Coping with the Volatility of an Author Career with Kyra Davis

The Write Approach

Sometimes podcast episodes choose us. As J. W. Judge was scrolling through Threads, he came across a statement by author Kyra Davis that was simultaneously honest and encouraging and disconcerting:

"I’ve been relatively successful as an author. “Relatively” because I’ve occasionally struck gold but it has frequently been a struggle. I’ve made the NYT list, there have been yrs when my royalties have been 150-350k, & yrs when they’ve been 10-20k. There have been times when my publishers have literally toasted me with champagne & others when they’ve declined to give me a new contract.The lowest advance I’ve ever accepted ended up being for my highest grossing book. The publishing industry is rife with uncertainty, but uncertainty is the price we pay for possibility.So to my fellow authors, struggling, successful or in between the two, hang in there with me. As long as you keep writing your possibilities are boundless."

This episode of The Write Approach, which touches on humor and hope and hard times was born out of that social media post.
Kyra Davis' website: https://kyradavis.com/
Barbara Hinske's website: https://barbarahinske.com/
J. W. Judge's website: https://jwjudge.com/