WHAT ARE WORDS WORTH IN 2018? HELP US TO HELP YOU
Next week, ALCS launches another major survey into the earnings of authors in all genres, the third such piece of research in the past decade. We urge all ALCS members to please complete the survey when it is distributed next week.
The results of the two previous ALCS surveys into author incomes – What Are Words Worth? in 2007, and What Are Words Worth Now? in 2014 – gave us invaluable information about what authors earn, how they earn it, and what the latest trends are in income levels.
The last survey – What Are Words Worth Now – in 2014 found that the median income of professional authors had fallen from £15,450 in 2005 to £11,000 in 2013. In addition, the number of authors earning a living solely from their writing had dropped from 40% in 2005, to 11.5% by 2013.
Such data is vital in enabling ALCS to continue to make the case for fair terms for authors in copyright law, licences and contracts. So we urge all members to please complete this latest survey so that we can continue to protect and promote your rights effectively.
Both prior pieces of research have been widely cited in the media as the most authoritative source of information on what writers earn today, but we now urgently need updated information.
The 2018 research has been commissioned by ALCS from CREATe, the RCUK Centre for Copyright and New Business Models in the Creative Economy, based at the University of Glasgow.
What are Words Worth in 2018? will be on its way to you on Monday 22 January, and the closing date for completing the survey is 28 February 2018.
Read previous What are Words Worth? publications.
