Real Talk for Writers

with Isabel Sterling

Author & Master Certified Coach
Royalty Statements: January 2026 author finances backlist royalties sales numbers Feb 02, 2026

It's royalty season!

At least, for my books that were published by Razorbill (which was folded into Putnam a few years back).

If you missed my initial royalty break down (which included additional details about the first royalty period for each book), you can check that out here.

I also want to...

Continue Reading...
Royalty Statements: July 2025 advance author finances royalties sales numbers taxes Aug 04, 2025

This week's issue of Real Talk for Writers came as a request from a few debut authors that I know. There is so rarely transparency when it comes to sales numbers (author Jason June being one of the rare exceptions -- the royalty posts on his newsletter inspired some of my formatting this week), whic...

Continue Reading...
Advances, Royalties, & All-Time Earnings advance author finances royalties spreadsheets taxes Jun 16, 2025

As an industry, publishing tends to be shrouded in mystery. Especially when it comes to numbers. 

It’s rare for authors to talk publicly about how much money they make or how many copies of their books they sell.

There’s lots of euphemisms: “Oh, it was a fairly small advance” or “the book did okay...

Continue Reading...