Track Changes: Advances
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💰 Let’s talk about money: how do authors get paid, how much do authors get paid, and what do they need to keep in mind when the checks roll in? 💸
We catch up with Jennifer de Leon as she prepares for the release of her debut young adult novel, Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From, on August 4. (Hear her First Draft interview here.)
Courtney Maum, author of Before and After the Book Deal: A Writer’s Guide to Finishing, Publishing, Promoting, and Surviving Your First Book lays out the basics of book advances.
Holly Root, founder of Root Literary and Seth Fishman, literary agent with The Gernert Company give a helpful overview of how much authors are paid across a variety of age categories and genres. And Sarah Burnes, literary agent with The Gernert Company, walks through what earning out means.
Then, we get into #PublishingPaidMe with Tochi Onyebuchi, who, along with L.L. MicKinney, started the viral publishing industry pay transparency movement.
Catch up on the series so far:
Episode 2: Agents: Who Are They, What Do They Do, And How Do You Get One?
Bonus Episode: Publishing in the time of COVID
Episode 3: Selling the Book (Part 1)
Episode 4: Selling the Book (Part 2)
More Information:
“How Authors Make Money” by Nathan Bransford
“A Conversation with Financial Therapist Elaine Grogan Luttrull,” in editor Cheryl Klein’s newsletter
“The Economics of Publishing” by Nathan Bransford
“Book Revenue Breakdown” by Nathan Bransford
“How to Write a Book Proposal,” by publishing guru Jane Friedman
LISTEN: The Pub(Lishing) Crawl Podcast on Advances and Royalties
The Poets&Writers Complete Guide to Being a Writer: Everything You Need to Know About Craft, Inspiration, Agents, Editors, Publishing, and the Business of Building a Sustainable Writing Career by Kevin Larimer and Mary Gannon
The Indie Authors Business Guide: The pros and cons of becoming a business entity in Publishers Weekly, which discusses the distinctions between LLCs and S Corps
When Should Writers Incorporate or Create an LLC? in Writer’s Digest
“Author Income Surveys Are Misleading and Flawed—And Focus on the Wrong Message for Writers,” by Jane Friedman
Further Reading:
“Does it Pay to Be a Writer?” in the New York Times
#PublishingPaidMe and a Day of Action Reveal an Industry Reckoning in The New York Times
#Publishingpaidme: authors share advances to expose racial disparities in The Guardian
#PublishingPaidMe highlights disparity in payments between Black and non-Black writers in The A.V. Club
#PublishingPaidMe: Authors Share Their Advances To Expose Racial Disparities on NPR
Book Authors Are Getting Real About How Much They Are Paid in Buzzfeed News
Track Changes is produced by Hayley Hershman. Zan Romanoff is the story editor. The music was composed by Dan Bailey, and the logo was designed by Collin Keith.
Thanks for Listening!
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✍️ Track Changes Learn how the traditional publishing industry works in the Track Changes podcast mini-series.
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