What AUTHOR donors give in federal races

A small byline pool that itemizes often

$19,237,050 is the occupation-level dollar total. 53,599 is the itemization count. 1,158 is the donor-record count. Mean contribution size is about $359. Mean dollars per donor record are about $16,612. Repeat giving is about 46 itemizations per donor record.

1,158 donor records against 53,599 lines is a narrow set of names generating many schedules. That repeat rate is closer to other creative-title keys with frequent small gifts than to executive titles that post fewer, larger checks. The packet does not include a gift-size distribution or a recipient list.

These means are arithmetic results on the three harvested facts. They are not typical-check estimates and not a measure of book-advance income allocated to politics.

AUTHOR is not WRITER and not a guild roster

WRITER is a neighboring occupation string already indexed as its own hub. This page cites only AUTHOR: $19,237,050, 53,599 contributions, and 1,158 donors. Journalist, novelist, screenwriter, and editor stay outside the total unless the bulk extract normalized those words to AUTHOR.

The FEC does not verify publication credits, ISBN records, or union cards. People who write as a side occupation, ghostwriters, and donors who used AUTHOR as a prestige label can all appear. Occupation is the donor’s typed word on that itemization.

What the dollars do not measure

$19,237,050 is not publishing-industry revenue and not a authors-PAC total. Industry pages group employers. Occupation and industry will not match dollar for dollar. Party is not stored in the occupation column.

Open the AUTHOR occupation page for recipient rows rather than reading bloc preference from the job word. Restated in compact millions, the occupation total is $19.2 million — the same headline amount as $19,237,050, rounded to one decimal place.

Occupation versus industry for book work

A self-published author and a staff writer at a house share this occupation string only if they typed AUTHOR. Adding this total to a media or publishing industry page double-counts overlapping itemizations. Use industry pages for employer-side cuts and this page for the exact occupation key.

Cite $19,237,050, 53,599 contributions, and 1,158 donors together. A sentence that shows only the dollars hides how often 1,158 records reappear on the schedule.

Limits and source

Occupation is free text on FEC Form 3 and Form 3X schedules. Extra words (author and speaker, retired author) create parallel buckets when they do not normalize to AUTHOR. Unitemized receipts never carry an occupation code, so they never enter $19,237,050.

1,158 is a contributor-record count, not a unique-person estimate after name matching. Shared pen names are not resolved. Source: Form 3/3X itemizations indexed on LobbyVault from FEC bulk data.

Reading AUTHOR as an exact-string total

AUTHOR in this extract is $19,237,050 on 53,599 itemizations from 1,158 donor records. About 46 itemizations per donor record is a high repeat rate for a four-digit donor pool. Mean line size is about $359; mean dollars per donor record are about $16,612. WRITER is the neighboring creative string and is not included. Journalist and novelist may live in other keys. Guild membership is not verified.

Industry pages for publishing will not equal this occupation total. The high per-donor mean is an arithmetic result on a modest record set; it is not typical freelance income. A public-record citation that stays inside the packet is: occupation equals AUTHOR, dollars equal $19,237,050, contributions equal 53,599, donors equal 1,158. Candidate and committee pages hold the recipient side. LobbyVault does not infer motive from the occupation column. Live hub filters may change displayed sums; this file restates harvested packet facts only.

Researchers comparing creative-title keys should keep AUTHOR on its own line with its own dollar, contribution, and donor facts. The occupations index is the inventory of neighboring strings such as WRITER. Industry pages remain an employer-side cut and should not be added to $19,237,050. Unitemized receipts never carry an occupation code, so $19.2 million is itemized activity for this string in the loaded extract. Compact millions are the same headline amount as $19,237,050, rounded to one decimal place. 1,158 donor records is not a PEN America roster and not a unique-person estimate after name matching.

If a later extract adds cycle years or recipient filters, those cuts belong on the live AUTHOR occupation page, not in this harvested file. The three facts here are occupation-string totals from FEC Form 3 and Form 3X schedules indexed on LobbyVault from FEC.gov bulk data. Repeat itemizing of about 46 lines per donor record can appear when a modest set of names gives many times, including to multiple committees. The packet does not name those committees. Quote the exact string, then $19,237,050, 53,599 contributions, and 1,158 donors, and stop.

Questions

How much have AUTHOR donors given in FEC records?

Occupation AUTHOR is attached to $19,237,050 in LobbyVault’s FEC bulk index, from 53,599 contributions and 1,158 donor records. The total is itemized occupation money, not a writers-guild roster. Occupation is self-reported free text on FEC Form 3 and Form 3X schedules. Unitemized receipts never enter this occupation total.

Is WRITER included in the AUTHOR total?

No. WRITER is a separate occupation string. This page covers AUTHOR only: $19,237,050, 53,599 contributions, and 1,158 donors. Occupation is self-reported free text on FEC Form 3 and Form 3X schedules. Unitemized receipts never enter this occupation total. The live hub may apply cycle filters; this packet is the harvested occupation key.

Why are there so many AUTHOR contributions per donor?

53,599 itemizations from 1,158 donors implies about 46 contributions per donor record. Repeat itemizing raises the line count. Mean line size is about $359. The packet does not split causes. Occupation is self-reported free text on FEC Form 3 and Form 3X schedules. Unitemized receipts never enter this occupation total.

Does listing AUTHOR prove published books?

No. The FEC record does not verify credits or ISBNs. People who type AUTHOR as a side occupation can appear. Quote 53,599 contributions and 1,158 donor records with the $19,237,050 total. Occupation is self-reported free text on FEC Form 3 and Form 3X schedules. Unitemized receipts never enter this occupation total.