7 Answers2025-10-10
Reading around on author forums for big publishing platforms, it seems that exclusive authors are usually paid a monthly sum (or even advance payment against future royalties) – anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, I’d imagine. Most of these deales apparently then require word counts and frequency of chapter updates to be met, and the platform can exercise all rights in all languages, thus keeping 50% of net revenue for themselves as royalties to the author after the advance has been earned out (that can be anywhere from 25% to 85% in the deals I’ve read, averaging 50%). Obviously, it’s not all terrible – if you treat it as a writing job, then deliver according to agreed terms, it might even suit some authors just fine. But as far as creative control, you’re likely to be persuaded to continue a popular story past its natural ending, churning out more and more of the same, or – even worse – adding in all sorts of dull formulaic devices to make an easy sell.
11 Answers2025-10-10
For a beginner with no audience, using WebNovel is more cost effective as you pay a commission only once you have earned money. As a web novelist, you give up a larger percentage compared to earning money on your own website through Patreon or Ko-fi, but you also get to connect with millions of potential readers instantly. What you pay for is the commission for the marketing and hosting services provided by WebNovel.
For the novice author just starting out and who has no following to speak of yet, it’s probably worth paying the commission. The commission can allow for the author to be ‘discovered’. As the author grows in popularity though, they will begin to resent having to give up control and a percentage of their earnings. Most of the top WebNovel authors use their platform to get a following and then eventually move on to their own personal websites and set up a Patreon account to write bonus content for their super-fans to gain more from them. These top WebNovel authors see WebNovel as part of a blended and unique set of tools available to them in order to earn more money from their work.
11 Answers2025-10-14
In order to calculate the cost of a cheap lunch I usually pay even more for a not so good sandwich and drink than I pay for Bookmory for a whole month. We are used to allocate small amounts of money to things that give us small amounts of joy on a regular basis. Logging a finished book gives me a small amount of joy all year round. That’s worth the price of a lunch. It’s not about the big utility Bookmory could provide me with. It’s about the small amount of joy I feel on a regular basis. And then the annual summary that feels like a nice bonus for the joy Bookmory brings me throughout the year. I’m happy to trade one such lunch for all the minor joy Bookmory brings me throughout the year.
9 Answers2025-11-13
To me, spending coins is a hobby expense, much like my monthly comic book subscription. That is something that I consider in my budgeting. On occasion, I have had to cancel my comic book subscription when things got really tight, but by the next month, new issues were coming out and the ones that I missed were no longer missing. Stories will be there for me to read when I resubscribe for my daily VIP passes. The cost is there, but it is a discretionary expense, so I would not spend coins to read a story over paying for necessities to read the same story. The coin purchases should be considered in addition to the subscription cost and should not become another uncontrolled expense. I treat my subscription as my monthly maximum. When a story goes behind a coin wall, I simply wait for it to be opened up by my daily VIP passes or move on to another story.
6 Answers2025-05-28
Is everyone still using WebNovel? I thought by now we’d have all migrated to this new app that pays way better than WebNovel. I guess that’ll change soon though since the landscape is always shifting in some way. Some platforms are super stingy right now but that doesn’t mean they won’t be handing out free premium currency to first users of their app in order to gather a user base to compete with others. I guess it’s wise to keep an eye out for new platforms and be an early adopter every now and then.
9 Answers2025-09-08
Many original fiction platforms have ad revenue and/or tip jars for writers, and most of these sites have terms of service that prohibit writers from earning money from derivative work (i.e. fiction based on someone else’s intellectual property). Yes, some authors are very, very tolerant of fan fiction written by their fans, but even they don’t typically allow that to be sold. Monetizing fan fiction would generally be considered to be commodifying tribute, which is a very different thing from just writing stories for fun.
This is to say that some writers publish “original stories” on Patreon while simultaneously posting vast amounts of fanfic online. Their original work is always contained in a completely separate fictional universe from their fanfic. The safest way to build an audience of readers is to use that audience as a springboard to richer pickings from your own intellectual property, which you can then sell. Monetizing the fanfic itself is a very tightrope act and most sites will quickly pull your work should they sense even the slightest attempt to monetize it.
7 Answers2025-11-07
I thought I was the only one having trouble. Was my experience on 'That Other Novel App' this annoying? Apparently not, as it’s a common experience across all platforms of buying and canceling novels. I understand that there is a “find the hidden menu, click on 3 other offers in the process, eventually click to cancel” process to cancel a subscription on Webnovel too. Thanks for spelling it out for me though. I feel your pain, cancellees. May your TBR piles shrink and your bank accounts grow in the coming days.
8 Answers2025-12-25
For me, the cost of free e-books is analysis paralysis. With so many titles available for free, including many with flashy covers and appealing loglines, I spend far too much time browsing the “For You” section of my library rather than reading actual books. Without a price tag, one of the best decision-making tools (i.e., cost) is eliminated, leaving me stuck in a sea of seemingly comparable books. When every book costs nothing, it can be difficult to choose among them, and I often end up choosing nothing at all. Now that’s a cost.
9 Answers2025-10-07
Just lurking here. Looks like a lot of work to borrow e-books. The free e-books from my local library through their ebook app are fine by me!
10 Answers2025-10-10
In addition to the cost of the subscription, you must also consider the cost of the device to use the app (smartphone or computer). Most people already have one of these, but if you need to purchase one just to use this service, that needs to be factored into your cost. Data costs are also something to consider, especially if you stream instead of download on Wi-Fi. For example, a 10-hour book could use 1GB or more of data, which could quickly add up if you have a limited data plan. Always download on Wi-Fi.
The real value of the service is that it is robust. My downloads have always worked, and never have I received corrupt files. The customer service is always responsive, which is part of what you pay for with the service. So you are not just paying for bits, you are paying for a service that has value. A free service might provide you with poor quality or mislabeled files and waste your time. The cost here includes your peace of mind that you are getting a legitimate and licensed service and that is worth something to me.