Canelo / Arts Council England

Canelo / Arts Council England | 

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Literature in the 21st Century: Understanding Models of Support for Literary Fiction

appearance.

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 Without diving into the rights and wrongs of the issue, 

nor the question of the publicity value from appearing there, for most 

writers there won’t be a lot of money in speaking at festivals or other 

events. For a small number of writers there will. The familiar pattern is 

there. 

Beyond all these support models lies one further, and found in 

increasing numbers: other jobs. Recall the figures cited earlier: that in 

2005 40% of authors survived solely from their writing. Just eight years 

later in 2013 only 11.6% did.

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 For literary writers in particular that may 

be even more extreme. We are returning to the long term historical 

norm, which was interrupted for some brief and in hindsight halcyon 

days in the mid to late twentieth century, where writers cannot survive 

by writing alone.