How Much Money Do Authors Actually Earn?

It’s probably both less and more than you think

When I was beginning to take my shot at being a “real writer” (whatever that means) I could never find good information on a very basic question: what kind of money do authors actually earn?

I understood that most aspiring authors—like most aspiring artists in any field—end up failing. And I also understood I had no chance of being a Franzen/Tartt/whoev…