Why are you a writer? Is it for the money? I know that’s one of the reasons I write. Yes, it’s true. It may not be the most important reason I write, but I’d be fibbing if I said I didn’t care at all about earning some sweet moolah.
I haven’t made a lot of money from writing, but it is possible to make a steady, decent supplemental income as a writer. Probably not a feed-the-family income unless you do school visits and get paid big bucks and have an editorial service and get paid top dollar and get a job as an editorial assistant at a publishing company.
I don’t do any of that. I just write. And I’ve been able to make over $20,000 per year for the last 15 years as a writer. How?
I’ve learned to balance three kinds of assignments throughout my week.
1. I constantly have tried to write a steady flow of low-paying manuscripts. It’s amazing how these little paychecks add up!
2. I try to connect with work-for-hire editors and land one to three work-for-hire book projects each year to earn instant cash.
3. I’m constantly studying the market to look for royalty-paying book publishers that give contracts which will provide an income base over a longer period of time. Once again, even the low paying royalty checks add up when they all arrive in the mail once or twice each year.
So it is possible to earn money as a writer. That’s one of the reasons I write.
Why do you write?
Such a great question! Up until my twenties, I wrote for the sheer pleasure–stories, poetry, journals, diaries, and handwritten letters (back in the day before computers and email!).
When I started homeschooling, I wrote to teach, developing unit studies and lessons for my own children as well as for the classes I taught. When our writing class materials became a bona fide curriculum, it was indeed nice to eventually reap some financial rewards.
I wear a lot of hats as a business owner, and I don’t have as much tme to write as I would like. Even still, I find that I write for different reasons:
1. To develop new products. I love the writing part, and it fulfills something in me that enjoys seeing my work used and appreciated by others.
2. To write articles. I write to get my name “out there.” Articles always point back to our business, so although I write because I love to, I also write as a marketing tool.
3. To blog. I blog whether someone reads what I have to say or not. I just like putting words together–whether they’re all mine, or whether I’m acting in an editorial capacity. Blogging allows me to share about “writing stuff”–sometimes personal, sometimes business-driven, sometimes just for fun.
By: Kim Kautzer, WriteShop on April 30, 2008
at 12:01 pm
It was so fascinating to learn some of the reasons you write, Kim! And I really like the reason you’ve decided to blog. Your blog is one of the best I’ve ever seen and now I know why–you’re doing it because you WANT to whether anyone reads it or not–and that attitude makes it shine!!!!!
-Nancy
By: nancyisanders on April 30, 2008
at 12:10 pm