Before I answer this question I’ll present a few statistics for your consideration. Currently in the US,  there are approx. 50,000 published authors working full-time, with only 20% of these earning enough from their books to pay their bills. In Canada, the percentage is much more frightening with published authors, on average, making less than $10,000 per year - and this is down from $17,000 just two decades ago. I have no data for Canadian writers sustaining themselves with their writing income exclusively, but I have to believe the number is extremely low. Assuming you’re okay with this, I’ll move on. Traditional publishing is, arguably, the preferred route. After all, you get paid for your work and your company takes care of all the marketing. But if you are a new writer you will have to put in extra work because you don’t know the world of publishing and you’ve yet to establish a reputation for yourself in it. Some of this work includes choosing a marketable genre, having your man