Authors work across publishing, media, education, advertising, entertainment, and independent careers. In the United States, the latest figures show a workforce of about 140,300 writers and authors in 2025, while survey data shows that book income can be much lower than occupational wages suggest. The statistics below separate employment estimates, wage measures, survey income, and copyright records so each figure keeps its original scope.
Contents
- U.S. workforce and outlook
- Pay and wage distribution
- Industries employing writers and authors
- Where authors work
- Book income and author-related earnings
- Demographics and publishing pathways
U.S. workforce and outlook
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Outlook Handbook estimates that writers and authors held about 140,300 jobs in the United States in 2025. The same source projects 139,900 jobs in 2035, a numeric decline of 500 jobs over the decade. Rounded to a percentage, that is a projected 0% change from 2025 to 2035. BLS, Writers and Authors: Occupational Outlook Handbook
The flat outlook does not mean the occupation will have no movement. BLS projects about 11,900 openings for writers and authors per year on average from 2025 through 2035. These openings can arise as workers change occupations, retire, or leave jobs, even when total employment is broadly stable. For comparison, BLS projects total employment across all occupations to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035, compared with 0% for writers and authors. BLS, Writers and Authors: Occupational Outlook Handbook
Self-employment is a defining feature of the occupation. Self-employed workers accounted for 65% of writers and authors jobs in 2025, according to the BLS occupational outlook profile. That share helps explain why employment counts and income surveys can describe different parts of the author economy. BLS, Writers and Authors: Occupational Outlook Handbook
Another BLS source gives a larger count under a different measurement system: the Current Population Survey counted 234,000 employed writers and authors in its 2025 annual average. This figure should not be treated as a correction to the occupational estimate. The two BLS products use different surveys and statistical definitions. BLS, Household survey data, 2025 annual averages
Pay and wage distribution
For employees covered by the occupational wage profile, the median annual wage for U.S. writers and authors was $76,910 in May 2025. The median divides the reported wage distribution in half; it is not an average of all author income and does not represent book royalties alone. BLS, Writers and Authors: Occupational Outlook Handbook
The May 2025 wage distribution was wide. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $44,310 annually, while the highest-paid 10% earned more than $139,870. The gap between these thresholds is important context for any single headline wage figure: writers and authors do not experience one uniform earnings level. BLS, Writers and Authors: Occupational Outlook Handbook
The occupation’s median also exceeded broader comparison groups in the same May 2025 release. The median annual wage was $74,250 for media and communication workers overall and $50,980 for all occupations. These comparisons describe annual wages, not the separate book-income measures reported by the Authors Guild.
May 2025 median wages by industry
| Industry | Median annual wage |
|---|---|
| Religious, grantmaking, civic, professional, and similar organizations | $80,480 |
| Professional, scientific, and technical services | $77,860 |
| Information | $74,590 |
| Educational services | $72,610 |
Source: BLS, Writers and Authors: Occupational Outlook Handbook, May 2025.
The earlier BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics table reported a May 2023 mean hourly wage of $42.11 and a mean annual wage of $87,590 for writers and authors. In that same table, the 10th-percentile annual wage was $40,900 and the 90th-percentile annual wage was $148,240. These are May 2023 estimates and should not be read as updated versions of the May 2025 median. BLS, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: 27-3043 Writers and Authors
Industries employing writers and authors
The May 2023 BLS industry table shows that writers and authors were distributed across both traditional publishing and adjacent communications businesses. Advertising, public relations, and related services employed 6,560 writers and authors. Independent artists, writers, and performers employed 5,250, while newspaper, periodical, book, and directory publishers employed 4,830.
