When I first decided to take my writing seriously and build a career out of it, I envisioned jet setting to metro cities for book signings, with my assistant fetching coffee and lunch because my line of fans was around the block. I pictured myself living out of a suitcase, sitting on panels at conferences, and room service in posh hotels.
Oh yes, I dreamed of yachts and red carpet openings and gala events...
I envisioned fame and fortune. That's what the media tells us, right? Writers are rich and famous and sought after.
It's good to have dreams :) And an active imagination certainly doesn't hurt your work!
Hour by hour, you are not paid very well compared to many other fields. Considering the time spent creating, outlining, drafting, editing, social media promotion, researching, etc, you truly must have a love for writing to pursue it as a career.
And in the beginning, for a couple years when you start out, you will not be paid. So do not quit your day job! The number one piece of advice I will offer is to keep your job and focus on your writing at night and on weekends. You will need your job to pay for writing necessities like internet and a roof under which to write ;)
At first, I chose certain assignments that interested me. I would peruse the writers job boards until I found a gig that sounded like it fit the type of writer I wanted to be. I quickly learned that is not a good practice. One, it severely limited the amount of jobs I did, and two, this practice does not help you grow as a writer in two ways. Since I was choosing assignments I was comfortable with, I was not stretching myself creatively. When I muzzled my Ego and branched out of my comfort (and knowledge) zone, I learned a lot about many topics. And a lot of that information has proven invaluable in all my future writing.
Also, when you stick to "safe" topics, you limit your exposure and network reach. For instance, once I was hurting for money so I accepted a gig to ghostwrite a pamphlet on a device to solve California's water crisis. This was a project I would have overlooked had I not been suffering financial straights. A scientist hired me to compile his thoughts and research into cohesive sentences, and explain the device he had invented to bring unlimited water to the people.
Because of this assignment, I met his associate- a professor at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and created and researched a groundbreaking discovery. And from this, I met several other well paying clients who provided extremely exciting assignments.
Had I passed that boring (or so I thought at the time of signing the contract) ghostwriting gig up, I never would have acquired the following years assignments which led my career to flourish.
Sometimes, an authors life is lonely. Because of deadlines and client constraints, I sometimes do not leave my house for days. Every spare second is spent in front of my computer, typing away on the keyboard. And sometimes it is so busy that I forget to eat!
I am registered with, and use every social media network. I must use every avenue I can to find work and to promote my work. Different writing demands different social media channels and techniques.
There are a lot of scams. And many ways to waste your money. I think new 18 year olds and wannabe writers are the two most preyed upon demographics! So many scammers dangle fame and fortune in front of you if you join their mailing list. You'll get their proven techniques in a e-book, for free, delivered immediately to your inbox! Cool, right?! So you read the ebook but it just has stuff you already read in the last dozen free ebooks. But lo and behold- their flowery words and sexy promises lead you to their proven steps compiled neatly for you in weekly classes, offered to you today only for the deeply discounted price of only $97- regularly $399. There is a ton of stuff you can spend a small fortune on, and I'm sure each and every one of them can help your career- but you don't need them all! Do your research and check out what other writers said in their reviews of the product before spending your money.
But the bottom line is: just write! The more you write, the better writer you will become!
And don't get me started on the dreaded writers block.
Sometimes you just draw a blank. You cannot form two words together. You can read and research but... nada. Your brain completely zones out and you find yourself staring into space and quickly shut your mouth and wipe the drool from your chin before someone sees you.
Then there's the phenomena where you are positive you have nothing left. You just wrote a phenomenal piece that rocked on so many levels. And you get the feeling like after the last page in a really good book- you will never, ever find a book that good. That book was so good, that nothing will ever compare.
You will also suffer a grand amount of rejection. The writing world is a fiercely competitive reality. Do not, I repeat DO NOT focus on the rejection and the bad reviews. For every 100 readers you will get one who takes the time to write a review. And some of them will be bad. Take it for what it's worth, take something to help you grow out of it (unless it's just a really mean troll then make a voodoo doll of him and stab him with your fountain pen) and move on.
Writing may not always be the glamorous, sexy profession that Hollywood makes it out to be, but it is certainly rewarding. I mean, where else do you get to work from home and set your own hours, and most of all- where else do you get to create whole worlds?!
I could not do anything else :)
The main thing is to keep writing. All the time. Writing and reading. Everything! Keep a little notepad with you when you go out so you can jot down ideas- inspiration can and does show up anywhere and everywhere!
:)
Images via Pixabay, Giphy and Creative Commons
I appreciate your support :)
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I went with the ten thousand monkeys approach, I write like a demon, throwing out words upon words upon words, writing each line 10 times, then condense all of them together, make the best possible pairs and spit out this mutant thing.
Sometimes it works. Often I hate it.
Start again, reboot, reboot reboooot!!
Because I have such high expectations of myself I find it very hard to actually publish the effort. This is my failure as a 'writer'.
I never publish. Hahahahahahaha!!! Thanks for sharing. <3
We are our own worst critics!
I always say when you are terrified of hitting Publish, that's when you need to publish it.
We are all perfectionists, unfortunately we have to overcome that or we will never get anywhere ;)
Hence the post!! <3
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Woohoo! Thanks!!!
This is the most realistic description ever of a writer's life. I have always wanted to be one, unfortunately due to financial constraints I had to park the idea. Got a full time job which was way beyond my passion but took every second I got I had to completely stop writing.
Kudos to you and all writers who are able to endure all those challenges and came out a winner.
To those who are still starting out, I wish you all the strength to go through all the hindrances of becoming a writing.
That is a shame. It is my hope that your career can end in early retirement, then you can focus on your writing? That would be awesome!
BTW, wonderful meeting you!!
