’s Talk Money
When I first started writing, I had no idea what publishers were paying and therefore no idea of my potential earnings. The only thing I knew with certainty was not to give up my day job and that I would be lucky to get a $5,000 advance on a book that took me five years to write. The only site that I knew of to find out what publishers were paying was Brenda Hiatt’s Show Me the Money.
Personally I like knowing what’s possible. For the past two decades, like many writers, I didn’t make one dime, but I kept on writing because it’s what I love to do. But I also realize this is a business and as a business I need to earn money if I want to be able to stay home and write full time.
Stephen King is estimated to be worth $400 million dollars.
Stephenie Meyer is said to be worth $125 million dollars.
J.K. Rowling is said to be worth $1 billion dollars.
We all know that King, Rowling, Meyers and, of course, E.L. James are rolling in the dough. But what about everybody else? I believe we are going to see more and more indie authors hitting the million dollar mark. Many already have. It used to be that once or twice a month I would read about another author making a sale to a traditional publisher. Now I’m reading about authors quitting their day jobs. How cool is that?! And, of course, it’s all relative–if you have zero kids and a husband with a full-time job, you’re probably going to be able to quit before the single writer with kids to feed.
Theresa's website is worth checking out. Plus, you can read the rest of her article here: http://theindievoice.com/for-writers/the-business-of-writing/lets-talk-money/