How much of an advance can a first time novelist expect?

That depends...helpful, am I?

What genre, btw?

Publishers Marketplace reports deals, so does Publishers Weekly. You might want to check there, to get an idea. (You'll need a subscription for Publishers Marketplace.)

But generally, as an unknown first time novelist, don't set your hopes at too high a figure. (But I'd bet that snagging a top agent might be helpful to get a bigger advance.)

Good luck!

A New York publisher will generally (VERY generally) give an advance of $1-5K, depending on genre.

An epub/small press will generally not give any advance, but will give a larger percentage royalty.

There are always exceptions, but that's more based on the strength of the book and not the anonimity of the author.

$0-infinity.

Does that help?

Seriously though, I think the average advance is somewhere in the $5,000-$10,000 range. Take 15% off that right away for your agent (if you have one) and don't forget the nasty detail of taxes.

Averaging anywhere between $1000 and $4000 for a single-book deal. But that's an average for an average book. If you're better than average, you might get more money. But seriously, advances are lower than ever now just because of the economy.

These figures might be a bit old, but they'll help give you an idea why we all need to keep our day jobs.

jasperd said:

I have one idea for a YA novel and one for a mainstream novel.

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Novelists, first-time or otherwise, get nothing for ideas. Methinks you have the cart before the horse. You have to write a novel before you can rewrite it, edit it, query an agent, query a publisher, negotiate a contract, sign it, proof galleys... and so on. You get the picture. And all that's assuming this first novel is good enough to get published in the first place.

I'm unpubbed so I don't know how much an advance might be on a first novel. I've written three, or four, or something, and haven't found success yet. I think a writer who hasn't finished anything yet is better served by concentrating on his writing instead of his advance.

Best of luck to you, though.

Depending on genre, the average advance from a major house is anywhere from $1000-10,000 for a single title. Huge range, I know. Sometimes a new author will be offered a large advance, but those aren't as common.

But remember, an advance is just that--an advance against royalties. A smaller advance means a better chance of earning out the advance, and then earning more royalties. It all depends.

I hate to bring up the Twilight series, but for reference on just how different advances can be: Stephenie Meyers (a first time novelist) received $750,000.00 as an advance for a three-book deal.

An unusually high amount, but there you are. I'm not exactly sure how her agent pulled that one off -- he/she must be really good at his/her job.

Zero.

caw

Except for a few very rare cases, not enough to allow you to quit your job.

TTCleveland said:

I hate to bring up the Twilight series, but for reference on just how different advances can be: Stephenie Meyers (a first time novelist) received $750,000.00 as an advance for a three-book deal.

An unusually high amount, but there you are. I'm not exactly sure how her agent pulled that one off -- he/she must be really good at his/her job.

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Her agent is Jodi Reamer from Writers House. So yeah, a top agent got her an excellent deal. I'd love a high advance, but i'd be wary incase I didn't sell enough books to earn that.

Chanelley said:

I'd love a high advance, but i'd be wary incase I didn't sell enough books to earn that.

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I think if a publishing house gives such a huge advance, they are going to do quite a lot in terms of promotion, so that will ensure that the advance is earned back.

Joe Konrath, who writes the Jack Daniels series, says that the average advance is about $5k.

Unfortunately, he also says that most books (4 out of 5) don't earn out their advance (ie they don't sell enough copies for the author to begin to receive royalties). He maintains that this is because most authors, especially newbies, don't do much to sell their own work believing that is the publisher's job.

Don't expect much, but you can do well with the right book and a good agent. I got a six figure advanced and a three book deal as a first time author. A deal search in Publisher's Marketplace for debut novels will show you a good sampling of advances as well. Besides your advance, you have the potential to sell foreign rights, which can also earn you more.

Odds are you will not make enough to quit you job right away, even with a decent advance. Average is five books or five years of good sales before an author can write full time. Even then, there are still no guarantees.

...I'm going to give up trying to process the idea of a six figure advance.

Congrats to you, Danthia, and I hope I find even a fraction of the same fortune with my fantasy novel... assuming I find a way to get it to a manageable size...

I haven't gotten published, myself, but my father's trying to get his own modern fantasy book published, and hasn't received any offers involving an advance yet. He was perfectly happy to just get his book on the shelves, but his friend/agent assured him that he could bring him a deal with a cash advance.

Of course, this was said like three years ago...

Danthia said:

Don't expect much, but you can do well with the right book and a good agent. I got a six figure advanced and a three book deal as a first time author.

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Bravo, Danthia!

You should expect zero.

But if the book sells, depending on genre, depending on publisher, $2,000-$10,000 is pretty common for first novels.

If it sells really well, you get more.

If it sells like week-old fish, you don't have to give the money back but the next book may be harder to sell.

A million bucks isn't outside the realm of belief, but don't plan on it.

Instead, plan on starting your next book.

If your name is 'blacbird', probably about 17c, a few bottle caps and a couple of foreign coins.

scarletpeaches said:

If your name is 'blacbird', probably about 17c, a few bottle caps and a couple of foreign coins.

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Thankfully, not many writers are named 'blacbird'.

No-one tell him I said that.

jasperd said:

I have one idea for a YA novel and one for a mainstream novel.

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Emphasis mine.

This tells me you haven't written anything yet. In the time it takes you to write and edit a novel, the marketplace will have likely changed.

One AWer right here got $600,000 for a seven book deal about a year and a half ago. You just never know.....