So you want to write a children’s book. That’s awesome! As someone who has made a living writing for kids, I totally get the appeal.
You likely have visions of landing a sweet book deal, seeing your book in stores, and never working a 9 to 5 job again. Am I right?
Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news. But for the vast majority of children’s book authors, massive financial success is more of a fantasy than a reality.
Don’t get me wrong – it IS possible to make money writing kids books. But you likely won’t be making 6 or 7 figures a year. Most children’s writers need supplemental income streams to earn a decent living.
As a professional children’s book printing manufacturer, let me walk you through the realities of writing for kids in 2025 so you can make an informed decision.
How Much Money Can You Realistically Make Writing A Children’s Book?
The amount of money you can make as a children’s author depends a lot on how your bring your book to market:
Traditional Publishing
If you land a book deal with one of the “Big 5” publishers, you’ll typically earn an advance of $5,000 to $15,000. You also get royalties on each sale once you “earn out” that advance.
For a standard picture book, royalties range from 3% to 8%. And the average book sells around 5,000 copies.
So let’s do some fuzzy math.
For a $15 book earning you 5% royalties, you’d make 75 cents per sale. If your book sells 5,000 copies total, that’s $3,750 in royalties.
Add in your $10,000 advance, and your total earnings would be $13,750.
Not too shabby! But it takes most authors years of effort to land that initial book deal.
Self Publishing
More and more authors are opting to self publish today. While you don’t get an advance, you keep a much larger cut of each sale.
For example, if you sell a book for $15 yourself you might keep around $10 per sale after printing costs. So 5,000 sales would earn you $50,000.
However, you need to cover all the costs of editors, cover designers, etc yourself up front. And marketing a book with no publisher support is very difficult.
Most indie authors sell less than 100 copies of their book. But breakout hits DO happen if the stars align properly.
Related Income Streams
Another way to profit from writing children’s books is to leverage the authority and audience you build into other income streams like:
- Speaking engagements
- Teaching other writers
- School visits
Depending on your level of name recognition, you can earn anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars per gig.
I recently did a school visit and earned over $2,000 for a single day’s work.
Many authors also release online courses or freelance as editors to diversify their incomes.
Every income stream has tradeoffs of course. But smart leveraging of your expertise can lead to a comfortable living.
Typical Children’s Author Earnings
Now, let’s talk hard numbers.
The median income for a children’s writer is $67,120 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. However this includes copywriters and other non book writing jobs.
The latest survey data from full time book authors shows a median income of just $20,300 annually. And 18% of that group made nothing from their writing.
Those are obviously fairly depressing stats! Children’s authors clearly make far below the average US salary.
However, it’s common for writers to cobble together $40,000 to $60,000 per year from a mix of book royalties and other income streams.
Is that enough to quit your day job? Maybe not. But if writing brings you joy and fulfillment, it can still be worth pursuing.
Just make sure to go in with realistic expectations around your earning potential. Your first few years will likely be an uphill financial battle until you can build some momentum.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, banking six figures from your book sales alone is extremely rare. Even well known children’s authors often struggle to earn a decent living.
But that doesn’t diminish the immense value of crafting stories that impact young lives.
If writing children’s books is your passion – do it! Just be strategic in finding multiple paths to profit beyond just your book sales.
With consistent hard work over many years you CAN reach an income level that supports you and your family. Just don’t expect overnight success or runaway best sellers right out of the gates.
I wish you all the best on your journey into the magical world of children’s publishing! Now get out there and start creating some memorable kidlit 🙂