The single went to the No. 1 spot in the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, West Germany, Australia, New Zealand and Norway.
On the US Billboard Hot 100, the song was at No. 1 for two non-consecutive weeks, being interrupted by Frank Sinatra's "Strangers in the Night".
"Paperback Writer" was the last new song by the Beatles to be featured on their final tour in 1966.
The song's lyrics are in the form of a letter from an aspiring author addressed to a publisher. The author badly needs a job and has written a paperback book based on a book by a "man named Lear".
In a 2007 interview, McCartney recalled that he started writing the song after reading in the Daily Mail about an aspiring author, possibly Martin Amis.