earlier vs following

earlier

adj
  • occurring previously 

adv
  • previously; before now; sooner 

following

adj
  • Coming next, either in sequence or in time. 

  • About to be specified. 

  • Blowing in the direction of travel. 

prep
  • After, subsequent to. 

noun
  • A thing or things to be mentioned immediately after. 

  • A group of followers, attendants or admirers; an entourage. 

  • Vocation; business; profession. 

How often have the words earlier and following occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )