Massachusetts Man Is World's Second-Highest-Paid Author, Forbes Says

PLAINVILLE (CBS) – A children's book author living in a small Massachusetts town earned more money in the last year than "Harry Potter" writer J.K. Rowling, according to a new report.

Forbes put out its list of the World's Highest-Paid Authors on Wednesday. James Patterson blows the rest of the field away with a $95 million haul over the last 12 months.

But coming in second with $19.5 million is Jeff Kinney. The "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" author opened a bookstore last year in his hometown of Plainville.

The tenth installment of "Wimpy Kid" was released in November of 2015, and sold 1 million copies in its first week, according to the New York Post.

Others with New England ties on the list include Maine horror author Stephen King and Dan Brown, the "Da Vinci Code" author from Exeter, New Hampshire.

The Top Earning Authors, According To Forbes:

1. James Patterson $95 mil
2. Jeff Kinney $19.5 mil
3. J.K. Rowling $19 mil
4. John Grisham $18 mil
5. Stephen King $15 mil