Read Street: J.K. Rowling's big paycheck - A blog for a community of readers, in Baltimore and beyond.

The Baltimore Sun > Good Life > Read Street

« The latest Marylandia | Main | Book It »

October 2, 2008

J.K. Rowling's big paycheck

Forbes.com has published a Top 10 list of the highest paid authors, and it's no surprise who's sitting on top. J.K. Rowling, creator of the Harry Potter novels, earned $300 million from June 1, 2007 to June 1 of this year. More than 375 million Potter books have been sold worldwide, according to Forbes, which notes that the movie franchise has generated $4.5 billion worldwide -- with three more flicks to come.

James Patterson placed a distant second on the list, earning $50 million during the 12-month period. Among the other leaders were Stephen King ($45 million), Marylander Tom Clancy ($35 million) and Danielle Steel ($30 million). Futher down the list are Nicholas Sparks, Janet Evanovich, John Grisham, Dean Koontz and Ken Follett.

I recommend that all parents print the list, tape it to the refrigerator and point Junior to it next time he wants to watch TV.

Posted by Dave Rosenthal at 12:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Marylandia, Whatever

Post a comment

All comments must be approved by the blog author. Please do not resubmit comments if they do not immediately appear. You are not required to use your full name when posting, but you should use a real e-mail address. Comments may be republished in print, but we will not publish your e-mail address. Our full Terms of Service are available here.

Name:

Email Address:

URL:

Remember personal info?

Comments: (you may use HTML tags for style)

Please enter the letter "l" in the field below:

Edgar Allan Poe is 200!

All you need to know about the macabre master including Poe-themed events, photos, video and a trivia quiz.

Calendar of events

> View full calendar

-- ADVERTISEMENT --

Map: Bookstores

View Favorite Bookstores in a larger map

About the bloggers

While she always preferred The Hardy Boys to Nancy Drew, Nancy Knight grew up reading nearly everything she could get her hands on, including a probably unhealthy amount of R.L. Stine and Christopher Pike, with the obligatory Jane Austen thrown in. She'll still read just about anything you put in front of her, especially the funny or weird. She lives in the city with her books, cat and drum set.

Dave Rosenthal came to The Baltimore Sun as a business reporter in 1987 and now is an assistant managing editor and Sunday editor. He reads a wide range of books (but never as many as he'd like), usually alternating between non-fiction and fiction. Some all-time favorites: A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole; Wind, Sand and Stars by Antoine de Saint-Exupery; and anything by Calvin Trillin or John McPhee. He belongs to a book club with a Jewish theme.