Harris KhanFor many people, hobbies are often something they want to earn a living. And it seems completely natural – you put your time and energy into it, you should want to make something from it. Whether it’s knitting, playing the guitar, singing, or writing – you can’t spend too much time doing it if you have to work. But what if you make it your work?
It’s possible, but you have to be creative with it. If you have a singing talent, you can go to a competition show or post videos on YouTube; if you make soap or bath bombs, you can sell them online; but what to do if you love writing? There’s no X-Factor for writers, and it’s a pretty time-consuming project to write books according to somebody’s request. Not to say that it usually doesn’t pay as much as you’d want to.
Is it actually possible to make a living as an author? The job itself sounds amazing: you sit at home, drink coffee, and do the thing you love the most – write. However, the situation is a little more complicated. How many authors who earn a living wage with their writing do you know personally? Exactly.
However, don’t get desperate right from the start. Let’s dive into the subject and see where the problem lies. Read on to find out what you can do to succeed!
How Many Authors Make a Living Writing
You probably didn’t hear about many people who earn a decent wage through writing. That’s for a reason – not many do. Of course, there are some names everybody knows, and there are some famous authors who became millionaires thanks to writing. Did you know about Stephen King net worth? Or that J.K. Rowling is the first woman who became a US-dollar billionaire by writing books and was a highest-earning writer in 2020?
But don’t get your hopes high. Unfortunately, those cases are more of an exception – only about 2% of authors make a living. So, most probably, you won’t write a seven-part novel and sell it for enormous money. However, don’t get desperate. While writing books often doesn’t pay enough, there are many other ways to earn a decent living through your hobby.
How Can You Earn a Living as a Writer
Being a writer is not equal to being a novelist. You don’t have to publish books to earn a living – and if you enjoy writing books but earn too little money, you can use your skills to get a supplemental income. Here are some of the ways to make a living through your favorite hobby:
Write Online
Copywriting is an industry where good writers are in high demand. If you can make a boring topic sound interesting, there’s definitely a place for you here – especially if you’re writing for specialized niches, like law or computer games (yes, it pays!). You don’t need a degree to make a living writing online, only excellent skills and, preferably, a portfolio of published texts. A good copywriter can earn even around $10,000 monthly!
Get a Blog
Of course, not many people make a living writing blog posts – consider it your supplementary income. However, when put to proper use, you can get more fans and, respectively, more companies and people interested in cooperating with you.
Write Fiction!
Well, that’s not an easy way, but you can try to make a living writing fiction books. Consider self-publishing – this way, you can find the target audience (your fans), make the book your business, and promote it yourself. However, don’t give up your additional incomes – you can easily combine writing fiction with half-time copywriting. There’s no average wage for this type of writing – you earn depending on many factors: how much you work, how many books you write, your typing speed, etc.
Why Most Writers Fail
Of course, writing for a living is not for everyone. There are several problems you can encounter when trying to make it as a writer:
- Inadequate writing skills. There’s a demand for good writers – not for everyone willing to write for a living.
- Procrastination – whether you’re working as a fiction writer or as a copywriter, you’ll eventually have to deal with it.
- Inability to deal with writer’s block. Everybody encounters it – but not everyone can fight it off successfully.
- Unedited/poorly edited books – you have to be the first person to edit your books. Don’t leave it for the publisher’s editor.
Don’t Cry – Write!
Whether you’ve been writing for a year or twenty years, a moment comes when you think about doing this for a living. However, not everyone can succeed. A writing market is brutal, and you will have to think of something to help you make it as a writer. Fortunately, if you have good skills, there’s always a place for you in the industry.
Of course, if you want to publish a book and work hard – nothing is possible; but don’t get your hopes about the income too high. On the other hand, online writing is one of the high-demand jobs for people like you. You can become a full-time copywriter or make it your supplementary income. And, whatever you decide to do, if you put your mind to making a living as a writer – little is impossible.
