Novelist in 1740: Pamela and the novel-reading craze
The work of Novelist is summarised as 1740’s “Pamela and the novel-reading craze.” The figure beside that summary is 7. A salary line in a job advert is not the job. Adult trade fiction usually runs 70,000–100,000 words; the informal floor separating a novel from a novella sits around 40,000, the threshold used by the Hugo and Nebula awards. Epic fantasy and historical fiction stretc
Do you need a degree to become a novelist? No. Novel-writing is one of the few skilled professions with no required credential anywhere in the world: no license, no exam, no mandatory degree. Creative-writing programs like Iowa's Writers' Workshop or the University of East Anglia's MA can compress the apprenticeship and supply contacts, but published novelists have come from medicine, law, insurance, the merchant navy and no formal education at all.
How long does it take to write a first novel? Drafting a publishable novel typically takes one to four years, but the apprenticeship before it — reading deeply, writing abandoned manuscripts and short fiction — commonly runs five to ten. Many celebrated debuts were their author's second or third completed manuscript. Traditional publication then adds another one to two years between a signed contract and the book appearing in shops.
How much do novelists actually earn? Far less than the famous outliers suggest. Surveys put the median at about £7,000 a year for professional UK authors (ALCS, 2022) and roughly $20,000 in writing-related income for full-time US authors (Authors Guild, 2022 data). Typical literary debut advances run $5,000–$15,000, paid in installments. A small minority of bestsellers earn six figures or more; most novelists rely on other work.
Say Novelist with 1740, “Pamela and the novel-reading craze,” and 7. Pay does not replace those three.1740
Figures to keep
- Year of the account
- 1740
- Figure from the work
- 7
- Occupation
- Novelist
- The task line
- Pamela and the novel-reading craze
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