Writing For Pennies

I’m sure you’ve all seen it. Five dollars for a thousand-word article. Spending precious writing time on projects that pay pennies.

For what?

Everyone says to get your name out there. Become an expert at something and write about it so you’ll get a following so agents will notice you. While this is good advice I have to wonder if it’s right for me. Is it worth it spending all that time and energy away from my fiction to actually publish something online just to say I’m a freelancer?

I don’t know.

There are plenty of successful writers out there who make a career at freelancing and work on their fiction on the  side. I say good for them. But I’m not sure if I can join that group. Not because I

doubt my writing abilities, but because I want my fiction to be the centerpiece of my career. Not my hobbyist outdoor/camping/hiking articles. I honestly don’t know how readers who like my take on the

outdoors will care for my fantasy romances. I mean, it’s one thing to get a website and trying to get your name out there.

It’s quite another to actually work on a separate career from your fiction.

But when thinking about that, I have to wonder. How many of us have a separate career?

Most of us have to make money for rent and groceries so the day job is the other career. I don’t know about you, but I find it exhausting to even consider a fiction writing career, a seriously consistent

freelance career, plus the career that pays the bills. And if you’re a glutton for punishment like me, then you have two jobs instead of one.

So I’ll continue looking on Craig’s List and searching for jobs and when one that pays decent pops up I’ll apply and cross my fingers. Until then, I’ll work on my fiction. And my two day jobs.

Andrea Dennin