How to Make Money as a Writer – Guaranteed

by Cindy Sproles @CindyDevoted

How to make money as a writer - guaranteed!

How do you make money as a writer? Easy. Write smut! It’s a guaranteed paycheck and if you play your cards right—fame and fortune can follow. Now before you go all self-righteous on me—hear me out.

Let’s face it. Once you are a published novelist, by the time everyone takes a bite of the profit, most authors, are no better off financially, than they were before they wrote the story. So the burning question becomes, why do I write if I never get paid?

That, my friend, is the age old corundum.

You could write today, submit (even if the writing it substandard), and probably earn a decent check if you chose to write smut. Or if you opt for the politically correct, “erotica.”

The market screams for trash.

The market screams for trash. And worse yet, daily writers are stooping to all-time lows, for the title. Not all writers go this route. Scruples still exist in the industry. However, more and more wanna-be writers are seeing that to be noticed in the industry, smutty works. Look at Fifty Shades of Grey. I can’t speak to the quality of the writing because I never read the book. But I can tell you, that author gained her notoriety and money quickly by glorifying bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, and sadism and masochism. (Which by the way, I find it a bit ironic as I look at reviews, that Anastasia falls for a guy named Christian.) But I digress.

My point is, if money and fame is what you are after, then erotica is the dirty elephant in the room that Christians don’t want to mention.

According to www.theguardian.com, 54% of traditionally-published authors and a staggering 80% of self-published authors make less than $1000 or less per year.

So why do I point out this elephant? Because it’s an issue that will test your beliefs and standards. Everyone reading this post are probably not writers in the Christian market. Secular or Christian – the fact remains, as a writer, you must set your standards. What will you write and where do you draw the line? Does your faith outshine earthly desires to have a book on the shelves?

Your standards, be them in your writing or in your daily living, speak to who you are and the hard part comes when your earthly desires fight against your inner beliefs. The easy way to being published is to go the way of least resistance. If the world wants immoral reading, then give them what they want. But it’s more than that. Writing is more than giving the world what it craves.

I have a multi-Christy winner friend, who remarked, “No one wants a good story anymore. No one cares about good, well-written work.” This, unfortunately, is true. Give the people a quickly written, cheaply told, story that promotes the ways of the world, and it will be read. But a book so beautifully crafted that its story churns the soul. . .that’s a different thing. It has to paddle upstream to find a place.

Look seriously at why you write.

I challenge you to seriously look at why you write. If it’s merely for the paycheck, you can go to Wal-Mart and get a job. But if you aim to be different—shoot for a higher standard, recognition comes slow, money comes even slower. The real paycheck are the lives you can change.

A well written, wholesome story can dig into the soul of a reader, grasp hold and not turn lose. A story well-told, becomes timeless, shared extensively because it’s just good. Good stories can have tragedy, hardship, and death, but they can also have hope—something a suffering world seeks.

Before you bend to ways of the world, ask yourself these questions:

• Is this something I morally believe to be right? In your heart of hearts, you have a gage that your parents balanced in you as a child. You have the basic beliefs of what is right and wrong. Do not fall for the lie: But that’s what they expect. The world hungers for that basic core values to be reinstated. Remember, we were created with a void within us. One meant to be filled by our love of God. For those who have no guidance on how to fill that void, your option to write differently can most certainly point them in the right direction.

• Would I be proud for my children or grandchildren to read this at show and tell? It’s a valid question and one that needs to be thought through before pen goes to paper.

• How will this affect my career in the future? And it will affect your career in the future.

• Am I raising the bar or bending beneath it? You can, after all, set the new standard. My grandmother once told me, “Life is fulla wants. But wants ain’t what a body lives by. It’s needs.” That, was her sweet mountain way of saying reminding me, if my friends told me to jump off a bridge would I do it? You don’t have to bend beneath the bar. Raise it.

Simply put, writers have valuable roles in the world and though the ultimate goal would be to seek payment and receive it, the reality is, that happens 1% of the time. What we do with the other 99% in our standards. 

Do not be afraid to set your standard high. Write quality work. Use your words wisely. A day will come when you make a meager living at writing. If you work hard, the day may arrive sooner than later that you make a substantial living. And it will be a day you can look back on with pride.

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Cindy Sproles is an award-winning author and popular speaker. She is the cofounder of Christian Devotions ministries and managing editor of Straight Street Books and SonRise Devotionals, imprints of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas. Cindy is the executive editor of www.christiandevotions.us and www.inspireafire.com. She teaches at writers conferences nationwide and directs The Asheville Christian Writers Conference - Writers Boot Camp. 

She is the author of two devotionals, He Said, She Said - Learning to Live a Life of Passion and New Sheets - Thirty Days to Refine You into the Woman You Can Be. Cindy's debut novel, Mercy's Rain, is available at major retailers. Visit Cindy at www.cindysproles.com and book her for your next conference or ladies retreat. Also connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.