Forbes has ranked the highest-paid authors in the world, showing how much the writers of Harry Potter, Game of Thrones and Fifty Shades of Grey earned in the past year.<\/p>\n
According to the publication, the top authors earned a combined $269 million in the past year, though the earnings were driven by a number of TV and movie adaptations.<\/p>\n
For the third year in a row, James Patterson topped the list earning $95 million before tax. Patterson’s thriller, Zoo was adapted for the small screen in 2016, and scored a second season.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Game of Thrones author, George R.R. Martin also benefited greatly from the HBO adaptation which has been a massive hit, ranking\u00a0among the world’s top authors, with $9.5 million in earnings.<\/p>\n
With a newly published book (or rather, script of a play) out, Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling is set to make millions more in the coming months – but that hasn’t stopped the author from banking it big, earning the third highest amount at $19 million.<\/p>\n
The Forbes earnings ranking is compiled by looking at print, e-book and audio book sales, and taking into account earnings from TV and movies.<\/p>\n
Book sale trends closely track hype before and after a big release of a movie adaptation, Forbes noted – with the likes of “The Hunger Games” and “The Martian” showing a sharp decline in sales after the buzz around the movies died down.<\/p>\n
Here are the highest-paid authors in the world:<\/p>\n
| #<\/th>\n | Author<\/th>\n | Known for<\/th>\n | Earnings<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1<\/td>\n | James Patterson<\/td>\n | The Alex Cross series<\/td>\n | $95 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 2<\/td>\n | Jeff Kinney<\/td>\n | The Diary of a Wimpy Kid<\/td>\n | $19.5 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 3<\/td>\n | J.K. Rowling<\/td>\n | Harry Potter<\/td>\n | $19 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 4<\/td>\n | John Grisham<\/td>\n | The Firm<\/td>\n | $18 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 5<\/td>\n | Stephen King<\/td>\n | Carrie, The Shining<\/td>\n | $15 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 5<\/td>\n | Danielle Steel<\/td>\n | Big Girl, Family Ties<\/td>\n | $15 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 5<\/td>\n | Nora Roberts<\/td>\n | Blue dahlia, The Liar<\/td>\n | $15 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 6<\/td>\n | E.L. James<\/td>\n | Fifty Shades of Gray<\/td>\n | $14 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 7<\/td>\n | Veronica Roth<\/td>\n | Divergent trilogy<\/td>\n | $10\u00a0million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 7<\/td>\n | John Green<\/td>\n | The fault in our stars<\/td>\n | $10 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 7<\/td>\n | Paula Hawkins<\/td>\n | The Girl on the Train<\/td>\n | $10 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 12<\/td>\n | George R.R. Martin<\/td>\n | A\u00a0Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones)<\/td>\n | $9.5 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 12<\/td>\n | Rick Riordan<\/td>\n | Percy Jackson & the Olympians series<\/td>\n | $9.5 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| 12<\/td>\n | Dan Brown<\/td>\n | The Da Vinci Code<\/td>\n | $9.5 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table><\/div>\n<\/div>\nMore on wealth<\/h3>\nThe 7 richest people in South Africa right now<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n These are the richest men in the world in 2016<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Here\u2019s what the Brexit did to South Africa\u2019s richest people<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n |