It is like asking, “How long is the string?“, as it was said when asked, “How much do authors make?“
The author has no fixed salary range like LinkedIn’s work. It is an artistic and professional pursuit and has a variety of financial outcomes.
The author’s salary depends on a myriad of factors. This includes, whether you are a full-time or part-time writer, what type of book you write, which publishing route you choose, and more.
Still, “how much money do authors make?” Is still one of the most pressing questions for anyone considering a book writing service career or a prominent writer wondering if it is low paying, is not it?
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The Catch…
…like everything else in publishing, the answer is that it is different. Many readers have the idea that every writer is wealthy, but that is far from the truth.
Yes, Stephen King probably has more money than he needs, but he is an outlier. Most authors do not even make a living from their books.
Well, we are integrating this blog to shed light on the authors’ salary trends in 2023. Also, we support you on this new writing journey with recommendations and proven guidance for making more money as a writer.
How Do Book Writers Make Money In 2023?
Before getting into the number on how much do professional book writer make, we have seen a lot of confusion about it, and therefore, we would like to explain how author rewards work in the traditional publishing industry.
When a writer signs a publishing agreement, the author or his agent usually negotiates a royalty prepayment. If the press release or article states that the book was “sold” for that amount, that amount is prepaid and not a flat-rate purchase price.
Prepaid payments are of three installments: while signing the contract, when the publisher accepts the manuscript, and finally after book publication.
While publishing the books, the author creates a percentage of sales for each book sold. It is actually “royalty.” Nevertheless, because they received a royalty prepayment, they are essentially making the money they have already received.
Once the royalties exceed the prepayment, publishers will pay the author again.
Prepaid can take any length of time from book publication to book publication. When the book gives the authors the number of royalties advanced, they begin to earn additional royalties.
Additional royalties become a “revenue.” If the book publisher does not repay the prepayment, the author does not have to refund the excess to the publisher unless the contract violates or terminates.
Precisely, it is a general description of the process, and there are as many variations as needed.
For example, some authors do not receive upfront payments, and many authors who write for established intellectual property receive a lump sum instead of royalties.
It means that some traditional writers will never exceed this initial prepayment, but some writers can make money with books until their death. In addition, some writers lose money when they spend more on advertising, marketing, and spending than they end up making.
How Much Does An Author Make Per Book, Per Year?
Authors can expect to make book writing an only living resource if they have multiple books on the go, know how to market them well, and have an active and enthusiastic fan base.
Many factors influence how much an author earns each year, such as books sold, royalties, and printing costs. No two writers can make the same amount of money if they are writing differently.
Revenue varies depending on the route picked for your publication, whether traditional or self-published book.
Here are the average author payment for both routes:
| Revenue | Traditional Authors Earnings | Self-published Authors Earnings |
| Book retail price | $14.99 | $14.99 |
| Initial Royalty Rate | 10% | 60% |
| Income per book | $1.79 | $5.74 |
| Income per book | 6000 | 6000 |
| Earnings in total | $10,740 | $34,440 |
As you can see, there is a difference of over $24,000 between traditionally and self-published authors over the same number of sold copies.
Most people think that traditionally published writers are more than vanity presses because of the fame of writers like Stephen King and George R. R. Martin. Nevertheless, that is not true.
Royal Earnings
Now that we have covered most of the author-earning vocab, let us briefly explain what authoring loyalty looks like.
Self-published authors can earn 40% to 60% royalties for the selling price of a book, while traditionally published authors typically earn 10% to 12% royalties.
First-time authors willing to publish traditionally will receive a prepayment. This is usually $10,000 (not so much for first-time authors). However, traditional publishing does not start licensing until you sell a book worth $ 10,000 at the license rate. You need to get that $ 10k back before you can start getting a license check from the publisher.
Moreover, many publishers deal with authors who say that selling X books increases loyalty and makes a difference. Nevertheless, Experienced, proven, and traditionally published authors can negotiate higher license rates.
Therefore, 15% is rare for self-published authors; you can earn an average license fee of 60% from the first sale, including each subsequent book sale.
Factors Affecting Authors Income
The amount of money an author earns annually depends on various factors:
- Revenue per sale
- Prepaid (traditional publications only)
- Marketing volume
- Audience size
- Number of books published in
- Number of books currently published
- Consistency of bookselling
Examples of Authors earning a Handsome Amount
Of course, outliers are always present. Some are extreme than others, such as famous writers who prey on hundreds of thousands of people. To give a few examples:
- Roxane Gay earned $100k forHunger– the fourth book of her career, a memoir.
- Scott Westerfeld earned $175k forExtras– the 15th book of his career, YA sci-fi.
- Viet Thanh Nguyen earned $250k forThe Refugees– the third book of his career, a collection of compact stories.
- Gillian Flynn earned $400k forGone Girl– the third book of her career, a thriller.
- Kristen Roupenian earned $1,200k forYou Know You Want This– the first book of her career, a short fiction containing the Cat Person.
How To Become an Author Who Earns 100k or More?
