Friday, February 15, 2013

Author Speaking Fees

I've enjoyed attending many author lectures every now and then throughout the years and Maya Angelou has been, hands down, my favorite author to hear speak before a live audience. 

I've seen Dr. Angelou speak twice in the past two decades before an audience and I wouldn't hesitate to hear her speak before a live audience again, should the opportunity present itself. Dr. Angelou is an amazing speaker and she has always shared memorable and engaging topics with her audience.

I've also had the pleasure of hearing several other authors lecture at various venues as well. Ticket prices for author lectures vary in price depending on many factors. So, I've often wondered what fees (if any) certain authors earn for their speaking engagements. 

Interestingly enough, I came across an article on the Huffington Post website this morning titled Author Speaking Fees: Who Gets Paid Ridiculous Sums To Talk? The article does shed some light on what speaking fees some of the more popular authors receive.

Are you surprised by the amount of fees collected by the authors mentioned in the above article? I think I was most surprised to read that Charles Dickens received $100,000 for 76 U.S. readings!! Amazing!! That was a boat load of money back then. I wonder what that dollar amount would translate into today's dollars when one factors in inflation.

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