How Much Do Best Selling Authors Make?
The dream of any writer is to become a successful author, end up on the New York Times Bestseller list, and rake in book royalties comfortably for the rest of their life.
(I'm not immune to this fantasy, by the way. I dream of writing a bestselling novel.)
“[W]hile over 3 million books are published each year, very few are read widely and less than 500 make it to the New York Times bestseller lists," write researchers Yucesoy et al in their 2018 paper on the data behind best-selling books.
Writing is hard, and earning a living from writing is even harder. But a rare few manage to do it.
How much do best-selling authors make? Math shows us that:
Traditionally-published best selling authors make at least $140,000 per year.
Self-published best selling authors make over $250,000 per year.
How did I come up with those numbers? Let me break it down.
First, it depends on what we mean by “bestseller" for traditional publishing.
The New York Times Bestseller list does not talk about how exactly to get on the list. But one estimate says it requires a bestselling author to make a minimum of 5000 book sales in a single week. Another estimate claims you need to sell 10k books in a week. The Wall Street Journal is similarly mum on the topic, but one estimate claims you'll need 3-4 thousand book sales in a week.
Let's stick with the NYT, meet in the middle and say you need 7,500 book sales in a week to make the list. One 2004 study estimates that the average sales of a book increase by ~13-14% if you end up on the list (and a higher boost if you're a lesser-known author).
One study estimated that long books stayed on the best-seller list by 9.4 weeks.
Let's do some dubious math. If you need to sell 7.5k copies of your best-selling book per week to stay on the list, and the best-seller stays there for 9.4 weeks, that means in the first three months, you've sold 70.5k books.
Let's be conservative and say NYT bestsellers sell for around $20 each. If you're a trad published author with a 10% rate, you'll take home $2 per book.
That gives you a grand total of $140,000 for the first three months of your book sales. A far chunk of change in exchange for the pleasure of writing!
Now, even if you don't sell another book for the rest of the year, you're still sitting on $140,000.
Self-publishing best selling author math is messier, so I've relied on a survey conducted by the Alliance of Independent Authors which reported that 7.2% of self-published authors earn over $250,000 per year, which I qualify as best-selling writing.
Key Takeaways:
Best-selling author earnings vary depending on factors such as publishing method, royalties, and book success.
Traditionally published authors receive advance payments and royalties typically range from 8-12% for print copies.
Self-published authors have the potential to earn higher royalties, ranging from 35-70%.
Genre, editing costs, marketing efforts, and writing quality also impact an author's earnings.
Factors Affecting Author Earnings
Two main factors affect how much money a best-selling book author can make: publishing style and genre.
For example, traditionally published authors typically receive an advance payment from the publisher, which can range from a few thousand dollars to several million, depending on the author's reputation and the potential success of the book.
But… the royalties for traditionally published authors are usually in the 8-12% range for print copies, meaning that for every copy sold, the author receives a percentage of the book's price.
On the other hand, self-published authors have the advantage of higher rates for their writing. They can earn royalties ranging from about 35-70% of the book's price, depending on the platform they choose for self-publishing. This can be a significant advantage for self-published authors, as they have the potential to earn a larger portion of the book's revenue.
Math time:
James Patterson sold 84 million books between 2010-2019. If he gets 12% in royalties, and his books average at $15 each (a conservative estimate). That means he earned $1.8 per book, and a total of $151,200,000 over those ten years.
It's very hard to find data on book sales for best-selling self published authors, because when they get to that stage, pub houses normally snap them up. But imagine a self published author like Tricia O'Malley has sold 3,000,000 books and netted ~70% of the profits of her books, an average one of which sells for around $12.99. That would earn her $9.1 per book, or $27,300,000 overall.
Genre and market demand also play a role in bestselling earnings. Certain genres, such as writing romance and mystery, tend to have a larger readership and higher sales potential, which can translate into higher earnings for authors in those genres. Additionally, the costs of editing and marketing can impact an author's earnings.
Quality editing and effective marketing efforts can help increase book sales and, consequently, a bestselling author's royalties. And of course, the quality of your writing affects your sales.
It's also worth noting that even among bestsellers, fiction books sell more copies than nonfiction books, so bestselling nonfiction authors make less than bestselling fiction authors on average.
Earnings for Traditionally Published Authors
Traditionally published authors have a unique earning structure that involves advances, royalties, and industry standards. When a book is accepted by a traditional publisher, the author usually receives an advance payment.
This advance acts as an upfront payment against future royalties and can vary greatly depending on the author's reputation, the potential sales of the book, and other factors. Advances can range from a few thousand dollars to millions for established authors or books with high commercial potential.
In addition to the advance, traditionally published authors earn royalties based on the sales of their books. Royalties are typically calculated as a percentage of the book's list price or net receipts. The rates can vary, but a common range for print copies is between 8% and 12%.
This means that for every copy sold, the author receives a percentage of the sale price as their payment. The exact rate may be negotiated with the publisher, and it may vary depending on the format of the book (hardcover, paperback, ebook).
