Author of the famous Harry Potter series, Joanne Murray, better known as J.K.Rawlings, had been writing almost continuously since age six when the idea of Harry Potter popped into her head on a crowded train from Manchester to London. She started writing "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" in 1990. In the course of the next five years, her mother died, she divorced her husband, she suffered from clinical depression and lived on welfare. She completed her book in 1995. It was rejected 12 times before it was finally accepted.
$$$
Publishers typically pay an advance of $5,000 to $10,000 for a first novel. Most novelists won't receive much more than that in royalities. But if you do succeed and become the next J.K.Rawlings, you could be worth more than a billion dollars.
How to get your foot in the door
While you can earn a Master's Degree in Fine Arts degree, take writing courses or attend workshops, the best way to become a fiction writer is to write. It won't come easy but if you can't imagine doing anything else with your life and you are willing to put in the time, you may become the next great novelist.
Start now. Read everything you can get your hands on. Write every day. Recreate conversations in your mind, then commit them to paper. Does your dialog sound real? Does it propel your story forward? See how other writers develop characters, create plots and subplots, pace their writing. Like any artistic work, the best fiction seems effortless. If you succeed, you'll have the satisfaction of knowing your work will live on in the hearts and minds of readers for years to come.
