I’ve collected royalty checks so far this year from my two
publishers, The History Press and Rutgers University Press. So how am I doing
financially? Without getting into details, let me say I’ve got a ways to go to make a living as a writer.
This is an incredibly difficult time to be a writer. The publication market has been retrenching for years, and the
Great Recession accelerated trends that have led to consumers
canceling their magazine and newspaper subscriptions and buying fewer
books – even while the number of titles greatly increased, thanks to
self-publishing. And consumers have gotten used to free content and are
increasingly reluctant to pay.
So what does it mean to be a successful writer? Maybe we
should redefine success. Even getting published, period, is a success in its
own right. If you can find 1,000 customers to buy your book, then you’ve done
well and deserve a pat on the back. But the hundreds of thousands of book sales
that you’re hoping for probably isn’t a realistic goal. Few books sell that
many copies.
For the longest time, I’ve had the goal (and still have the
dream) of one day making my living as a writer. But I had a sharp reality check when I received my first royalty check in
March 2010 for $120. Nope, I'm nowhere close to quitting my day job.
I do earn some money from my writing – books, the
occasional freelance article or speaking gig – all of which I plow back into my next project. This
income is balanced by many costs: my website, a graphic designer for maps, acquiring images, hosting publication parties, and major research
costs (my writing is research-intense, as I write nonfiction). I basically
break even on writing. It’s a hobby that pays a little, not a lot.
But hey, there are a lot more expensive hobbies out there,
like owning a boat or a horse. Those hobbies are money pits. Mine at least is
cost-neutral.
At the Gaithersburg Book Festival this year, held on May 19,
2012, I gave a talk to about twenty-five people, and proudly sold out of books.
As I was finishing my talk, we suddenly heard a loud cheer from hundreds of
people in the tent next door. I learned later that the hubbub was for author
and "bloggess" Jenny Lawson.
Lawson had blogged for several years and developed a large
following that led to her first book, Let’s
Pretend This Never Happened. It rocketed to the top of the New York Times bestseller list. According
to the book festival staff, she has a crazed following. A staff person told me
that one woman came up to her seven times
to ask if Lawson had arrived yet (hello, stalker!). When she showed up at the
book festival, she had a police escort. She couldn’t just walk around the
festival like any other private citizen.
So be careful what you wish for. If success means having
stalkers and maintaining police protection, I’d say no thank you and stick with
my 25 rational fans. One of the nice things about being a writer is that few
people ever know what you look like. You can hide in plain sight. I wouldn’t
trade places with Brad Pitt for any money.
Garrett Peck
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