Living Life as a Writer
Starting a Career in Writing and Perfecting the Craft
The stardom achieved by Stephen King or J.K. Rowling has many believing that they too could become rich and famous on the New York Times best seller list and live the life of Ernest Hemingway forever after.
Unfortunately, life as a writer is not a life of stardom. The dream of millions in royalties from the sales of a bestselling book and blockbuster movie receipts is a dream for many aspiring writers. Even professional writers with years of experience and thousands of articles and books behind them never see their names on marquis lights.
Writing is a difficult profession. Many writers make enough to offset their jobs and not every writer holds a BA in English literature. In fact, more writers make a better living writing and selling online than ever have their material in hard cover.
Once the effort required is realized, many people are intimidated by the lengthy process. Writing a first draft, rewriting, revision, editing and producing a finished piece is hard enough without finding that publisher who is willing to turn the piece into a book.
Anyone who aspires to be a writer must have one ingredient. He or she must have a passion for the written word. They love writing and they'd do it even if there was no financial reward. And just like a musician learning the piano, they practice their craft. A writing career gets started by getting the first words on paper or into the word processor. Aspiring to be a writer requires some techniques before success is assured.
Pick an Idea
Sounds simple. But the first step to starting is pick a familiar topic. No one can write convincingly over a subject they have no interest in. The subject itself should move the writer to share his knowledge and expertise with others.
Write Ideas Down
A first draft never needs to be a polished piece. Spelling, grammar and organization are not the main issues. The idea is to simply get down everything that crosses the mind. It's a chance to drain that brain until there's nothing left to write about.
Practice Writing Every Day
No one becomes a successful author overnight. There's more to writing than just graduating from an English class. Learning to write good prose comes from constant practice. Practice helps develop a unique style. That's what makes many authors so popular.
Writing Tools
Writing doesn't require an expensive computer or the latest software to get started. Open Office, a free application is just as good as Microsoft Word or Word Perfect. Throughout the ages the majority of writers made a name for themselves with a feather pen and paper. Of course typed text is necessary to submit a manuscript as publishers are not likely to read personal script no matter how legible. Words and not the fanciest word processor or graphics are the only tools of the writing trade.
Share It
No one can know how good they are unless someone reads it. Having the spouse, a good friend or even someone in a writer's club read and provide feedback can help make improvements.
Test The Marketplace
No one knows how skilled the writer is unless it gets in front of the eyeballs of someone who reads it. Posting material on a blog or submitting finished work on online publishing sites like Helium, Ehow, Suite 101 or Submit Your Article will determine the level of writing skill. Some sites such as Helium, Suite 101 and Constant Content offer ways to earn money from writing.
Don't Quit the Day Job
Living life as a writer doesn't mean subsisting on macaroni and cheese while waiting for Hollywood to knock on the door. Keep the day job and write part-time. Many writers, including this author, work to bring in the bacon while perfecting their craft.
It's likely it will take some time before writing becomes a lucrative and profitable activity.
Simple Tools to Perfect the Art of Writing
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