Here’s a curated collection of facts, figures, trends and statistics about the UK writing industry.
How Many Writers Are There in the UK?
- There are 78,200 authors, writers and translators in the UK. [Source]
- 34% of writers in the UK are employees. [Source]
- 66% of writers in the UK are self-employed. [Source]
- 61% of writers in the UK work full-time. [Source]
- 37% of writers in the UK work part-time. [Source]
Number of Female Writers in the UK
- There are 47,000 female writers, authors and translators in the UK. [Source]
- 60% of authors, writers and translators in the UK are female. [Source]
- 64% of female writers, authors and translators in the UK are self-employed [Source]
- 36% of female writers, authors and translators in the UK are employees. [Source]
Number of Male Writers in the UK
- There are 31,200 male authors, writers and translators in the UK. [Source]
- 40% of authors, writers and translators in the UK are male. [Source]
- 65% of male authors, writers and translators in the UK are self-employed. [Source]
- 35% of male authors, writers and translators in the UK are employees. [Source]
How Much Do UK Writers Earn?
- In the UK, the top 10% of writers earn about 47% of the money. [Source]
- Professional UK writers’ earnings fell, on average, by 60% in real terms between 2006 and 2022. [Source]
- Overall (including part-time and full-time writers), UK writers’ earnings fell, on average, by 65% (in real terms) between 2006 and 2022. [Source]
UK Writers’ Earnings by Genre and Type of Writing
Ever wondered which genre of writing pays best? These were the average earnings for writers focusing on various genres and types of writing who reported writing as being their primary occupation. (Averages amongst part-time writers would have been considerably less.)
| Genre / Type | Average Annual Writing Earnings (2018) |
|---|---|
| Educational/teaching | £47,157 |
| Audio-visual | £44,349 |
| Fiction | £37,110 |
| Children’s fiction | £31,395 |
| Professional/technical | £27,490 |
| Travel | £27,220 |
| Writing for games | £27,135 |
| Nonfiction popular | £24,426 |
| Children’s non-fiction | £18,630 |
| Academic | £10,573 |
UK Writers’ Top Sources of Earnings
UK writers tend to get most of their money from publishers (no surprise!) But there are lots of other ways they can bring in some extra writing-related income. Here’s a breakdown…
| Source of Earnings | Average Earnings (2018) | % of Earnings |
|---|---|---|
| Publishers | £12,932 | 80% |
| Lectures | £1,759 | 11% |
| Self-Publication | £1,450 | 9% |
| Teaching Creative Writing | £822 | 5% |
| ALCS | £714 | 4% |
| Grants/Bursaries | £501 | 3% |
| Public Lending | £467 | 3% |
| Awards and Prizes | £230 | 1% |
How Many UK Writers Have Agents?
- 33% of authors in the UK report having an agent. (Counting authors whose primary occupation is writing.) [Source]
- The percentage of professional UK authors who report having an agent has been decreasing. It was 45% in 2006, 42% in 2014, 40% in 2018, and 33% in 2022. [Source]
| Type of Writer | Percentage Who Have an Agent (2018) |
|---|---|
| Academic | 4% |
| Author | 50% |
| Comedian | 100% |
| Editor | 13% |
| Journalist | 21% |
| Retired | 14% |
| Other | 19% |
| Playwright | 47% |
| Poet | 33% |
| Scriptwriter | 75% |
| Teacher | 10% |
| Translator | 19% |
Advances
- In 2022, 60% of writers reported having ever received an advance (counting people reporting writing as their primary occupation). [Source]
- Advances are becoming less common: of people whose primary occupation is writing, 82% reported ever having received an advance in 2006, 76% in 2014, 69% in 2018, and only 60% in 2022. [Source]
- 30% of professional authors said the value of advances from publishers substantially decreased over the 5 years from 2017 to 2022. [Source]
Average Royalty Rates
| Type of Book | Average Royalty Rate |
|---|---|
| Hardback | 11.28% |
| Paperback | 14.76% |
| E-book | 27.36% |
Looking for a statistic about UK writers and authors that I haven’t included above? Do let me know. I’d love to research it and include it here.
You may also be interested in our survey of UK writing coach rates.