Here Are the 10 Richest Self-Published Authors of All Time

These self-published authors made a name and fortune with their work

Penning a novel means going through the whole process of creating a plot, meaty characters, and building worlds. While many creative individuals don't find the tedious process of writing a book daunting, what everyone does find a task is looking for somebody who will publish their work. This is why many authors face years and years of rejection and sometimes many good books are hidden from the world because nobody thought it was worthy of publishing. Many of today's authors go down the road of self-publishing and have met with remarkable results. Today, we are taking a look at the wealthiest self-published authors who gave us some amazing characters to empathize with and worlds to escape to...

1. El James

El James is the writer of the popular trilogy of Fifty Shades. She started out when she became interested in reading novels and watching the trilogy Twilight. The prominent writer wrote the erotic book trilogy that sold more than 125 million copies across the globe. She was named one of the Most Influential People by Time Magazine and is worth a whopping $170 million. Most of James' net worth is attributed to the sales of her book and movie rights. 

2. H.M. Ward

One of the biggest authors of romance, H.M Ward is the writer of the Ferro Family Saga. She started out with her first book "Damaged" which became a bestseller in the New Adult genre. She continued with the series and it has sold over 4 million books since 2011. She continues to remain a self-published author and has not signed with any traditional publishers as of now. As of 2023, H.M Ward has a net worth of $140 million.

3. K.A Tucker 

The Canadian writer was self-publishing her own stories for a long time. She published her novel "Ten Tiny Breaths" which was about a girl who was starting her life over after a tragic drunk driving accident. She was later picked by Atria Books and was signed to do 4 book series based on her already-developed characters. As of 2023 K. A. Tucker is worth is worth $102 million.

4. Andy Weir

Andy Weir became immensely famous just after his debut novel, "The Martian" which was also adapted into a film by director Ridley Scott back in 2015. His second novel "Artemis" came in 2017. He is the recipient of many awards including the Cambell Award for Best-Write in 2016. The Californian author started out by writing science fiction in his 20s and published his work as a short novel story on a website. His short story "The Egg" is also pretty famous and has been adapted into various YouTube videos. As of 2023, his net worth is close to $55 million.

5. Margaret Atwood

Margaret Atwood is known for writing the dystopian novel "The Handmaid's Tale," started her career back in the 1960s with a series of self-published poems titled, "Doule Persephone."  The Canadian poet and novelist has won multiple awards for her work, including the Booker Prize, the Arthur Clarke Award, and the Governor General's Award. According to Taddlr, Margaret Atwood's net worth is around $20 million as of 2023. Apart from writing books, she is also the inventor of LongPen which is remote robotic writing technology.

6. Amanda Hocking 

The American novelist is famous for her paranormal romance. She self-published her book called, "My Blood Approves", a vampire romance series, and also the "Trylle Trilogy", which covers a teenage girl's journey of self-discovery both of which became very popular. The book was never adapted into a film even though it was optioned with Terri Tatchell writing the screenplay. As of 2023, Amanda Hocking has a net worth of $10 million.

7. Hugh Howey

The American writer is best known for his science fiction "Silo" which was published independently through Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing system. He is also known for his Wool trilogy. Born in 1975, he says that he always loved reading and sailing and simply wanted to write a novel and sail the world. His work, "Wool" became an international bestseller and has been translated into more than 40 languages. 

8. Lisa Genova

The American neuroscientist and author is known for self-publishing her debut novel, "Still Alice" back in 2007. The book centers around the Harvard University professor who suffers from early-onset Alzheimer's disease and gained reaction. The book was later acquired by Simon &Schuster and was published in 2009 and sold 2.6 million copies in print. The book was later adapted into a film and the lead actress Julianne Moore won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the film. As of 2023, she has a net worth of $5 million.

9. Barbara Freethy

The successful author did have traditional publishers but she started self-publishing her backlist and her choice of genres of romantic suspense took the literary world of e-books by storm. She is one of the most successful authors in the category of e-books and has all of her 18 books as best-sellers including Summer Secrets, "Don't Say a Word", and "On a Night Like This." She has sold over 4.5 million units to date and has a net worth of $2.27 million as of 2023.

10. Michael J.Sullivan

Michael J. Sullivan is a bestselling writer known for his debut series, "The Riyria Revelations." His books have been translated into many languages and is one of the most successful self-published authors. He has two New York bestsellers under his belt and three books on the USA Today bestseller list. Sullivan started out at a very young age but he wrote "The Riyria Revelations," later in his life when he was trying to help his daughter who suffered from dyslexia. As of 2023, Michael J. Sullivan's net worth is north of $1 million.