https://publishingperspectives.com/2018/06/writers-income-alcs-uk-survey-2010-publishers-association/
Quote:
The median annual income of a professional author is £10,500 (US$11,300), which is well below the minimum wage
This has been falling year on year in both actual and real terms since figures have been collected. Almost no publishing houses, with the exception of a few very small independents will consider a book, even from a well-known author, unless it comes via a literary agent. The chances of a new author being taken on by a literary agent are remote. An agent I spoke to in September told me that she receives 50 or 60 unsolicited manuscripts every week and has had as many as 300. Last year she took on 2 new authors. Some big agencies get far more submissions. So work for 1 or 2 years to produce the best book you can, submit it to all the agencies you can find that take your kind of writing and the chances of getting taken on are marginally better than zero. The chances of then having the book published and making any money, even enough to cover the cost of writing it, are similar or worse.
On the other hand, type up your green crayon scribblings, load it up to Amazon for free and BINGO! You're a published author. That explains why Amazon has 60 trillion self-published books. Seeing as that's quite a flock of books to get lost in it explains why the average self-published novel sells a copy to your mum and dad, a couple to your cousins, and 1 to that weird bloke who's been following you into bars recently.never trust a man in a blue trench coat, never drive a car when you're dead |