Be Specific When You Talk About Money and Writing

I wonder about the issue of money.  I think that most writers want to have a successful writing career and sell some books.  In fact many writers mention money as a "thing," a byproduct of their writing.

Writers are very general when it comes to money, and we shouldn't be.  I would like to say that making money writing is a reasonably easy thing to do, except that sometimes we get ahead of ourselves.  I understand this because I get ahead of myself a lot of the time as well.

Money is a big issue.  I would like to make some money to prove to others that I am good writer.  This means that I need to improve my writing, but I also need to publish a book that sells -- not just to a niche market but to other larger markets as well.

I also need to become more specific when I deal with money and writing.

I could say something along the lines of: I will personally sell 8 books this week, and edit my upcoming book. These are very specific goals.  It's good because I can have someone ask me if I have done this, and I can answer yes or no.  There is, however, something I didn't think of before:  There are two money goals in that statement.

One is short term:  I am selling 8 books this week.  The other is longer term: editing my next book so that it sells well later on when I publish it.

Writing for money is both short term and long term prospect.  It is a commitment to writing and editing your work.  I also believe it is about making sure that people know about your writing and are willing to spend money on what they see.  That is how you make money.  You need to write.

Money comes to you when you are passionate about your writing.  People are very smart, and they can tell if you are in it for the money or if you feel that this is a book you would love to read, even if you are not the author.

Passion, when combined with confidence, will get you far.  But it will only get you as far as the next sale.  To make your book grow, you need to spend some money to have long-term sales.  Even then, it means you will have to be very specific about money, and your writing and your goals -- all a part of being passionate about and confident in your work.

Talk up your book and be specific about your goals.

Write This Book

I think the hardest part about being a writer is getting back to writing, especially if you have just published a book. I am thinking of joining a writing class. A creative writing course will improve not only my writing but my focus. I think that will make my editor feel better -- or worse. I am not sure which one as yet.


It was Jane's suggestion to read aloud what I write.  This has helped me speed up my writing and also improve the speed at which I edit.

I still need to write this book.

It is not hard, but it is time consuming and I have learned from my past mistakes.  I am writing about "writing a blog."  I think it will speak to a good market because many writers are looking for ways to improve their blog, specifically in terms of publishing a good post.

The key to success?  (Or at least some more success?) Write this book. 

The truth? Write any book and work hard on marketing that book.

Do These Go Hand in Hand?: Making Money and Writing

The question seems to always come up, when you have published anything, a blog or a online article or even a book (or three) people inevitably ask, do you make money?

Well in sense, yes I make money with my writing, but I am usually not asked how much.  I think most people do not see writing -- or writers -- as people who make a lot of money from their work.  I never really wondered about it since my book has steady sales, until I was asked, how well does your book do?

My answer: well, it does well.  It has sales.

It seems like a good answer, but I am glad this person asked more.  In fact I am glad when questions about money, and blogging come up in conversation.  The person then asked another question:  What sort of sales?  To friends and family?

My answer:  I have not done much promotion, but for the most part it has sold books on amazon and I've sold a lot of them personally.

I think that they wanted numbers- or something a bit more specific.  Book numbers.  I have a niche type book, and this means that while it's not a hot seller, it has respectable sales.  By respectable, I mean that I've sold about 50 or so copies of In Search of The Lost Ones on Amazon.com.  So I think that it is pretty respectable.

I've also had two reviews on the book, and they were complimentary.  I'm glad a writer's life is never dull.  So can money go hand in hand with your writing?

Yes, if you work hard at what you do and focus on your writing, and then have a number of books and online articles published, then I can foresee success, and I can say that you will find that making money and writing is something you can do for a living.

It's important for me to talk about writing as something I can do for a living, but  I have learned start to become more specific with my answers if people ask about my writing, my blogs or my books.  I have also set SMART goals for myself, and can use them as a measuring stick to help me answer.

To answer, yes, money and writing go hand in hand, I have to become very focused and work at promoting my writing a lot more than what I have been doing lately.  I know that when promotion of a book  or a blog happens, the traffic, and sales generally increase with that promotion. That is when everything works, hand in hand.