Can everyone I ask who actually makes a living out of writing?
Or do most people do it in there spare time to pick up a few extra quid?
Who makes a living?
On here, I'd guess only Marc P makes a proper living. The bastard.
I work full time in the building industry, writing is my passion but it doesn't pay the bills, yet.
I make a vast fortune, with which I can buy mansions, slaves and ugly yappy dogs.
If I lived in 12th century Bangladesh.
Quote: sootyj @ December 18 2008, 1:22 PM GMTI make a vast fortune, with which I can buy mansions, slaves and ugly yappy dogs.
If I lived in 12th century Bangladesh.
I am making a living. On contract with a book working on now. Of course it is not being done in traditional ways and I am new at this and have a helper that I have moved close to.*well close to her summer home because I would not move to the big city she dwells in a lot
All in all, it has been a good experience, has changed my life much. I lucked into this and do not consider myself above others or some great scholar. Sometimes the worst things in life can turn to be a door to goodness.
On here the majority of people are currently writing as a hobby, some with an aim of turning it into a job, but some just doing it purely for fun.
You will find a few people on the cusps of crossing over into making comedy their day job on here though.
A few have already made the jump, but once people have made it they tend to avoid the site (I guess because it becomes hard to talk about your opinion of comedies freely any more, what with a production company breathing down your neck).
Search for 'Meet The Writers' for David Bussell's fun interviews with some writers on here.
I started in 1999 and signed on and did part time work for the first year. I've been full time since then.
I've been writing for a living since 1995. My last "proper job" was as a bar manager back in '94.
Oh happy memories of actual people and actual conversations and actually moving my body slightly.
Quote: chipolata @ December 18 2008, 1:21 PM GMTOn here, I'd guess only Marc P makes a proper living. The bastard.
you may call me a bastard too.
I'm currently studying to become a lawyer in 2 years time. Hopefully going to put pen to paper for the first time over Christmas... The race is on...
Only if you count journalism as writing... I don't.
Quote: Rustle T Davis @ December 18 2008, 11:27 PM GMTOnly if you count journalism as writing... I don't.
Journalism's a REAL writer's job, surely. 
I'm no longer a lab manager, I am now a process technologist (no I don't know what it means either, I've only been doing it for 2 days).
Writing is something I stumbled into and is just fun to do on the tube home.
Snap. Except I'm in pharmaceutical technology. And it's really, really fun....
Quote: Lee Henman @ December 18 2008, 11:46 PM GMTJournalism's a REAL writer's job, surely.
I do that journalism. Used to be in local news - and I suspect writing a 300 word page lead on a fire/murder/wedding anniversary/rabbit rape is as formulaic as working in a lab. By the time you've got your what, when, where, who, why, how, quotes etc in, there's very little room for any creative juices you feel the need to unleash.
You don't even get to write amusing headline puns - that's a job jealously guarded by the sub-editors. The best I ever saw was about a farmer who kindly moved the young family of birds of prey discovered on his land to safety one night. The headline? 'Four kestrel manoeuvres in the dark.'
So far the sum total I have been paid is £500! Woop!
But I am only a beginner so I guess that is not bad.