It’s not uncommon to hear writers asking if it’s even possible to make writing fiction a full-time job anymore. The truth is yes, it is possible, but there are many trade-offs to being a career author. Whether or not they’re worth it is up to you to decide, but here are five that we suggest you consider if you’re struggling with whether to make writing fiction your career:
Building Writing Habits Out of Discipline v. Creative Spark
When you’re wanting to pursue a career in authorship, even if you’re not yet able to do it full-time yet, you have to start early in building a writing routine that is predictable despite creativity never being so. This is because writing with an intent to provide financially in the long term means finding a way to produce words and make progress even when you’re not feeling creative because there will be long stretches of time over your career that you don’t quite feel it. But that doesn’t mean you can stop moving. You need to stay committed and believe that the creativity will find you again when you pursue it.
However, if you’re writing as a hobby, there’s no reason to believe that you must provide more writing to any deadline including yourself. There’s a freedom in following your whimsy and seeing if it turns to passion you can pursue for 80,000 words. By choosing to commit to your 9 to 5, you’re also choosing to keep your passion separate from your work. And therefore, there are few reasons to feel guilty about your writing slump when it’s not the right time for you. The trade off, of course, is that you’re more likely to keep this balance even after a publishing success. But there’s nothing wrong with that.
Granting v. Budgeting Money Spent
Choosing to pursue a writing career means it’s absolutely necessary to budget your money and time spent. This can be straight forward when you’re self-publishing your writing, but it quickly becomes more complicated when you’re working toward a traditional publication with a journal or a publishing house as you cannot be certain of your final payout. While a developmental edit from an indie author could be a great investment in your authorial career and help you find publication more quickly, it’s also going to cost you in how long it will take to become a profitable author. So, you’re more likely to need to pursue low and no-cost options like beta readers and critique partners.
In contrast, hobbies are often if not always sinking funds for both time and money in the quest for self-actualization and happiness. So, seeking to work with an editor to develop a novel or a new writing skill can be counted as worthy simply because you want it and have the spare cash. And even if a big overhaul isn’t in the cards for you financially, many good editors will have tips to cut costs while getting more from your editing experience.
Commitment v. Contentment in Seeking Audiences
If you’re writing as a hobby, it’s likely your dream is to make a difference in one person’s life. Making deep connections with other writers and readers can be something you choose because it is fun and fulfilling. It isn’t important to adhere to the needs of the algorithm. You can take on marketing efforts as they sound like something you’d enjoy doing, and you can still find a modicum of success that way with less stress.
A career author will spend a good bit of time marketing their stories and promoting them. That can mean taking away time from other writing to create content for social media, sales platforms, your author website, and more, but that can be a great way to use time when you’re not feeling as creative. But the key to success at the level that will sustain a career means taking time to optimize marketing across all platforms simultaneously so your target market sees your messaging several times in a short period of time.
Pursuing Craft v. Commerce
This one is pretty simple. It’s the dichotomy of deeply literary work and commercial work. In truth, these are not totally at odds with one another. Most bestselling novels have a good sprinkling of literary language or themes. It heightens the reading experience and takes a compelling plot to the next level. However, as an author, intensely literary novels (especially those that also have a captivating plot line) take much more time to develop than a great plot alone, and writing fiction full-time now typically requires releasing a new novel each year. So, if you’re really hoping to pursue craft, it may be advantageous to think of writing as a hobby for now until you’re in a place where you can crank out that number of words while doing it.
Building Your Life Out of Tenacity v. Joy
It likely doesn’t surprise you to hear that becoming a career author requires a good bit of tenacity. These days, authors wear many hats and have less of a system of support than ever. Tenacity is a central pillar of the life of a full-time author, but you can still be a published author without it. You can seek publishing while still prioritizing joy in your life, but it’s likely to remain a hobby. That said, there’s nothing wrong with pursuing joy. But it’s useful to keep this in mind as you write. If you’re writing for joy, there’s no need to demand yourself of a particular type, length, or method of writing. Write what brings you joy, and others will feel it in your work too.
It’s likely you’re not going to choose career or hobby in every one of these categories because few of us are living in the extremes. However, it’s useful to remember that you do have a choice you can make when you’re not fitting into the current expectations you have for yourself. Maybe those expectations are unfair. If you ever want to help figuring out this balance for yourself, booking a session with a book coach can do a lot to get you back in the groove.
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