What Past Evidence Says About Authors and Financial Profit, is it Possible?

Is Financial Profit Possible?

Do you believe you can make a profit with your writing? 

We know well the preconception the world holds about writers: Writing isn’t lucrative. We’ve been given the look of surprise and skepticism from people when we say we are writers. 

But is this preconception true? In other words, is the dream of earning income from our writing unrealistic? 

It can be easy to bend to the weight of popular opinion, but before you decide they are right, take a look at all the evidence before you. There are plenty of writers working to make money, and there are many already making a modest income to a massive income because they stuck to writing. 

Before you follow your doubts, let’s explore the possibility of your success and what you would need to do to make a profit from your writing. 

Is profit possible? 

We’ve already decided we love to write, but have you thought about making money from doing what you love? Furthermore, if making a profit was possible, wouldn’t you want to make money from doing something meaningful to yourself? 

That’s a hands down yes for me. 

If you’re concerned the desire to make money with your writing will suck the passion from your work and make it commercial, think about this: making money will allow you to support yourself so you can continue to write.  Making money allows you to produce more stories to share. 

So, can writing be profitable? 

There is plenty of evidence of authors who have made a great income with their writing. To name a few, there is Neil Gaiman, Brad Thor, and J.K. Rowling. Even indie authors can make good money from their writing. Just take a look at the successful indie-author Mark Dawson. 

The more you look the more you see writers successfully receiving income from their fiction and non-fiction work. 

The bestselling author Jeff Goins has written a book and created a course on debunking the myth of the starving artist and showing artists like ourselves how we can make money with our art—our writing.  

Jeff Goins knows what he is talking about because he has built a business around helping creatives build a life where they can share their work, get noticed, and make money from it. 

You are not alone in believing you can reap good income from your writing. It is possible, what you need to find out is how it can be possible for you. 

4 things you’ll need to do

Now that you know it is possible, let’s scratch the surface and take a glance at just 4 things we’ll need to do in order to make it our reality.

1. Never stop learning. Continue your education on how to write better, how to build a healthy platform, and how you will sell your writing. There is always something more you can learn. 

2. Be creative in ideas. You will have your books to sell, but is there any other ways you’ve considered earning money? What about building an online course, becoming an event speaker, freelancing, ghostwriting, or employing affiliate links? To make good money as a writer it’s smart to consider employing a few different streams of income.

3. Stretch your boundaries. Be ready to venture into the unknown. To be successful you will need to learn and do new things regularly. This can be uncomfortable, but keep your eye on the goal. 

4. Keep writing. Always, always write. Never stop crafting new content, honing your style, and exercising your imagination.  

It’s worth the effort

To take the next step in your writing will take massive commitment. It will take more effort and be more uncomfortable than you think, but it will be worth the work when your writing is consumed and valued by customers. 

The more we grow and income we gain, the more opportunity we will have to create more. 

I will confess I have not made much from my writing up to this point, but I believe in the evidence that it is possible and I am committed to giving it my best try. 

And that is all you need to do—commit to giving your writing a serious try. 

You can’t stay in the dreaming phase forever. You must decide to take steps everyday to be like the writers you follow. Decide to commit to the effort it will take and believe in your capabilities and passion to achieve it. 

Believe in the possible

Never believe the lie that you can’t make money from your writing. There is evidence all around you that this is possible if you know what you’re doing. With the right mindset and tools you can do more than you believe is possible. 

If you still aren’t convinced or want to know more about how this is possible, I recommend taking a look at Jeff Goins’s book Real Artists Don’t Starve. There is plenty of evidence he has collected to debunk the lies many believe about creatives like ourselves. 

If you have already decided to give this life your best shot, or have already made some gains, Congratulations! 

Success is possible if we decide to go for it.

Featured photo by rawpixel on Unsplash