Industry standards and best practices also play a role in the earnings of traditionally published authors. Achieving bestseller status, as determined by reputable sources like Publishers Weekly, can significantly impact an author's income. Bestseller status often leads to increased publicity, higher sales, and more opportunities for future book deals. Debut authors and those who consistently produce successful books may also benefit from higher advances and better royalty rates as their reputation grows.
Royalties and Advances for Traditionally Published Authors
Let's take a closer look at a hypothetical example. Imagine you're a first-time author. Your agent likes your pitch, and she takes it to a pub house. They love it. You sign a contract that offers you a $5,000 book advance for your debut novel. The publisher estimates that the book will have a list price of $20 and agrees to pay you a rate of 10%.
In this example, you would need to sell 500 copies of your book to earn back your $5,000 advance. Any sales beyond that would result in additional royalties.
Advances are typically paid upfront and are not dependent on book sales. But if your book doesn't sell well, you may not get more book deals from the house.
Hopefully, this demonstrates the relationship between advances, royalties, and book sales. These apply to every traditional publishing house – best selling author, or struggling new author.
Earnings for Self-Published Authors
As a self published author, you're less likely to become a bestseller, because you lack the might of a publishing house behind you, fueling your book sales. But if you're a savvy marketer, you do have the potential to earn higher royalty rates and have more control over your earnings.
Unlike traditional authors who receive an advance payment from a publisher, you won't see a penny of money until you make your first book sale to a reader. But then, self-publishing means higher royalty rates, which can range from about 35-70% of the book's retail price. This is how Tracy O'Malley can earn 20% of what J. Patz earns with less than 4% of the number of sales (hypothetically; I do not know what they actually earned, or what their royalty rate is).
Self-published authors also have more control over their earnings because they are responsible for every aspect of the publishing process (editing, cover design, and marketing). This is scary and hard, yes, but it means if you become a bestseller, you get to keep more of the money you generate.
Success in self-publishing relies on you being able to put yourself out there. You need to use effective marketing strategies, build an online presence, and actively engage with readers to generate sales.
Examples of How Much Best Selling Authors Can Make
Stephen King, known as the "Master of Horror," has written over 60 novels, selling more than 400 million copies worldwide. I'm not taking into account anything like speaking gigs or movie earnings, but say he's got a royalty rate of 12%. Say the average book price is $15 (between $10 for paperbacks and $30 for hardbacks). That means from book sales alone, he's earned $1.80 per book, or around $720 million in his lifetime.
Colleen Hoover has sold around 25 million copies of her books. Sticking with our estimated 12% royalty rate and an average book price of $15, she's has earned around $45 million dollars.
Agatha Christie, known as the "Queen of Crime," has sold more than 2 billion copies of her books. She's in the Guinness World Record book as the best-selling author of all time! It's harder to gauge price on this, since some of her books are nearly a century old, but Wikipedia estimates that during her lifetime, she earned over $100 million in today's dollars. And, of course, her books have continued to sell.
William Shakespeare, an author from before ever Christie, is estimated to earn close to $15 million per year on his play sales. That’s according to this 2005 Forbes article, that asked experts to estimate the playwright’s net worth and annual income.
Harold Robbins books are filled with scandal, intrigue, and passion. In 2008, The Carpetbaggers' "about the author" section included the info that his books have sold over 750 million copies worldwide and that he earned (and spent!) around $50 million.
With over 500 million copies of her books in print, Nora Roberts is known for her romance and her suspense. She makes around $30 million per year according to this website.
Tom Clancy's books have sold over 100 million copies worldwide. Taking our estimated 12% royalty rate and a book price of $15, that gives us earnings of around $180 million.
Jeff Kinney's writing is known for his Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, which I remember reading as a web series in my youth! But nowadays, he's in print. He's sold over 275 million copies, making him one of the most successful children's authors. His books retail for around $15, too, giving us a figure of $495 million earned if he also gets a 12% rate.
John Grisham's legal thrillers have sold over 300 million copies, bringing him up to an estimated book sale price of $540 million, still sticking with our $15 book price and 12% royalty rate.
Let's end with a fantasy author. George R.R. Martin's epic fantasy series, A Song of Ice and Fire, have sold over 90 million copies. With an average book price of $15 and 12% from royalties, we can expect that he's earned around $162 million from his books.
What is an average author salary?
To get a frame of reference for how much a bestselling writer can make, it's useful to compare that to the median salary for both a traditionally published author and an indie author.
That same excellent ALLi survey showed that the median indie author salary is $12,749. So, very low, even for the professional writer type.
Traditionally published authors earn a little more: $15,000 is the median salary according to a separate survey conducted by the Authors Guild.
Final thoughts on bestselling author salaries
In short, bestselling authors can earn a lot of money – at least $140,000, but up to millions of dollars, potentially.
The top 10% of self-published best-sellers probably earn more than the top 10% of traditionally-published best sellers, but the top 1% of trad published bestsellers earns more than the top 1% of self-pubbed authors.
The main note? No matter what kind of writing you do, if you want to make a lot of money, you should write multiple books. Very few authors make it to the bestseller list with a single, shining debut novel or just one self published book. Most will dedicate themselves to writing as much as possible.
