Getting By On A Writers Income

Some of the most frequent questions I get asked about writing these days is "How are the sales?" and "Have you made any money yet?"

Well, sales are good, but I don't have immediate data on exactly how many at this moment. My publisher deals with different distribution outlets, and they report after the fact, and at different times. With Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, Diesel, and other places, you've got reports (and money) coming in weeks or months after the fact. Still better than traditional publishing, which can be longer than a year.

And we've got books out at bookstores, but those are slow. Without a name, it's tough to sell in a place with thousands of other books, most of whom have authors the browser knows. And most pay after sales, so you have books that the publisher has paid for, sitting there.

So nope, no huge sums of money yet. Trickles right now, but then again, it's a marathon, not a sprint, and I've been in print less than 10 months. Still building an audience, one reader at a time.

For a good perspective from a traditional pro, here's Lawrence Block on Getting By On A Writers Income.

Update-- just to show once again how great minds think alike, NY Times best-selling mystery author Debbi Mack posted this link as well! Guess this has quite a resonance for those of us seeking to make a living writing fiction.