Expert: Cathy Clamp - 2/1/2008

Question
How much do authors make on average each year,

Answer
Hi, again, Dreamer!

Well, authors don't get a "salary" per se. A salary implies that an author would get a regular check---weekly or bi-weekly that would pay the bills. That doesn't happen. Instead, an author is party to a contract with a publisher, who agrees to pay the author X percentage of each book sale. Now, publishers know that an author has to eat, so they often (at least the good ones do) pay an "advance." An advance generally consists of what the publisher expects the book to EVER earn while it's in print. They often split up the advance into 2-3 chunks over the course of the publication process. For example, if a publisher offers $10,000 as an advance for a book, they might pay $5,000 upon signing of the contract (in one lump sum) with another $3,000 upon delivery of the manuscript and another $2,000 when the book hits the shelf.

The publication process takes about a year. Unfortunately, $5K doesn't go very far, even if you save it and split it up into chunks to pay yourself. Also, the author owes federal taxes on the money and sometimes state taxes too(in states that require income tax.) Plan on about 20-25% of the money going straight to the government so you don't have to pay penalties.

Six months after the book hits the shelf, the author will receive a "royalty statement" that shows how many books were shipped to stores. But bookstores aren't required to tell the publisher how many they actually SOLD for up to a year, so the first royalty statement won't show how many sold either. It's only the second, or even THIRD statement (a year and a half after the book is in the stores) that will show the actual number of books sold and only IF the sales exceed the advance will the author receive more money.

Of course, that's only one book. An author mostly earns their money through multiple books, so that the dollars, when they're received, are bigger and can go farther. And, the more books an author publishes, the more it builds up, because older books, called "backlist" will keep selling for as long as they're in print. That can add up to big bucks ten or fifteen years down the road.

Or not.

That's the trouble with books, is that not all of them do well. Writing's a lot of fun and a lot of authors can't stand NOT to write. But a lot of authors also have day jobs to pay the bills, leaving the book money for special things, like buying a new car or taking a trip.

Hope that answers your question. Let me know if you have any others, and good luck! :)

Cathy