Meghan Markle may have been paid up to $700,000 as an advance for her children's book, according to a royal biographer.
Per The Sun, Angela Levin stated that Markle may have received the lump sum for writing The Bench which, costs $11.99 for the Kindle edition and $15.99 for the hardcover and is currently available for pre-order.
Levin told the publication: "We don’t know yet whether Meghan got an advance but there are rumors that she was offered £500,000 advance [$700,000]. The book is being sold for £12.99 [$18]. That's not extortionate but I'm not quite sure who will read it.
"Little children I don’t think will read that, maybe it will be people who just want to know what she’s up to now."
Levin also told the paper that it is not known how the Duchess of Sussex will use the advance she is reported to have received.
She adds: "But we don’t know, even if she has been offered this massive advance, whether she will give any money away to charity or whether she will keep it for herself.
"They’ve got a lot of expenses what with their guards and big house and 16 bathrooms to look after."
Meghan wrote The Bench, her first children's book, which is based on a poem she penned in honor of Harry's first Father's Day, according to the book's press release. It explores the bond between fathers and sons as seen from a mother's perspective.
"The Bench started as a poem I wrote for my husband on Father’s Day, the month after Archie was born," Meghan said in the press release from publisher Penguin Random House. "That poem became this story."
The release also describes Meghan as "a mother, wife, feminist, and activist" who "currently resides in her home state of California with her family, two dogs, and a growing flock of rescue chickens."
A photo of the book's cover was shared on social media earlier this week ahead of its publication next month.
The front cover shows that the Duchess's author name retains her title of "Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex" despite the fact that she and her husband Prince Harry stepped back as senior royals on January 8, 2020.