Published Doesn't Mean Paid

Summary

I want to talk about money.(Ugh, I know. How crass.)Specifically, how much money authors make, or more accurately, don’t.I signed my publishing deal in 2023. My advance was £2,500. That’s it.I was paid £1,250 on signing, which, spread over 18 months (writing and editing), works out at £69 a month. I’ll receive the remaining £1,250 when the book is published this August. And unless the book sells extremely well, that’s likely all I’ll ever get. For context: many debut books, especially by women, sell somewhere between 500 and 2,000 copies. Royalties are paid on the retail price. I receive:10% on hardbacks up to 5,000 copies12% on hardbacks after 5,0008% on paperbacks up to 10,000 copies10% on paperbacks after 10,000So for a £15 hardback, I get £1.50 per copy, if it’s sold at full price. Most aren’t, my book, not even out yet, is already discounted in many places online. In reality, the royalty is often closer to £1. Sometimes less. For an £8.99 paperback, 8% works out to about 72p per copy, again assuming full price. If it’s discounted, that drops even further. Even if my book sells 3,000 hardbacks and 5,000 paperbacks, which would be considered a huge success for a debut from a small press, I might earn only a couple of thousand pounds above my original advance. Total. Spread over two and a half years of writing, editing, publicity, and emotional labour, that’s well below minimum wage.And this is not unusual. This is how publishing works for the vast majority of authors, especially those who are working-class, disabled, chronically ill, or parenting without much support. In fact, as far as I know, my deal is better than average.The idea that being published means you’re suddenly secure or successful? That’s a myth. Most authors have day jobs. Many are burning out quietly. Many rely on partners, family, or the distant hope that one day, they’ll see a photograph of a painting of someone else’s royalty cheque. Even hitting something like the Sunday Times bestseller lis...