I started writing books as a way of filling my free time. I was still in Kenya at the time. To this date, i have published 11 books on a wide array of subjects. I only managed to publish one in Kenya which only managed 120 thousand copies, if i am to believe my publishers.
See, i am certain it sold a million. Kenyan publishers are a thieving lot. For instance, my book, a paperback, is earning 2.5% on the cover price.
I have since learnt better, thanks to a greater exposure.
The standard royalty rates for traditionally-published books globally is:
Mass-market paperbacks (the smaller ones): Normally 6%-8% of cover price. There may be an escalator clause so that above a certain number of sales it increases to 10%, and there are certain categories where there’s a small but devoted fandom where royalties only run 4%.
Trade paperbacks (the larger ones, also sometimes called “paperbound”): Normally 7.5% to 12.5%; may go as high as 15% in special circumstances.
Hardcovers: Normally 10% to 15%.
E-books: 25% to 35%, but this is still in flux. Sometimes royalties are based on receipts, rather than list price, in which case 40% to 50% is possible. But these can vary a lot.
By “cover price,” I don’t mean what a reader actually pays; I mean the manufacturer’s recommended retail price. If a retailer discounts a book, that does not usually affect the author’s royalties.
There are a couple of exceptions — some e-book contracts (as mentioned above) are based on receipts, rather than list price; and books sold below the cost of production to clear warehouse space, or because the publisher grossly over-estimated demand and printed too many (sometimes known as “remainders” or “overstock”), don’t pay the author anything at all.
So, as an example, if the contract says I get 8% royalties on a $7.95 paperback, I get 64 cents for each copy sold.
If it’s a $24.95 hardcover with a 10% royalty, I get $2.50 for each copy sold.
You need to sell a lot of books to make decent money.