The authors stressed that the aim of the list is not only to show the gap between wealthiest writers and their poorer counterparts, but also to reflect the real living conditions of writers in China. While some writers are still churning out words to make a living, a handful of them have already joined the exclusive club through earning high royalties on their books.

Although some writers and the majority of the public look upon the release of the list as a piece of entertainment news, it reflects the real trend that writers in China, who have been dubbed as "spiritual nobles," are affected by the current "marketization" of the country's culture industries.

Wolf Totem is a good example of this phenomenon. The novel has sold 2 million copies since its publication in 2004, and its author, Jiang Rong, is envied by his counterparts because of the 10 percent royalty he receives. Now, the copyright of the English version of Wolf Totem has been purchased by UK-based Penguin Books, and Jiang has gotten an advance of $100,000.

However, not all writers are as lucky as Jiang, who has become rich with his novel debut. For most writers in China, if their books have a printing of more than 30,000 copies, they are considered bestsellers. Those whose books have a printing exceeding 100,000 copies are very rare, not to mention those whose books have a printing of more than 1 million copies. For unknown writers, even if they are lucky enough to have their works published, the sales volume is very limited. Although the government still financially supports some elite writers, most people in the literary circle do not live a luxurious life.

The commercialization of literature

According to Yang Yang, a literary critic living in Shanghai, there is a fairly large difference in the royalties paid on books by unknown writers and elites, and between writers of "pure" literature and writers of bestsellers. Thus, the distribution of wealth has changed in the literary sector, greatly increasing the bewilderment and also the allure of writers nowadays.

"After all, the number of writers who are entitled to government support and best-selling authors is very small," literary critic Xie Youshun said. He suggests that writers distinguish between livelihood and writing and begin to write professionally after they have an assured income to maintain their daily life.

Xie's suggestion is echoed by Sun Shunlin, Director of the Department of Planning of the People's Literature Press, one of China's leading literature publishers. "Many great writers are not professional, and wonderful works are not (exclusively])written by professional writers," he said.

Ding Tian, a writer in his 30s, represents another situation. When his first book was published, he waited a long time for his remuneration. Currently, he is a member of the Beijing Writers' Association and enjoys an allowance of 1,000 yuan a month. Since he owns a house and also has some income from writing, Ding feels satisfied with his current status. He said he did not expect there would be a dramatic change in his life one day, and considered writing a craft.

"To be honest, I also hope that my books will sell well," he said. "So I'm used to considering what readers want to read when writing, and I don't think it is a shame."

Some people are indifferent to the list of the wealthiest writers, believing that it merely shows the market value of people involved and that there is no need to make a fuss about it. They argue that it follows the law of the market economy that some writers who have a keen market sense become famous and rich at the same time by writing works well received by the market and meeting certain needs of readers.