Is being a writer a good career by itself?

Question:

Is being a writer a good career by itself?

would writing novels be a good career or should it be balenced with something else?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Unless you are enormously talented, it's sort of like aspiring to be a professional athlete or rock star. Sure, you can do it with enough effort, but do a lot of research before deciding on novel writing as a career move.

I work in a public library and every year we have a Local Authors Exhibit, where we display a vast array of books. I mean no disrespect to anyone, but many of these authors believe they are the next Hemmingway and have the attitudes to match.

Trouble is, many of these authors (particularly novel writers) are published by vanity presses - publishing houses that charge the author for the privilege of seeing their words on cheap paper and crappy cover art.

I would be the last person to discourage you from pursuing your dreams as a writer - I've made some decent pocket change freelancing for over 20 years, although it's nothing I could live on.

But what I am saying is that you should make sure you know exactly what you're getting into. Talk to a college counselor and take some writing classes. And while its tough for many writers, you have to be completely open to the editing process. Your editor can be the best friend you've got. You also have to network - not just with fellow writers (who are prone to blowing smoke up each others butts), but with industry professionals. You also need to understand what the market is, what publishing houses are looking for and what you can bring to the table that both exploits the market and hopefully, creates a new niche.

Good luck!