Other notable employment counts included 4,030 writers and authors in management, scientific, and technical consulting services and 2,820 in motion picture and video industries. Together, these figures illustrate that writing employment extends well beyond book publishers. All five figures refer to May 2023 industry estimates from the BLS table. BLS, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: 27-3043 Writers and Authors
The occupation’s share of an industry’s workforce also varied substantially. Writers and authors made up 8.15% of employment in independent artists, writers, and performers in May 2023, compared with 1.65% of employment in newspaper, periodical, book, and directory publishers. These percentages measure occupational concentration inside each industry, not the share of all authors working in those industries. BLS, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: 27-3043 Writers and Authors
Mean annual wages were especially high in several media-related categories in the same BLS release. Writers and authors in motion picture and video industries had a mean annual wage of $129,930. The mean was $119,150 in media streaming, social networks, and other media networks and content providers, and $128,790 in agents and managers for artists, athletes, entertainers, and other public figures. These are industry-specific means, not typical earnings for every author. BLS, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: 27-3043 Writers and Authors
Where authors work
California had 8,820 writers and authors in May 2023, the highest state employment level in the BLS table. New York had 7,540, followed by Florida with 2,700, Illinois with 2,390, and North Carolina with 2,300. The counts identify where the jobs were located in that BLS dataset; they do not measure where authors were born or where books were sold. BLS, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: 27-3043 Writers and Authors
Employment concentration was particularly strong in the District of Columbia. Its location quotient for writers and authors was 5.61 in May 2023, the highest state-level value in the table. New York’s location quotient was 2.47. A location quotient compares an occupation’s concentration in an area with its concentration nationally; it is a concentration measure, not a headcount. BLS, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: 27-3043 Writers and Authors
Major metropolitan areas also show distinct centers of writing employment. The New York–Newark–Jersey City metro area employed 7,820 writers and authors in May 2023. The Los Angeles–Long Beach–Anaheim area employed 4,580, and the Washington–Arlington–Alexandria area employed 2,540. Los Angeles–Long Beach–Anaheim reported a mean annual wage of $119,320 for writers and authors in that month. BLS, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: 27-3043 Writers and Authors
Book income and author-related earnings
Book income is a narrower measure than occupational wages. In the Authors Guild’s 2023 income survey, full-time authors had median book income of $10,000 in 2022 and median total author-related earnings of $20,000. The second measure includes income related to authorship beyond book income. The survey covered 5,699 published authors. Authors Guild, Key Takeaways from the Authors Guild’s 2023 Author Income Survey
The survey’s commercial-market subgroup reported higher medians: full-time authors in commercial markets had median book income of $15,000 and median total author-related income of $25,000 in 2022. Across all surveyed authors, including part-time authors, median book income was $2,000 and median total author-related income was $5,000. These figures are survey medians for 2022 income, reported in 2023; they are not forecasts. Authors Guild, Key Takeaways from the Authors Guild’s 2023 Author Income Survey
Selected 2022 income medians
| Author group | Median book income | Median total author-related income |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time authors | $10,000 | $20,000 |
| Full-time commercial-market authors | $15,000 | $25,000 |
| All surveyed authors, including part-time | $2,000 | $5,000 |
| Full-time self-published authors | $12,800 | $15,000 |
| Full-time romance and romantic-suspense authors | $31,725 | $37,000 |
Source: Authors Guild, Key Takeaways from the Authors Guild’s 2023 Author Income Survey. Income year: 2022.
Self-publishing results varied by experience. Full-time self-published authors had median book income of $12,800 and median total author-related income of $15,000 in 2022. Among full-time self-published authors publishing since at least 2018, median income was $24,000 in 2022, compared with $13,700 in 2018 for that same experienced group. The reported comparison is between the group’s 2018 and 2022 income medians; it does not establish why the values differed. Authors Guild, Key Takeaways from the Authors Guild’s 2023 Author Income Survey
Genre also matters in the survey. Full-time romance and romantic-suspense authors had median book income of $31,725 and median combined author-related income of $37,000 in 2022. This subgroup result should not be generalized to all authors or all genres. Authors Guild, Key Takeaways from the Authors Guild’s 2023 Author Income Survey
Demographics and publishing pathways
The Authors Guild survey provides a profile of its participants, not a census of every author. Among the 5,699 published authors surveyed, 21% did not identify as White, 8% identified as Black, 4% as Hispanic, and 2% as Asian American and Pacific Islander. The survey also reported that 12% identified as LGBTQIA+, 11% met the Americans with Disabilities Act definition of impairment, and 6% did not identify solely as male or female. Authors Guild, Key Takeaways from the Authors Guild’s 2023 Author Income Survey
Publishing pathways differed across some groups in the survey. Among surveyed full-time authors, 38% of White authors were traditionally published, compared with 28% of Black authors. These percentages describe 2022 publishing status among the surveyed full-time-author groups and should not be interpreted as national publishing rates. Authors Guild, Key Takeaways from the Authors Guild’s 2023 Author Income Survey
Copyright-registration records offer a longer historical view. The U.S. Copyright Office reported that women authors accounted for over 38% of copyright registrations in 2020, up from 28% in 1978. These are registration shares, not measures of total books published, sales, employment, or author income. U.S. Copyright Office, Women in the Copyright System
The Copyright Office’s author-registration dataset covers approximately 22 million copyright registration records from 1978 through June 27, 2025. Its long period and large record count make it useful for studying registration patterns, but registration data remains distinct from workforce and earnings data. U.S. Copyright Office, The Characteristics of Authors Reflected in Copyright Registrations