Rensselaer Republican, Volume 27, Number 47, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 30 July 1896 — Well-Paid Writers. [ARTICLE]

Well-Paid Writers.

In an article on “Prices Paid to Authors,” published a short time ago In the Sun, the writer says of Mrs. Humphry Ward’s serial. “Sir George Tressady,” now running in the Century Magazine, for the serial right of which SIB,OOO is said to have been paid, that “large as the sum may seem at first thought, it is relatively femall; It Is much smaller than the other sums paid for the product of other literary workers. Thus Scott got $40,000 for ‘Woodstock,’ and Moore got 3,000 guineas for ‘Lalla Rookh;’ Anthony Trollope re* ceived In aH $350,000 for liis -various works,” etc. Forty thousand dollars is more than SIB,OOO, to be sure, but SIB,OOO is not all that Mrs. Ward will receive for her serial. Take “Marcella,” for instance. She was paid $20,000 for the American book rights, and more for' rights, 1 believe, which would make her receipts for that one book over $40,000. For “Sir George Tressady,” serial and book rights, she will probably be paid nearer $60,000 than $40,000. It has been estimated. that for the three novels—“ Robert Elsmere,” “David Grieve,” and “Marcella”—she has been paid over $200,000. Anthony Trollope, according to this writer, received $350,000 for his various works. There are few more prolific writers than Anthony Trollope. I have just looked through the Harper catalogue, and find that seventeen books bear his name as author. To have been paid $350,000 for seventeen books is not so great an achievement as to have been paid.over $200,000 for three books, the truth of which statement, I think, will be acknowledged by the writer of the Suu’s interesting article.—Critic.