Tip #4 for Aspiring Writers
It’s been a while since I last posted. This blogging thing is a lot of work! Hats off to all those who manage to post regularly and still lead productive lives. Between going to my oldest son’s college graduation (!) and attending BEA, I felt incapable of thinking coherently, let alone expressing in writing anything worth reading. Anyway, here’s my next piece of advice for aspiring writers, for what it’s worth.
Make sure you have another source of income Even when you do join the ranks of the lucky and receive a contract from a publisher, along with a check, don’t expect to be able to actually live off it. Let’s do the math on the rather substantial advance of $100,000. Six figures, you say! I’m rich! But wait. This advance will be paid out in thirds, or, as is becoming increasingly common, in quarters. The first payment will be paid upon the signing of the contract, which can be six weeks to six months (yes, six months) after the initial verbal agreement. The amount you will receive will be approximately $28,335 (one third of $100,000 minus 15% agent commission), on which you’ll also be required to pay taxes. Depending on your tax bracket, you’ll be left with somewhere around $25,000. This will have to sustain you until the next payment, paid after the publisher has officially accepted the manuscript. This may happen quickly, but it may not. If you have written a very complex manuscript, you and your editor may go through several drafts before it is ready for publication. While this editorial process can be enormously productive, especially for a new writer, it can also be time-consuming. Some of my clients have spent a year or more revising their manuscripts before they were accepted. Once it is, and the manuscript is put into production, it can take from eight months to a year before the book is published, which is when the third payment is due. (As I mentioned above, sometimes, usually when the advance is in the six figures, it is paid out in quarters; the fourth payment is due upon the publication of the paperback, which is usually a year after the hardcover is published.)
Keep in mind that the average advance is substantially below six figures and you can see that it is very important to have another source of income. If you are thinking this sucks, I totally agree with you, since I consider writing a book the hardest thing in the world and it makes me admire all of you who have decided to choose writing as a career all the more.
