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I think that of all professions, even creative professions, best-selling fiction writers are the easiest to compare in terms of $$$. How does Saint-Exupery's Li
by thanatropism 4y ago
I think that of all professions, even creative professions, best-selling fiction writers are the easiest to compare in terms of $$$. How does Saint-Exupery's Little Prince fare in total lifetime sales compared with Stephen King's entire output? (I don't know! But it's a question that can be asked).
In comparison, the comparison of best-seller musicians suffers from how many times the economics of popular music has radically changed over a century. And music is already the product of many people even for something like "Joe Pass plays solo guitar inside his closet as recorded by a handheld potato". (He plays music composed by others! Also not really an example of pop music.)
- CM30 4y agoIs money really a good indication of someone's skill as a writer? That's its own question, and I guess it depends on what you consider good or not. There are plenty of authors who become millionaires/billionaires because they knew what the market liked and how to sell themselves/their work, but many people would not consider them the pinnacle of their craft. It's undeniable that something like Twilight or 50 Shades of Grey is extremely successful, but whether that makes Stephanie Meyer and EL James better authors than Stephen King or George RR Martin is debatable at least. But I guess the question of successful/fast/highly compensated vs skilled is probably also true of progammers too. Is a 10x programmers also necessary a successful one career wise?