I Write for a Living — Doesn’t Mean You Should

The real about what it takes to write for a living.

photo by: Filena Arcia

There’s a romantic lie to being a writer. Some conjured up tale that hindsight has made popular, if not a bit outlandish. Truth is, you’re probably not cut out to be a writer, just like some people aren’t cut out to be athletes, musicians, actors, or doctors. That’s because it takes a certain kind of grit to be a writer, and unless you have it, then you’ll be better off chasing some other dream.

I saw a promo video for Shonda Rhimes master class for TV writing. At the very beginning, she says something like this:

“If you can think of any other thing you want to be almost as much as being a television writer, go be it. If you can’t think of anything else, then welcome.”

Shonda gets it. Of course she gets it. She’s yelling it loud and clear for all of those who think they want to be writers. BTW, here’s the full video in case you’re interested:

https://medium.com/media/6139c7d062aaaee5073c6e5540e88538/href

Thing is, writing isn’t some kind of fluff profession. This illusion the world has created of a novelist sitting inside of a house with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the ocean somewhere near the Mediterranean is fictional at best, outright ridiculous, in truth. You can recreate that scene if you want, but you won’t be making any money while you spill prose in your bathrobe.

In the real world, writers need to be tough. That’s prerequisite number one. Even the most gifted writers need to be ready to have their work ridiculed to shreds and must get accustomed to hearing “no” or “I don’t like this” or “change this” at least a million times over. And that’s before you accumulate any kind of real success.

More than that, writing is a mental exercise. It takes deep concentration, often for long periods of time. It takes a level of patience and perseverance not natural to the majority of human beings, not to mention hero-like self confidence to operate in the face of self-doubt.

That’s step number one. Prerequisite number two is that you actually need to be good at writing. Wait, let me modify that a bit. Prerequisite number two is that you need to be great at storytelling and good at writing. Editors can make up for any shortfalls in your grasp of the language, but if you can’t tell a clear, entertaining, story that emotionally connects with an audience, then this is not the game for you, my friend.

I get a little frustrated with people who casually say, “I want to write a book one day.” These are people who have never in their lives written anything other than a text or an email but somehow think that they have the talent to pick up a laptop and create The Alchemist. Doesn’t exactly work like that.

Why do you think the overwhelming majority of super successful authors are either well into their thirties or forties? It’s because writing well takes time, practice, discipline, and a fierce determination and stubbornness reserved for those names we all acknowledge. Just like it would take a doctor at least a dozen years before she can skillfully operate on a patient. If you aren’t willing to put in that kind of dedication, then forget about it.

Writing for a Living — Not Exactly What You Think

Platforms like Medium gives everyone the false impression that they’re a writer. I think it’s amazing that today you can have an opinion and with one click, share it with a group that may or may not share the same sentiments. But having an opinion does not a writer make.

Writing for a living is an entirely different ball game. Writing for a living in today’s environment means you better be versatile. Yes you can self-publish a book and add author next to your avatar, but actually making enough money to off of that book to survive is something entirely different.

Writing today means you need to be a chameleon. Being a novelist, in most instances, just isn’t enough, and that goes for the ones who are fairly successful, as well. You must be able to diversify your writing or your skill-set in order to make a few dollars.

Using myself as an example, I have two books out, my second just published in June of this year. I’ve sold a good number of my first book and am just starting to get rolling with this title. But by no means are my novels the sole source of my income, or even the main source.

I’m proud to say that I write for a living, but if you take a look at some of my titles, they include the following:

Content StrategistGhost WriterCopy WriterBloggerEditor

Do you get the picture? And I’ve earned all of these titles. I study the art so I can continue to grow in all aspects. Learning how to edit helps my writing. Learning to write copy helps make my writing more efficient. Being a ghost writer helps my voice and tone so when I’m ready to write my novels, I can build and shape characters more accurately.

Don’t Be Discouraged

I just realized that this article might be a bit discouraging. Well, I say to you that if all it takes is the word of someone else for you to doubt your own ambitions of becoming a writer, stop right now. You’re definitely not made for this.

But if you feel empowered by this, if you feel in your heart that there’s nothing more important in the world than articulating your story, then in the words of Shonda Rhimes, WELCOME!

C.R.Y

I Write for a Living — Doesn’t Mean You Should was originally published in C.R.Y on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.