Writing for a Living?

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I have a passion for writing, and know few things that make me as happy when I'm writing. I have spent years honing my craft, developing my own style, and gathering as much knowledge as possible about literature (i.e. reading books and learning about authors, as well). While ficition is my passion, I can also write poetry, somewhat, and non-fiction essays.

I'm currently in college, and really feel, much of the time, that I couldn't do any other job but be a writer. I don't know why - even though I know how much I love writing - but I just find the thought of getting a "normal" job to be crushing and, in the long term, impossible to do. At the same time, though, I feel a little odd about feeling like this. I mean, my father is working one of those "normal" jobs in an office - very hard, I might add - to put me through school. But, then, I know my family would never want me to do something I didn't enjoy, in the long run.

I suppose I'm just looking for some insight from others about this.

Before I came to school, I vowed that I would use the next fours to try and make it possible (i.e. get things published so I could gain credibility as an author, among other things) so that I could be a writer when I leave college (and make a decent living). While I realize this is, at the surface, very difficult to do (if not impossible), I don't see what the harm is in trying - as long as it doesn't detract from or harm my studies (or other activities I'm involved in). Maybe I should note too that I'm planning on law school after my undergradutate, as well.

law school would be a waste (of time, hard work, and LOTS of money) if what you want to do is write. newspapers hire english majors all the time.

I'm a nurse but write on the side. I quit working my "real" job months ago but should be returning an about a month. I've been writing furiously these past few months, though. I've written 5 novellas, 2 fairy tales, and handful of poems, and many short stories, some of which also got published by different magazines. I'd love to make a living from writing. That would be a dream. No more nursing. Yay! I could self-publish, but like you said before, you gain credibility if someone else publishes your work.

Anyone ever thought about writing for Cracked? I've always enjoyed that website, and I'm sure most people have heard of it at some point. They specialize in funny articles, and they will pay you up to a few hundred dollars per article if you are good enough. The only thing about working with them is that they do not hire as far as I know. You submit your idea and rough draft on their forum and if their editors like your idea enough, they will pay you to write the article for their website.

The same could be said for Readers Digest - and they've got a much bigger payroll!

I used to have a great job... I translated the chicken-scratch of customer comments into concise, readable English and emailed them to the appropriate departments. I was a one-man show and could do things my way... until the cards slowed down and they shipped the job to the USA or somewhere. They forced me to switch to some crappy coding job I was no good at and was eventually pushed out.

If you love to write, then you should definitely do so. But it is a very unpredictable line of work, so I strongly recommend having some sort of "backup" job. It might take years and many books before you get enough readers to make a living out of it. You might be successfull with one book but not with the others. It might not work out at all. It depends on many factors, your own talent and hard work being only one of them.

That said, if that's what you love to do, then write as much as you can. When you feel confident enough that a work is finished (carefully proof-read, if possible not only by you), try to have it published somewhere. If it is refused, try not to be upset, think about any comments that were made to you if any, and maybe after some rework resubmit somewhere else.

Many magazines have some place for short stories. You won't make a living out of it but it's a good way to start. If you're in a country where it's usual practice for writers to have an agent, like USA or UK, it's a good idea to try and find one.

Basically: if that's what you want to become, then there is nothing wrong in working hard to make it happen. But I do strongly recommend to keep a plan B somewhere. Also keep in mind that the time you spend not writing is not lost, it's a source of new experiences and inspiration. It gives you new things to write about.

The best of luck.

Grad school can kill your writing.

Studying writing is great to a degree, but not too many degrees.

This may not apply to law school. but if you're already writing, forget about school. Finish your BA, then be like Einstein--get a job that requires nothing from you but attendance and, meanwhile, write your heart out.

Forget about the great American novel. Who cares? Write what you like to read, or better yet, write what you want to read.

Submit, submit, submit. Don't listen to anyone (especially yourself) telling you it's not ready or other blah blah. Be daring. Submit to Paris Review or The New Yorker first. Submit also to an online zine, etc. When it comes to a great story, no one knows what they're looking for until they find it.

Be prepared to eat light and suffer rejections. You may be poor, and you may get rejected, but someone will finally notice you've got a story to tell.

Take advantage of online resources. A blog can go a long way toward garnering attention to your writing. You can write for someone else's site as well: sports, fashion, politics--there are thousands of angles, one of which may interest you.

Finally, go for it, baby!

It all depends on what you want to write. Do you want to write video stories, dialog, etc then you want to focus on a game design career and work writing in once you land a gig. If you want to write screen plays or TV, you would do well by starting out as a PA at a talent agency or production company. If you want to write Ad copy, a marketing degree would get you to where you want to go. Short stories, poems, news stories, you then might want to think about getting a back up job and writing on the side. Although I would guess any job at a publisher, receptionist, marketing, etc will get you working around people who can help you in your writing.

They do? How come I can't get an interview with one then?

Most newspapers rely on independent contractors now, they don't hire for staff unless they're big, like the New York Times.

One way to 'test the waters' as a writer is to start submitting articles as a freelancer. Odesk and freelance.com for starters. You can begin making money from your writing immediately and also get a feel for the competition (and it's VERY competitive) in the writing industry.

Thanks everybody - I really appreciate your views and feedback!

wee0ne, that is a great point about Einstein. That thought has crossed my mind quite a bit the last few years.

Maybe I should mention too that I think I would enjoy being a lawyer, and I'd be good at it. But, it would still be a job for me - not at all the same as I view my writing.

Writing is not work, but a labour of love.

this x10000

My sister makes a decent living as a freelance writer, mostly magazine articles.

For the first ten or fifteen years after she graduated from college, though, I know she worked at a lot of temporary office type jobs to supplement the income from writing.