musings of a writer with a day job
yet another existential artist journey
I recently got added to an “Authors Supporting Authors” Instagram engagement group, hosted by indie author and poet Any Pascual, which introduced me to a whole new group of indie authors. All of these authors are writing different genres, writing full-time or off the side of their desk at work or in between classes at university, as middle-aged women or teens or everything in between. They’re self-publishing, trying to traditionally publish, posting on Wattpad, or are Instagram poets. They’re selling 5,000 copies or making a few dollars here and there; they have their own Etsy shops or are hosting their books for sale exclusively on Amazon or are published by one of the Big 5 publishers.
I love that the more writers I meet, the more I am reminded again and again how there’s no one way to create a writing career. I know it should be obvious, but it’s so easy to fall into that comparison trap and wonder if what you’re doing is wrong, especially when everything is new to you. But the most important thing is doing what works for you.
Actually figuring out what works for you, however, is a different story. I’ve chosen the write-on-the-side day-job life, because I like employment benefits, stability and structure and I’m aware of the reality of pursuing writing full-time. As a full-time writer, you’re committing to being self-employed, and (as Jane Friedman outlines in her amazing book, The Business of Being A Writer), likely earning income from writing-adjacent sources (grants, teaching workshops, etc.) and rarely actual book sales. It also makes your art your job and income you have to rely on, which is a whole other artist crisis.
But another part of me knows I’m sacrificing something by choosing the full-time day job life. Especially now as I’m in transition between day jobs, I haven’t had the mental energy or time to spend on a lot of writing or creative pursuits. I can’t write or publish as fast as others who have their full days to commit to writing or author career growth. Everything is slower, and I have to pick and choose what I focus on at any given time because I just don’t have time to do it all. This month, I’m playing around with writing, journaling, rereading old drafts while I let my friendship love story draft simmer. I’m doing some research here and there on indie publishers and workshops I might want to take in the future. I haven’t spent much time on any marketing (social media is a frustrating time-suck that never ends) or figuring out how to focus my newsletter (or even write it ahead of the day I want to send it out) or figuring out my “ideal reader” profile or updating my website or or or…
And I don’t really want to be working all the time either. I want to spend time playing with my cats, watching movies with my partner, playing occasional D&D games, going to the beach, walking around my neighbourhood, enjoying summer. All those things are important to me too in creating a full and life-giving career as a writer. Having balance between my work, writing, and life is one of my priorities, and the mission behind this newsletter and the creative meditation I wrote for this newsletter.
Cousin: Working?
Me: Kind of. I mean, it’s my personal work.
Cousin: Having fun?
Me: Yeah!
Cousin: Well, that’s good, you’re working and having fun.
Question for the comments: How do you fit your creative pursuits in your life in a way that works for you and keeps you healthy?
Happy August,
Alyssa
Something that I find helps me is to find other people with the same interests and hobbies! If I can sit down with a friend to play chess, then I am going to learn from that. If I can chat with a friend about my writing process and see what their process is, I will also grow and get more done because the motivation is there from having others be passionate. Sometimes that external input just helps so much and that can also come in the form of a change of scenery. If the world is too repetitive around me, I find creative pursuits just won't go as far.