Maybe you shouldn’t write for a living

At this moment, the world is obsessed with the perceived financial calamity that keeps sending everything down, down, down … except, perhaps, consumer prices. There’s hand wringing, hair rending, tears a plenty and profanities shouted from rooftops. As a Simple Plan song (called Untitled) says, “How could this happen to me?”

Actually, it’s happening to just about everyone.

If you’re a writer, odds are you don’t get paid a lot (if you’re paid at all). And as the current mess evolves, you’re likely to see what little you do get go down, down, down. You’ll be considered an unnecessary expense. Reducing what you’re paid, or eliminating you altogether, will help reduce costs.

Maybe you shouldn’t write for a living. The problem writers have is that while you may get work, and even enough income to keep the creditors at bay, you often have to work your fingers numb and your eyes blind for a small return. Often, it will be writing (or editing) that you’re not really in love with – but, “Hey! It’s writing! And I’m getting paid! Kinda.”

This is a good way to arrive at that point where you hate writing. And the writing you do enjoy gets pushed aside. And soon you find yourself a keyboard slug with a calcified imagination. And you’ll be a misanthropic grump to boot.

I can’t speak for other writers but I do know that while I love writing (paid or not, I’m always writing), there are other things I love as well. There may also be jobs out there I’m unaware of that, were I to give them a try, I might like a whole bunch. And guess what? They pay better than writing and, when not on the job, I can do the writing I really do love with a lot more creativity and vitality than when I was a writing drudge.

I’m not saying you should take a job completely unrelated to writing and editing, but I am saying it’s worthwhile to think beyond them and see what else the world offers. There are more skills in writing (and editing) than stringing words together. For one thing, you’re probably a pretty damn good researcher. One of my favourite expressions is, “You are what you do.” If you’re a word lackey you’ll be a writer but you’ll be a poor one. You’ll find you’re passionless. A cog. A drone.

On a related note, you should read Seth’s post, Be careful of who you work for. As with what you do, and how you do it, defining you, he points out that who you work for will define you as well. And he’s bang on the money when he says there are oodles of books and sites for finding jobs, but few or none about choosing the right job.