RSS On Writing Prolifically
Filed in BlogFancy Horse noted that I was quite the prolific writer. I have been all my life. When I was ten or so I had a teacher who just let me write stories. I must’ve produced hundreds! I got the other work done, but whenever it was some kind of elective…stories. I wrote stories for myself, for school, wrote dungeons for Dungeons and Dragons…and never got tired of it.
I had great, encouraging English/home room type teachers all through my K-12 equivalent years. :) That really helped let me believe and dream, too.
Everyone has something they’re good at and, more importantly, makes them happy. Some people have the ability to run marathons and yet others to put together cameras full of tiny little fiddly parts. Neither of these work for me. I have the ability to write like a loon, and edit the results relatively well. ;)
I’ve known I was going to be a writer since I was six. I know it makes a cute story that I dabbled with being an astronaut and the career finder at high school said the only career that would fit me was silversmith (fiddly parts! nuh-huh!) but nope, I was always going to be a writer, from when I won that first writing competition about the witch in the woods who would go around putting bandages on sick hedgehogs to make them better. ;)
Winning that prize was probably my first ever a-ha moment. One of the best moves I ever made in my life was to learn how to touch-type when I was sixteen. It means I can hammer out the words almost as fast as I think them.
Through my teens and twenties I was going to be this great fantasy novelist. Then I discovered travel writing. It took me until my thirties to realize that I was a writer, and until nearly my forties to make a career out of it.
At 39, I’m just a fledgling professional writer. I wrote a couple of magazine articles, published a couple of books (there was a fantasy novel, and Little Twist. For a long time I blogged a lot and did posts that paid the bills, but I realized that wasn’t working for me and was stopping me from going out and earning the money I knew I could from my skills.
I don’t have a problem with writing about commercial products; I just decided that I didn’t want to write about them on my blog. (I also got annoyed with the company, but that’s another story.) But the real payoff was that the PTPTB stuff taught me how to write prolifically and on demand.
I have always had the ability to get into flow with writing. I’ve read accounts, with which I agree, that say that whatever gets you in the flow is what you should be doing. So far so good. When I am in flow, nothing else exists. It’s just me and the writing. Only afterwards do I realize that I have overdone it; my body stiffens, my mind feels like mush. But it was worth it, usually, if I hatched some baby articles. ;)
A few months ago I realized I needed to stop messing around and make a go of it, and I am. Part of making a career from writing is the ability to be both fast and accurate (efficient). I write for two clients, two online magazines, and an article site.The clients and the article site are bread and butter. I try to put in 3-4 hours a day for this kind of work; my results are varied. Today, for example, I couldn’t bring myself to open the computer. I went and did some gardening instead.
I do the blogging and online magazine work less for the money than for the exposure and creativity, though money is definitely a part of it. Examiner brings exposure to Markeroni, requires less than half an hour a day, and has income too. Suite101 is pretty high-quality for the most part and its writers are often cherry-picked for other jobs. It is also something that in time should build up a nice residual income.
Ultimately, I want to move to a fully hybrid career where I get at least half of what I need to pay the bills from Markeroni, but I’m far away from that. I would then be able to write without fear of burn-out. I don’t burn out often, but I do burn out from time to time. I would like to spend more time visiting the historical markers and riding my motorcycle. It’s a bit hard fitting it all in just now. ;)
One of the reasons I posted so much in the last few weeks is that I want to get to that residual income level as quickly as possible. Even if I only bring in a couple of hundred bucks a month, those couple of hundred bucks will buy me days off writing and, later, a buffer so I can go on vacation once in a while. I know it sounds daft, and to many who might read this it’s like I live on vacation…but no. I’m working, seven days a week right now. I get dressed to write; no pajamas for me.
With web writing, volume is really the name of the game. The earnings are exponential. The other folk at Suite told me it would be so and their experience is being borne out. And Suite has an amazing community, the likes of which I haven’t seen for years; they also have editors who – gasp! – edit, give feedback, and help you improve. It’s like a little incubator room for writers. :)
When I am in flow, like now, the words just spark off one another. It’s really a joy. Sometimes it’s also maddening because I can’t physically write all my ideas. For example, the other day I started writing about Bonfire Night. From that came an article about the Guy Fawkes blue plaque, cooking baked potatoes, baked potato toppings, baked beans, curry (which can go on baked potatoes)…it’s like I sit down and whomp! This magical web of words happens.
Those articles I list are all pretty short. Of all the writing I do, my blog is still my favorite. It’s my place, which nobody else has a say about. But I like every kind of writing I do, from product descriptions to print articles. I have this dream of getting published in Rolling Stone.
So that’s what it’s like. I’m fast, and I sit at the computer twelve hours a day, and most days it’s more fun than anyone should be having. ;)
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One Comment, Comment or Ping
Nancy
Wow, I still think you’re amazing! And, you’ll make Rolling Stone one of these days, I’m sure! Look how far you’ve come! (Julia Child didn’t become a cook until she was about your age.)
Nov 4th, 2009
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