Between June 2007 and June 2008, Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling banked an astonishing $300 million, easily making her the wealthiest writer on the planet. There have been whispers that Rowling is a sweet $50 million richer than the Queen of England, although Rowling has denied the claim. We'll see what happens after her new book The Tales of Beetle the Bard is released in December and the remaining three (!) Harry Potter film adaptations hit the big screen. By the end of all that, Rowling will probably be in a position to buy Buckingham Palace along with the crown jewels and single-handedly bail England out of its credit dilemmas.
Second place on the list goes to prolific author James Patterson who brought in a paltry $50 million for his efforts. Patterson's new book, Cross Country, part of his wildly successful Alex Cross thriller series, is set for release on November 17th.
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Fright meister Stephen King takes third place with a respectable $45 million. King is breaking new ground with his upcoming release, Just After Sunset: one of the book's short stories, "N," has been turned into a 25 episode digi-drama. Find out more and watch the episodes HERE.
Tom Clancy, best-selling espionage and military science writer, is in fourth place with $35 million this past year.
Rounding out the top five wealthiest scribblers on the globe is romance novelist Danielle Steele with $30 million.
Photo sources for this page: wikipedia, answers.com, dose.ca, crunchgear.com
Comments
I love Stephen King. Glad to see he's still making bank peddling blood to the masses.
interesting, i'll be back later http://recompostaje.com/img/sexy/
I need to write a book!!!
stephen king makes really good books....i never read the harry potter books though. i like the book the eye of the dragon by stephen...
PARAMORE RULES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The greatest author to ever walk this planet-STEPHEN KING.Long-Live the King
As people everywhere think "Hey, I'll become a famous author and make millions just like them." Some will have some real talent and do something, while others will range from no clue to people who should never write ever. But almost all will have no idea just how hard writing really is.
I feel for them, and in some cases, for the editors that have to sift through the things those people send them.
wow! Jk Rowling is simply unbelievable!
To an unknown, self-published writer, all of these stories are simply inspiring!
i love you danielle steel:::by reading your books you give me courage and you show that everything is impossible and we woman are great:::
i love danielle s she is a great author:::
MLLLLAAAAAAA !!!!!!
i really love and like to read danielle books a lot. it leaves me wanting more. and she's really great:)
i will love someday to become the richest author in the world
Sad spark didn't make it, but love J.K Rowling!!!!
DEAN KOONTZ BOOKS WILL LEAVE YOU DISTURBED AND INSANE!!!
Stephen King has a net worth of 400 million, not 45 million. He is the real number 1 on this list. As well, if Tolkien were still alive, more or less, he'd probably be ranked 1 or 2.
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