When I tell people I’m a writer they usually ask me how much I earn. I usually smile and say “enough.” I’ve been giving this answer even before I started earning money, when my stories were available for free on Wattpad.
The thing is that being a writer, or any other kind of artist, also means that most probably you’ll never earn a lot of money. Million dollar advances are extremely rare. Besides, I’m quite sure that most artists aren’t in this for money.
But what exactly do you earn if not money? Is there something else to being a writer?
Well, let’s make a list of the perks of being a writer.
- You can be as eccentric as you want. People expect writers to be a bit crazy.
- You get to do what you love.
- You can act lazy, sleep on the couch all day, and blame writer’s block.
- You can be an alcoholic (if you’re into that sort of thing) and people will forgive you for it.
- You get to tell people you’re a writer. Some will find you interesting.
- People will think you know more about books than the rest of the world. ‘Cause you write the damn things.
- You’re your own boss. Especially if you self-publish. Yeah, the thing is that you still have to show up at the desk and work for as long as you feel like it. But that’s the point. As long as you like. If you don’t feel like it, you can take a break. Go on a holiday. Do other stuff.
Any I missed?
Okay, now on a more serious note. The perk I like most is that once in a while someone tells you they love your story. Whether a five star review on Amazon, an e-mail, a blog comment, it doesn’t matter as long as someone genuinely loves your writing. Money can’t buy this mixture of admiration and envy that people feel when they read something really, really good. A paragraph or just a few short sentences that describe exactly how they feel in the world.
Two strangers, the writer and the reader, locked in this strange dance… there’s nothing that can compare to it. And you, as a writer, realize that you’re not as alone as you thought. Someone else feels the same way as you do.
As Tennessee Williams once said, you’re not lonely alone.
I’ve never had the confidence to call myself a writer, but I do enjoy trying. Good writing, by the way.
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A famous preacher and writer, Myles Monroe once said, “…writing gives you life beyond the grave, a book will outlive you all the time, freezes your experience, it makes you eternal, it makes you speak beyond your grave, it allows you to multiply and expand your influence”
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Thank you for being so confident in your writing this was what I needed to keep going.
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Reblogged this on Cristian Mihai.
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love this!!!
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The Bible says God created man in His own image; most people think ears, noses, and eyes. I believe when we create something, whether it is an essay, a painting, a beautifully arranged flower bed, or a crayoned picture on Grandma’s refrigerator, we touch the divine nature from which we came.
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Beautifully said. We’re not only a creation, but also capable of becoming creators.
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I don’t care what I ever achieve in terms of sells, fame, or whatever. My writing gives me insight into myself, humanity as a whole, and opens doors on God that I never dreamt of. I call myself a writer because it’s what I do. If I don’t do it, I’m not happy.
Grandpa was right when he said, “Find a job you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life. Even if you don’t make money, you’ll still be happy.”
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So true.
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Love that Tennessee quote.
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I sit here baffled. How do you write so much? And every bit, quality content.
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Years of practice.
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Ah, of course.
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These points made me chuckle. I sure did like to be a bit out there in my youth. I tamed a bit as I aged but I’m still young so the freedom is still there.
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“You can be as eccentric as you want. People expect writers to be a bit crazy.”- I laughed out loud after reading this sentence. It is true. People sometime often correlate being artistic and eccentric. But it’s okay.
Money is just an artificial fix. I’ve got to agree with you that, honest feedback from one’s readers got to be one of the best perks of being a writer 😊
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Indeed. I love it!
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Wow! So inspirational talk. I have an academic career in other field. But I purse my writing as it boosts me from internal self. Writing is one of the noble job of self satisfaction.
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I don’t tend to tell people I’m a writer as they would then probably assume I would be interesting to talk to, which I’m not 😉
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Beautiful! Thank you!
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Interesting post!
Personally, I’m not exactly a writer but mostly a Philosopher. Writing is essentially just a medium in my case. However, because telling that you are a philosopher sometimes, if not always, sounds a little bit pompous, I prefer the word writer.
What do you think?
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Well, I think one should never define themselves through nouns. You are writing. A verb. You are a fluid concept, always changing, becoming and unbecoming at the same time.
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Cheers to that! You are right. In fact, I think every time you define yourself with a noun, you always leave out something of yourself. It is interesting though how a lot of times the first thing people use to identify themselves is their profession. I guess it’s like that because it consists most of their time… who knows!
Thanks for your reply.
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You can go for a period of time responding to comments and interacting with readers in some sort of “normalized” dance. But, then pops up a comment from a reader to a piece you wrote that has affected or touched them in such a way, that reading their comment for the first time is akin to a hit of adrenalin that gets your heart racing.
It’s at times like this when I think, “yup….. the early mornings in the darkened house typing away is worth it.”
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Artists rarely get rich because of their art. In fact it’s the worst profession to be self-employed out of a financial perspective. A plumber or electrician have a bigger chance to become a millionaire through the skillful exercise of their craft than an artist. In fact, better don’t become an artist before you’ve reached a certain degree of financial independence if you don’t want to end up leeching all your relatives and friends for supporting your lifestyle (as minimalist it may be). And lying on the couch for a whole day long while claiming a writers block will not work out when you have a spouse with a list of household chores that have to be handled, neither will she condone substance abuse.
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Very true, and thanks for the reminder. This may sound ‘crazy’ but writing keeps me sane. LOL
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It doesn’t sound crazy at all.
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“Enough.” I like it. 🙂
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“Two strangers, the writer and the reader, locked in this strange dance… there’s nothing that can compare to it”
Absolutely Yes 🙂 Great read!
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Thank you!
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‘You can act lazy, sleep on the couch all day, and blame writer’s block.’
– Christian Mihai 😅
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Very well expressed indeed!
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Thank you!
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You are most welcome
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The perks of becoming a writer is very much right .Not because , I am a writer myself but i can rather imagine how it would be to be a writer. The most liked point to me is the second last point that you made:”You’re your own boss”.Nobody rules over you but you yourself is in charge. Thanks for the post!!!
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Great post.
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