I'm actually focusing on my new company now that's why I have some spare time for steemit. I hope to write more soon. I am just looking for good post here on steemit for more encouragement. 😀
Sweet! There's a ton of quality writing on here- seriously,- when I need inspiration I browse Steemit now! It never fails!
Thanks @arbitrarykitten! Will keep writing. 😀
Anytime! I look forward to it :)
Lol!
This is a great peak into the life you lead! I always thought I wanted to be a novelist, but my motivation runs dry too quickly. I can get 5-10 pages done and then I walk away from it and never come back... The ideas just went poof.
This is what I love about Steem. The opportunity to do short form stories and be rewarded for it. It's never going to replace my full time job. At least that's how I choose to perceive it until Steem proves otherwise, but it lets me scratch the writing itch. And that's a good thing!!
That is a very good thing, and Steemit is the perfect avenue for it :)
Glad to see you ;)
Great advice from one who has been through the mill Kitten.
I'd never written in my life until I came here in May, it's a big learning process and I'm fortunate enough to do it here at work which is very lucky I know. It affords me the opportunity to learn from awesome writers like you while getting paid by 'the man'!
To make a career of it I something I have thought about however I'm under no illusions as to how difficult it would be, but maybe in the future I'll be able to do this for a living. Just need a bit of luck, maybe I should go buy a lottery ticket 😂
Seriously though writing has changed the way I look at everything in my life and hopefully my posts have helped some people, made others laugh on a bad day or taught them something they didn't know. That's what it's all about for me.
Thanks for your insight babe, you're awesome 😉❤️
You are a very loved and cherished member of the community, P. You bring so much funny, and your sharing of the hidden is refreshing and right up my proverbial alley ;)
I was fortunate also that I could write during downtimes at my job when I started out. That is a blessing! What is your job?
Thank you for the kind words babe. ☺️
I only speak truths :)
Hello Arbitrary,
This is a great post. Everybody wants earn some money. I follow you now.
Thanks for sharing!
If you like my Posts, just Follow me and Resteem and Upvote my Posts. @thunderland
Wonderful to meet you :)
I guess this is the reality of artists in general , whether it be writers , mucisian painters etc. On the other hand, if you make it , you make it big time.
True.
And yes, but very few make it big time. However, most can make a good living if they work hard.
In this time and age I think that knowing your trade and work hard may not be enough. You have to know the trade of selling your trade. It made huge difference in my case.
You must be proficient at marketing. And people. Gotta be a people person. Interaction is key :)
I love to write. I would like to be able to make a living at it...Its hard to get started at it as a career .It seems unobtainable at times...But at least I love to do it. Thanks for the post. I love your writing.
It is very hard. I did not see any meaningful income for two years. The thing is there are so many aspiring writers right now, at any given time. But, if you stick with it many phase out because it is unrewarding work for a while. At that point you will rise fast. That's why I say you truly have to love it :) Just keep writing! You will reach the goals you want with perseverance!
Thank you so much <3
Thank you. It may hurt to know the answer to my next question,,,but How do I know if my writing is any good?
How do you know? Well, ask trusted strangers.
Your friends and family will tell you it's good because they love you ;)
If you want to know the truth, ask a trusted stranger with #nofilter ;)
Are you on Discord? Have you checked out the fiction writers workshop?
The flashing rainbow is a nice touch at the end. Didnt even notice it on first pass. Jumps out at you when you start to reply
Thank you Dave!
The right moment for writing is a big thing. Have to be motivated and with a refreshed brain. As well coffee is a good helper....
Lol, yes, coffee is a good motivator ;)
very good and realistic post.
(my first book is gonna be a bestseller, though)
I wish you luck and prosperity :) And may I ask for an autographed copy?
Ohhhh I totally feel you @arbitrarykitten . I was stuck in a writer's block with bleh moments that not even coffee could keep my brain juice started for writing!
Now I hope finally I got something going again here and well, perhaps steemit is the free platform for new writers to just test their waters and perseverance. If they can get a ton of people hooked with their work, a book can be published anytime!
All the best to you!
upvoted
And the supportive and encouraging community of Steemit cannot be a better ground for testing ones skills.
Thank you so much :)
The writers' frequency can be oh so lonely. Its good we have each other to commiserate with. Writers' groups are a life saver. Great post...
Yes, we really do need each other. So true <3
Thank you for sharing your incredible journey.
I can relate because I'm into a related field - digital marketing.
Ah, yes.
:)
awesome post
Thank you so much!
truly insightful-thanks again-
Lots of stuff that I had no clue about - thanks!
If you are doing something that you love doing then you are already way ahead of most of us!!
Cheers
I am of the belief that everyone CAN live their dreams. They just have to take steps EVERY DAY toward them :)
Thank you :)
Another great article. I'm not a full-time writer but I can attest to the reward you get by being able to write and being able to put down your thoughts in writing. It helps in expressing yourself.
The though that attracted me to this is my curiosity of 'how is it to be a full time writer?'
I also agree on the advise to just keep on swimming... I mean writing.
There's a ton of lessons here but one thing I may have overlooked is re-writing. I think it's one of the tasks that's inevitable to any writer. Re-writing in terms of omitting redundant words, phrases, or sentences.
Another lesson that stuck with me is to take on topics out of my comfort zone.
Editing can be a pain. What I tend to do is once I have written the first draft, I put it away for a day, or several. Then come back to it with fresh eyes. It really helps to do it this way I have found.
Being a full time writer is just that- you do all of this more than full time!
Thank you for this. This confirms that what I'm doing is right. :) Although not exactly the same. Usually it takes a couple of days for me to complete a post. Some come as a complete thought (ideal), but most or some of it I have to assemble part by part.
Hey, whatever works!
You are a wonderful addition :)
Thanks @arbitrarykitten. I appreciate it.