> if someone spends a year writing a book, and gets paid nothing for it
Cory Doctorow manages that very well. There are models that make writing books and creating other works of art economically viable. Also, most writers never get well paid for the books they write. Actually, most artists are really poor.
Anecdotes are not data. Perhaps Cory Doctorow is leaving a lot of money on the table. That may work in his case, but for someone 'at the margin', it may mean they are forced to do something else, rather than write.
Cory Doctorow manages that very well. There are models that make writing books and creating other works of art economically viable. Also, most writers never get well paid for the books they write. Actually, most artists are really poor.