Can You REALLY Make a Living as a Novelist?

Plan for Success

Photo by Lucien Openge on Unsplash

So, you want to be a full-time novelist. You get to quit the 9-to-5, tell incredible stories, create entire worlds, and pay your bills with nothing but your imagination. It’s the dream, right? It was my dream, and in many respects it still is — especially being able to pay my bills with my writing.

My goal is always to encourage you. It IS possible to make a living writing, but I also want to give you accurate information so you can plan appropriately.

According to recent industry surveys, the median income for full-time authors is only around $20,000 a year. Yeah. That number is a brutal wake-up call. It’s the financial brick wall that stands between the dream of being a writer and the reality of a writing career.

So, though I’m not here to crush your dreams — I want to arm you with the truth. I’m going to break down the real numbers: the advances, the royalties, the insane time investment, and the strategies that can actually lead to a sustainable career. The big question is, can you REALLY make a living as a novelist today? Here’s the truth.

The Sobering Reality of Author Income

Before we talk about how to make a living, we have to get painfully honest about what most authors earn. The…