April 18, 2006
The publishing industry is a tough business. As far as I can tell, it probably always has been, at least once writers decided they wanted to make a living at it, rather than treat it as some weird hobby. (Really, if it's a hobby, maybe you should just self-publish and cut out the middleman).

There is gloom and doom everywhere. It's part of show business, so yes, it's a tough business.

A lot of people have this dream of being a writer (musician, artist, actor, etc.) and they think, "I'll get that book published (record contract, well-received show, movie deal) and I'll have it made, I'll be livin' on easy street, fame and fortune and everything that comes with it will be mine."

I don't think most of these people think: "The arts are like a job. You can make a living at it, but you have to work hard, put in your hours, accept that this is not a 9 to 5 gig with health benefits, paid vacation or sick days. There's a lot of competition and although there's a fair amount of need for the arts, it's a luxury, and people can afford to be very picky about how they spend their time and money on luxuries. So I'll have to really work my ass off and find a need and fill it and be in the right time at the right place with the right product--in other words, get lucky."

There are sacrifices, too, or if you don't like that word, perhaps the better word is tradeoffs.

Let's drift from writing for a moment over to musicians. If you're reasonably talented as a musician, you can undoubtedly make a living at it. Let's say you're a guitarist. You can teach guitar lessons. You can form a band or join a band--any kind--and play gigs on weekends at festivals and bars. If you've got the right kind of skill, you can play at weddings and hook up with a singer or for church services at a church large enough to offer some sort of fee.

The next level involves touring, regionally or broader. Burning your own CD and selling it along with whatever performances you give. Then on to wider tours, record contracts, international tours, big companies backing you.

Or breaking in as a studio musician, putting together soundtracks for TV shows, movies, video games, TV commercials.

Yes, that will require you to give up stability, work piecemeal, change where you live to where the work is, work, get your name out there, work, hone your skills, network, work, practice, be flexible and willing to go where the jobs are.

I sense--I was there once--that an awful lot of aspiring novelists believe they will write their novel, get the big contract, and they can make a living--not just a living, but a great living--as a novelist.

And maybe they will.

But I think that's not the way most people make a living in the arts. Yes, there are actors out there like Harrison Ford or Angelina Jolie who are superstars and can work once a year or once every five years and live happily on the income. There are writers and singers, etc., that are in that same position.

But in any field there's also likely to be an actor who guests on dozen TV shows a year, gets hired to film a few TV pilots, does some TV commercials, acts as an extra a couple times a year on films, does some dinner theater, maybe gives acting lessons, and you know what? Sometimes these people make a decent living.

Writers, too. Lot of novelists out there who work other jobs, or like me, write nonfiction and edit newsletters and technical journals, and write book reviews, and in the case of other novelists, some may teach at their local college or put on seminars or even tend bar.

The point is, well, diversify.

Don't look at me, if you don't want to. Let's look at Lee Goldberg. He writes for TV shows, both on staff and as a freelancer. He writes novel tie-ins for TV shows. He writes novels under his own name. He's written a couple nonfiction books. Prior to breaking into TV he wrote magazine articles, and maybe still does.

I think, in the long run, it is possible to make a living as a writer. But branching out and considering--and be willing--to work outside one area of writing, will increase the odds.

Best,
Mark Terry