Interview #146: How Patrick Lenton Makes Money Writing
In this interview, Patrick reveals that Australian authors earn on average $18,200 per year, necessitating a day job for most.
Patrick Lenton is a freelance writer, editor, and the author of the critically acclaimed short story collection Sexy Tales of Paleontology. Last year, he released his debut novel, a queer rom-com called In Spite of You, as part of a two-book deal with Pantera Press. Between major publishing contracts, high-profile journalism bylines, and securing a massive Walkley Foundation grant for his independent newsletter, Nonsense, he looks like the ultimate freelance success story. But Patrick’s incredibly honest about the reality behind the curtain, and shares how he adapted his career when his initial financial strategy didn’t add up.
In this interview, Patrick breaks down why piecing together multiple prestigious income streams ultimately proved to be an unsustainable financial experiment. He talks about the shock of receiving an unexpected tax bill, why Australian authors simply cannot survive without a day job, and his empowering decision to return to the stability of a full-time newsroom. If you want a realistic guide to surviving the chaotic economics of independent publishing without sacrificing your unique voice, this one’s for you.
What you do: Author and journalist.
Years writing professionally: 15.
Earnings range: $80k–$90k per year.
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Patrick, with the new two-book deal from Pantera Press, the grant-funded newsletter, and your freelance reporting, I’m interested in how the financial pie slices up. When you look at your spreadsheet for the year, how do those different revenue streams stack up against each other?
In 2024 I’d just found out that my contract role as a reporter at the ABC (the Australian National Broadcaster) was not being renewed, and was pleasantly surprised when my two-book publishing deal AND my Walkley funded journalism grant came through at the same time.
While neither the advance nor the grant were enough to live off by themselves, I hoped that the combination plus freelancing would provide enough money to live off over 2024/2025 and the freedom and flexibility to work on these huge projects (grant and two novels).
However, what I found was that I was dramatically underpaid and overworked - for example from the AU$119,700.00 grant, I only allocated AU$45,000.00 to myself, hoping it would translate to a part time role of roughly 3 days a week. Instead it was closer to a 6 day a week role, stripping me of my ability to make up the gap with freelance articles, which aren’t highly paid anyway.
Add in the fact that my book advances are spaced out according to delivery and publication, and it meant that I did not have enough money to live off, and had to take several part-time and casual contract roles over the year.
In summary - the income streams didn’t match up with the amount of work I was doing, and ended up being a slightly failed experiment, which is why I have changed tack in 2026.