When Writing Is Your Profession

When writing is your profession, you write whether you feel like it or not. You write to put food on the table. You meet deadlines, sometimes juggle multiple deadlines, and no matter what kind of heaven you think it will be to someday support yourself writing, the pressures of constantly producing imaginary worlds that people will pay money to read is immense.

That means writing from a hospital bed, or a hospital waiting room. Writing with a migraine. Writing when your family is sullen about you ignoring them, or taking advantage of the situation and fighting or getting into trouble. It means saying no when people ask you to a movie, to coffee, or call to chat on the phone. It means having people think poorly of you, if they don't understand the concept that working at home means actually working, and that may be at hours way beyond any they spend in day jobs that end at five.

All of this was brought home to me when I saw this image shared today, a reminder that even in hotel rooms, writers are writing. Is she there because she's at a conference, or on vacation, or...? I don't know. But she has a deadline and she's writing in a hotel room.

When you decide you want to be a stay-at-home writer, ask yourself if you're happier when you write in your spare time, knowing your bills are being paid and your benefits are covered? And then make more spare time by saying no more often.