It is a well-known fact that many people want to write a book and make a living in 2023. However, what makes a writer earn 100k or more?
Written Word Media surveyed in 2019 and 2020. The analysis was not on rigorous data but on conclusions drawn from author-based self-reported surveys.
Their two research groups were surveyed. An ambitious writer sold books under $500/month, and an economically successful writer sold more than $5,000/month in 2019 research and more than $100,000/year in 2020.
They found that more financially successful authors published an average of 13.5 books with an average of 31 hours of writing per week. When categorized by day, this averages more than 4 hours of writes per day. Compare this to an average of 7.4 books published for aspiring authors and 16 hours average of writing per week. That is less than half the writing time per day than successful authors. Of those with annual sales of $100,000, 88% have been writing for more than three years, compared to 59% ambitious writers. It gave successful writers time to gain experience and increase their audience.
In addition, 100k successful authors have an average of 30.3 books in their catalogs, while emerging writers have an average of about seven books.
Furthermore, the $100k author had up to 63 books and at least 7 backlists. Again, there is a lot to write to make a book that can be published completely.
Economically successful writers have designed book cover professionally, 68% of whom spend more than $100 on book design. They usually have specialists in designing book covers.
Well, this narrates more to indie authors, but even if you want to go the traditional route, make sure the cover is professional and eye-catching.
Think about how a book gets your attention and guides you to buy it – Maybe, just a book tagline does not fascinate a reader. That is what the reader wants on the cover. Therefore, authors and designers should learn the science behind the best covers.
The economically successful author specializes in editing the manuscript. You can write, and you can write well, but another pair of professional eyes is key.
More than half of successful author surveys spent $100 on professional editing services, and 32% spent more than $ 500.
Economically successful writers write in popular genres. They also believe in free ads that have one free title. That is, one of their books is always available for free. Some 45% of authors hire staff, but they are also in charge of their marketing.
Over 90% of both 100k authors and up-and-coming writers say they have their marketing. The only difference is that 100k writers can hire for their ease.
Now that you know how much money do authors make on average, we would like to share some tips on how to make more money.
Here Are Some Tips for Becoming a Full-Time Writer.
Tip One: Choose Between Traditional and Self-Publishing Route
First, learn the difference between Traditional and Self-Publishing routes and then make the best choice.
To succeed, it is crucial whether you want to make the most money as a writer.
There are ways to succeed in both ways. Keep in mind that traditional publishing takes time (2 to 3 years for the entire process), and if you are lucky in a bidding war between publishers, you may not make a lot of money.
These bidding wars, like the 6 to 7 digit transactions you hear could bring outstanding progress to writers. Otherwise, unrecognized authors may only receive a $10k prepayment to get started.
Key differences:
| Traditional Publishing | Self-Published |
| 10% -12% Loyalty per Book | 40%-60% loyalty per book |
| It may take 2-3 years for a book to be published | You can publish 2-3 high-quality books a year |
| Prepaid (but no royalties until this prepaid) “Repay” to Publisher | There is no prepayment, but you can make money immediately even if you pay the production cost of the book |
Tip Two: Write and Market
Did you know that premium book publishers have employees who develop “trendy” book concepts and endured in the market, and hire writers to realize their ideas?
Sometimes it is the same person, but not always. They do this to have the finest chance of making money by taking advantage of what is currently “hot” in literature.
Two powerful forces are shaping today’s financial landscape—personalized writing and smart globalization.
What is the best thing about it? You can do this yourself as the author of a self-publication.
Nevertheless, how do you write to the market? Moreover, is it a “legitimate” form of authoring?
There is a dispute between legitimate writers and market-oriented writers. These are just people who have the right – that is simple.
The truth is if you enjoy writing, you can easily come up with story ideas, write quickly, and publish. Writing is a legitimate (and wise) career option in the market. Simple is that.
As a self-published writer, you can write to the market by looking at the categories you like to make stories and seeing what kind of stories really work.
An example is the era of vampire novels, which started with books like Twilight and caused the explosion of vampire stories from many writers and publishers. Moreover, these sold really well.
However, vampires are not as popular as urban fantasy in today’s young adult category.
If you like writing fantasy, you can benefit from writing these books and publishing them frequently.
Tip Three: Commit to Being A Professional Author
“If you treat writing like a hobby, it will pay like a hobby.”
– R.E. Vance
How do you “promise yourself to be a professional writer”?
- Decide your way (just like you choose a college)
- Invest where you need it (again, just like any college or other education you need for a job). You may need Mczell Book Writing assistance, first
- You Plan the completion dates
- Create writing goals to meet that schedule
- Learn the genuine path for optimal authors salary as a full-time writer
- Say no to what you do not need, make a sacrifice to do what you like for life.
In Closing!
Writing a book or becoming a full-time author will be rewarded at some point.
With a mixture of patience, a lot of hard work, and constant hustle-bustle, you can make a fair amount of money. We hope this article has helped you to increase your enthusiasm for writing and making money.
“No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader.
No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader.”
–Robert Frost
