I literally went from being unable to play my rent to being on a plane the next day, being paid peanuts.
Most fledgling and mid-list writers are lucky to be offered a 4-figure sum and are not only expected to deliver copy that needs minimal editing but also take an active part in marketing and publicizing their work.
I was never offered enough, and that's the truth.
I don't got that kind of money man, commercials only pay so much (inaudible).
I was in 'The Postman Always Rings Twice' with Jack Nicholson. That was fun. I think I made, like, $33 or something. I got to miss a whole day of school, and when you're a little kid, that's cool.
A publisher many years ago asked if I'd like to write a novel for £50. And I said, 'Absolutely.'
It wasn't until I was 35 or 36, when I wrote 'Danny and the Deep Blue Sea,' that I began to get some notoriety, though I only made $5,000.
I've seen so many people on Instagram lose all of their followers because they were doing constant collaborations. They were only getting paid $100 dollars per post. That doesn't make any sense.
I wrote much because I was paid little. I had no great desire to leave a literary name behind me.