Canelo / Arts Council England

2. Other Commercial Models 

The picture of advances suggest that the ideal of a career as a full-

time writer is harder than ever. We have returned to the New Grub 

Street of George Gissing, where writers have little choice but to live 

in genteel(ish) poverty. However, even if advances have fallen writers 

have other options – some within writing itself, some that involve other 

sources of income. 

Royalties: While dependent on advances, royalties are still separate. We 

can roughly tell what is happening by triangulating what we have already 

established. Sales in print are falling, which means such royalties are 

as well. Ebooks have been rising (until circa 2015), which means ebook 

royalties, typically 25% of net receipts at most publishers, will have 

risen as well. If advances are falling, it means that royalties are more 

likely to be paid as advances earn out quicker – assuming that is the 

books are selling enough. Given the polarisation in the market though, 

this will still not apply to many books as the top books are taking their 

disproportionately large share of sales. Moreover, high discount clauses 

are routine – these mean publishers pay lower royalties when books are 

sold at high discount to the retailer. Such discounts are now standard 

and so in practice many writers see significant portions of their sales go 

through with such clauses applied. None of which makes for a happy 

picture for literary writing. They won’t have the full upside of ebook 

revenues, but they will have the downside of falling print. Royalty rates 

have not risen with publisher profitability. Royalties are an important 

source of income for writers, especially for those with big backlists and 

breakout successes. However,they are no panacea and are likely to be 

an aggregate worse position for literary writers (as opposed to genre 

writers) than a decade ago. While new publishers offer higher royalties, 

there is an increasing clamour for change in the author and agent 

community. 

Foreign rights: This is a real positive. Two areas in particular stand 

out. The UK has an excellent track record in selling translation rights 

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