Zero to Full-Time Writer in 17 Days

…or maybe a few more days.

“Sorry. I can’t come to work today. I need to write.”

Yeah, um, that doesn’t work. Well, I suppose it could work, as long as I didn’t need little things like food or a heater in the winter. Also as long as my family didn’t need those things, either.

Practically, that means I write in the crevices of the day. I’m able to tackle my work in progress after my kids go to bed. Often enough I can carve out an hour in the afternoon as well. I recognize that’s actually more writing time than a lot of people get. Still, I’d love to be able to dedicate more time not just to writing but to all the other authorial activities. Things like editing, marketing, and such.

Of course, there’s that pesky need to eat.

My goal is to become a full-time writer. I’d like my books to support my family. That takes more than just putting out a single novel, though. The common wisdom these days is that you can support one person on your writing income after you’ve released twenty books.

You read that right.

It takes the income from twenty books to be able to support a single person, much less a family.

I currently have two books out. So, let me do some quick math here… um…

Hm.

Well, I guess I have more work to do.

Now, I’m not writing this to discourage myself nor to discourage any other aspiring writers that may be reading this. If you have a dream, it’s good to chase it, but you need to have a good idea of the path to get there. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Writing is work. If you want to make a living off your writing, you need to work.

And you need to plan.

Yesterday my wife and I sat down to map out the next few months of activities. I thought I knew what the next projects would be. As we looked at what was coming up though, I realized I had to do some rearranging. Actually, my wife realized it first, but she let me figure it out on my own so I could take credit.

But I think I know what I need to work on now. We’ve got a path forward. That path will likely take more than a few swerves. God tends to laugh when people make plans.

But we’ve got the next few steps figured out.

If you’re a writer, well, keep writing. Be ready for the long haul. Writing is work, but it’s worth it.

Oh, and Dawnsbrook is coming.

But more on that later.