Hobby vs. Printed vs Published vs. Professional Writer

When it comes to writing, there is a full spectrum you can fall on as an author. All of the places are fine, but please do understand there is a huge difference with each of these types. This is especially the case once you decide to move beyond being a hobby writer. Let's start there first.

You might be someone who just loves to write. You love going to critique groups and workshopping your story. You love just creating. You write when you want to. You may change what you are writing each week. There is nothing wrong with this. I applaud people who just love the craft of writing. If this is where you are at. feel confident to just hang out there and enjoy. DO NOT feel pressured to move beyond this. 

But what if you do want more. Sometimes, you may have just written something that you want to share with your friends. This is an awesome feeling. You created something and it is perfect for your close knit friends. This is when you can simply go to your local printer and put the book together. Put a great cover on it and share. Money is not an issue here. Please do understand, however, that if you take this approach, the product is probably far from something being worthy of being published. 

Published authors are moving on. This group "intends" to sell their book. Please note, I am really stressing sell their book. You have taken the step to get it printed up through a "publisher" which may be a self-publishing service, or a vanity press. You have an ISBN number and it may show up on sites like Amazon. Again, there is nothing wrong with this approach. You have moved on. HOWEVER... be cautious about what you start proclaiming about your writing. You may be claiming something that you are not. 

At this point, you can probably coach others for some basic craft things, but be cautious about how much career planning you trying to teach others. At this point, you writing is NOT a career. I have written two books of poetry. Yes, these are available for purchase, but I am NOT going to run around teaching people at workshops how to be a big time published poet. 

Now, let's move to being a professional writer. If you are at this stage, this is now a job for you. You are now doing more than just writing that one book. You are looking toward your next books in your career and have a clear plan on how to get there. If you are a professional writer, you are also working on marketing, networking and so forth. You aren't just showing up at local small writing conferences and slapping your book up in the "conference bookstore". We're talking about committing to a full marketing plan. You are actively on a website. You are actively promoting your book through social media and other platforms. Again, let me remind you, this is a FULL TIME JOB!!!! 

Just something to consider here on a Tuesday!