Jobs to Consider If Youre An Aspiring Author

Jobs to Consider If Youre An Aspiring AuthorJobs to Consider If Youre An Aspiring AuthorWhen you are a talented writer, its quite common for friends to ask when youre going to get around to writing your first book. And if youre a writer, the odds are high youve considered writing a book or that your first draft is sitting on your computer ready to go.Before you pick up the latest copy of Writers Market and start sending out queries, its important to consider what the day-to-day life of being a published author is really like. Heres a look at the dream and the reality of being an author, as well as a few alternative careers for passionate writers outside the author track.Published Author, The Job Description Of Your DreamsThe dream version of being an author takes two shapes its either a peaceful reverie in which you quietly tap away at your keyboard while your fans wait with bated breath for your next release, or its a thrilling adventure filled with exotic speaking gigs and book-tur ned-movie deals that exceed your wildest financial expectations. In both ideal worlds money is rarely an issue and your publisher and agent tackle the tough details like contracts, distribution and marketing. Writing is the only thing on your plate, and the only thing holding you back is your own writers block (and your need for a second cup of coffee).Published Author, The Job Description In Real LifeThe reality of this career path has a lot of challenges associated with it. The first is simply being able to write a compelling novel or short story, which can take years to compose, edit and finish. Even if you can do the work, modern approaches to publishing have made it increasingly difficult to get an agent, a publisher and an audience. Youre competing with thousands of other authors who are writing blogs, building their audience with social media and often self-publishing through digital devices such as the Kindle and Nook. When published, the average authors paycheck falls on th e small side of minimum wage.Even if you finally achieve financial success, success doesnt always equate to an easy career. Published authors are notoriously vocal about what a difficult career writing is to pursue. One popular, unattributed quote regarding writing for a living is, If you can do anything else, do it, and best-selling author Michael Crichton agreesthat anyone who can avoid writing for a living should do so. The writing life is full of internal and external obstacles such as writers block, time management and discipline, which make it less than an ideal fit for everyone who dreams of being a published author. What To Do Instead of Being a Published AuthorIn todays world, writing doesnt have to be an all-or-nothing endeavor. There are many ways you can satiate your desire to write without forcing yourself to pursue a book deal. Consider one of these writing and publishing-related fields as a way to test out different aspects of a career of a published authorCopywriterP ublishingBloggerGhostwriterEditorMany authors got their start working different jobs in the publishing and writing world. Try out some of these jobs and keep working on your manuscript and well hope to see you on the bestseller list.