"You'll never do it if you're in it for the money, because there won't be any soul in your writing."
Tren Griffin, author and investor behind 25iq, on the severe power law in publishing, the rare writers like Morgan Housel who do get rich, and why writing for money rarely produces anything worth reading.
IN THIS SHORT
- Tren says 20% of authors make 97% of the money.
- Writing for money, he says, drains the soul and passion out of the work.
- His point: the writing has to say something interesting first
THE DATA
- Significance magazine, published by the Royal Statistical Society, describes a "97/20 rule" in the US book business: 97% of sales are made by 20% of authors
- Morgan Housel's The Psychology of Money (Harriman House, 2020) has sold over 7 million copies
From Infinite Loops with Jim O'Shaughnessy.
