More advance stuff
Excellent info from Tobias Buckell on a range of advances he got from a survey. (Of course I forgot who sent this to me… sorry…)
#
And somewhat related, here’s the Locus Sales Sheet, listing author, book, agent, and pub. house.
#
I have an author who has agreed to send me his/her advance numbers (on anonymity, of course). I’ll update when I know more.
About the Author: I am a writer and podcast producer, writing for magazines and RPGs. I am a wanna-be fiction writer with several short fiction, comic scripts, and one novel sale. Playing For Keeps will be out August, '08.
Mr. Sock | Jun 23, 2006 | Reply
Mur, thanks for posting this information. I am on vacation and was listening to your podcast (Shyness episode) when I heard you read my question. I appreciate the links that show what some first-time writers are earning. The figures are a bit sobbering. Is it me or is it a bit surprising to see that I made more money in one year at a part-time retail store back in 1996 than I could make as a first-time novelist. Scary!
Jenna | Jun 23, 2006 | Reply
I enjoy reading over the information in your posts. I’m not quite to the published writer stage, but I hope to be someday. It’s good to read about what I have in store. Do you mind if I link you in my blog?
CharlesP | Jun 24, 2006 | Reply
Thanks for the list Mur, very poignant reminder to not quit the day job if you’re going to be a novelist… or be very prolific. At $5K a novel you can’t pay many bills if that’s your only income.
Kiki | Jun 27, 2006 | Reply
Hey Mur.
on the subject of advances, Karen Fox has an excellent collection of romance publishers that gives a grat overview of the comparison between traditional ‘big’ houses all the way down to small e-publishers. While it’s romance-specific, the general figures are comparable.
She has some good topics around the issue in general (like, how many books a year would you have to sell to make a living, etc).
Worth knowing for anyone starting out.