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Paychecks Publishers Never Talk About May 13, 2009
Paychecks Publishers Never Talk About
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Have you ever wondered, “How much will I make on my first book?” How about, “How much can I expect to get for a book advance?” Of course everyone has wondered, “When can I quit my day job once I’m published?” Sadly, the truth is it may take YEARS for you to make enough money as a published novelist, and exact answers are hard to find. What one publishing house is willing to pay for a first book, another may not be. Truth be told, one publishing house editor once revealed to me that most “first books” do not sell more than 100 copies. At 6% of retail on 100 books (let’s say $6.99 per book), you could probably expect to make as little as $45. (Ouch.)
However, there is a ray of hope in this dismal situation. Brenda Hiatt’s website (www.BrendaHiatt.com) has a section she calls “Show Me the Money.” In this section, Brenda has interviewed hundreds of romance authors about the different books they’ve published. Her results include how much authors have received for advances and earn-outs. The end results were fascinating.
Following are three tables displaying the “Top Ten” for Average Advances, Earn Outs, and Commissions. With these handy little charts, you can see where you may want to submit your book first, and how much you could hope to make.
Top 10 Publishing Houses For
Average Advance (First Book)
| Publishing House | Average Advance (1st Book) |
| Avon/HarperCollins | $17,000 |
| $12,000 | |
| Tor/Forge | $11,000 |
| Dutton/Signet/NAL | $9,200 |
| HQN | $8,500 |
| Berkley/Jove | $7,800 |
| St. Martin’s Press | $6,600 |
| Grand Central Publishing (Warner) | $6,500 |
| Harlequin Superromance | $5,000 |
| Silhouette Desire | $4,500 |
Top 10 Publishing Houses For
Average Advance (Subsequent Books)
| Publishing House | Average Advance (Subsequent Books) |
| St. Martin’s Press | $40,500 |
| Dutton/Signet/NAL | $30,000 |
| HQN | $20,500 |
| $19,000 | |
| Bantam/Dell | $16,000 |
| Tor/Forge | $14,000 |
| Dorchester/Leisure | $13,000 |
| Grand Central Publishing (Warner) | $13,000 |
| Red Dress Ink | $12,000 |
| Berkley/Jove | $8,100 |
Top 4 Publishing Houses For
Highest Print Royalties
| Publishing House | Highest Royalties for Print Books |
| Medallion Press | 10% |
| Five Star/Thorndike (hardcover) | 10% |
| Avalon | 10% |
| Cobblestone | 10% |
Top 10 Publishing Houses For
Average Earnings
| Publishing House | Average Earnings |
| Avon/HarperCollins | $23,000 |
| Harlequin Superromance | $18,500 |
| Silhouette Special Edition | $17,500 |
| Silhouette Desire | $16,500 |
| Harlequin Intrigue | $15,100 |
| Harlequin Blaze | $12,500 |
| Silhouette Romantic Suspense (SIM) | $12,000 |
| Harlequin Historical | $12,000 |
| Steeple Hill (Love Inspired) | $10,900 |
| Berkley/Jove | $8,400 |
Top 10 Publishing Houses For
Highest Total Earnings
| Publishing House | Highest total Earnings |
| Harlequin Superromance | $40,000 |
| Avon/HarperCollins | $35,000 |
| Berkley/Jove | $32,000 |
| Harlequin Intrigue | $26,000 |
| Silhouette Special Edition | $23,000 |
| Silhouette Desire | $23,000 |
| Harlequin Historical | $19,000 |
| Steeple Hill (Love Inspired) | $18,000 |
| Kensington/Zebra | $17,800 |
| Harlequin Blaze | $15,000 |
Ms. Hiatt’s interviews also show that you can hope to negotiate the following for your first romantic novel:
· Advance for a first book = approximately $4,000
· Average Advance for subsequent books = $7,000
· Royalties = 6% to 7%
· Total Average Earnings Per Book = $9,000
I guess that’s why published writers always say “We don’t do this for the money. We do this for the love of writing.”
