A Reason to Write, Part 1

In my view, aside from the universal, natural need to communicate, there are two other compelling reasons why people write: to make a living (writing for a living) and to express one’s self (writing to live). This is by no means an all-inclusive categorization, and you are welcome to disagree.

 

Writing for a Living

Not too long ago, there was this notion that there’s no money in writing, and that if you pursue a writing career, you could starve. Why did I work for call centers, in the first place? I know a lot of friends and former colleagues in the industry who aspire and plan to be writers, but could not leave their relatively secure, high-paying jobs just to pursue a dream.

But that’s all changing now—there are plenty of opportunities for writers now, thanks to the Internet and the globalization of the job market. Just check the online job boards. A lot of companies, local and offshore, are looking for content writers, SEO copywriters, article writers, editors, researchers, marketers and all sorts of technologically-savvy workers who could put together a decent written piece to help keep up with the global demand for timely, fresh and marketable content. And there’s reason to believe this trend isn’t going to change anytime soon.

I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I could earn more as a writer than as a call center worker. It took me a while to get back to writing but I’m glad I did. It’s extremely gratifying to be well-compensated for doing something I’ve always wanted to do, and do well in.

I’d still lose sleep and go crazy over it (deadlines and such), but at the end of the day, I think I’d prefer that kind of stress over stressing out and getting promoted in a call center environment. “I’d rather try and fail at something I love, than to succeed at something I don’t,” to loosely quote George Burns (I don’t exactly “hate” call center work—the original quote is “I’d rather fail at doing something I love than succeed at doing something I hate.”).

This may sound trite but it’s a piece of wisdom: Do what you love, the money will come. Just ask the professional blog writers.

Up next is writing reason #2: Writing to live.