I asked 100 writers: how do you make money?

I’ve interviewed over 200 writers about money and just hit publish on the first 100. Here's the reality behind the bylines.

We’ve just hit a milestone: 100 interviews.

Over the past year, I’ve spoken to more than 200 writers and hit publish on 100 interviews for How I Make Money Writing. I’ve sat down with authors, poets, ghostwriters, and freelance reporters, alongside New York Times bestsellers, Pulitzer finalists, and Academy Award nominees.

That’s 100 writers having 100 honest conversations about how they pay their bills. If I have learned one thing, it’s that writing is an incredibly difficult industry to make a living from. But it’s also a beautiful one. Almost every single person I’ve interviewed would be writing regardless of whether it brought in a dollar or not.

Here’s the reality behind the bylines.

The Numbers

If you’re looking for a standard writer’s salary, it doesn’t exist. The income disparity in this field is wild.

• On one end, we have Ashley Hutson, whose debut novel was optioned for TV (netting a $30k windfall), yet her recurring writing income is just $1k–$2k a year while she works full-time …