Fresh off the maiden voyage of “Authors on a Train,” J. gushes over the amazing attendees before asking Petal about the difference between the amateur and pro mindset. FYI, both Petal and Metal have done everything they mention in this episode.
What’s your answer to our question? Leave one in the comments…
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Oh my word. That cover is amazing!
Thank you for the kick in the butt today. I have been trying to write for NaNoWriMo after work. And failing miserably, for the most part. I need to force myself back into the habit of getting up and writing in the morning.
You guys are great! The end.
Stephen Hawking is one of my idols. Pure inspiration. I always think, if this guy doesn’t play victim or make excuses, nobody else should either 😉
https://www.amazon.com/Stephen-Hawking/e/B000AP5X0M/
Morning is the way for so many of us (the majority of us). It’s just that mornings are also so good for SLEEEEEEP…. 🙂
Showed up to answer the question and got that cover in my eyeballs instead. Snort. You guys make me smile. And this is a good day for smiling.
I’ve always thought professional v. hobbyist would mean (1) other people not just buying, but recommending my book/s, (2) me investing not just time, but money, and (3) not only developing writing/publishing systems, but maintaining them in the face of family resistance. Currently I’m moving from 2a to 2b in the non-fiction, but I’m back at 1a for fiction. And suffering 3 in both.
I was seriously tempted to jump to #4 networking and go enjoy the SMBS summit when Bryan talked about it, but you guys have dragged me right up to the edge.
Ha! I don’t hard sell. Anything. So won’t do that for SMBS Summit either.
But true story: Story Grid certification cost lots. Thousands. It was way more than I should have spent at the time, given bills, family situation, etc. But I knew it was an investment and feeling the financial pinch made it all the more important for me to act on it. I think one of the downsides of the relatively inexpensive “online course” is that it’s easy to blow off if you’re “not in the mood” to do the lessons or implement the things you learn.
Yup. Perhaps it’ll be my reward for getting the short stories live, the website revamped, the autoresponders written, and AMS learned. Maybe my first financial goal is to make the short stories pay for the trip. Doing the math. Procrastinating from current writing by doing math. DC out.
Dang, it ate my comment from yesterday! Like J, I don’t hard sell BUT I see huge value in creating community. Even if you don’t make it to Chicago, is there a community of writers there you could join? Even Meetups aren’t bad. I can’t stress how much my writing community has meant to my life…
Great episode, guys! I am so still in the amateur camp — and will stay there until I stop waffling and become more disciplined. In many ways I feel like I “think” like a professional, but I need to “do” like a professional, if that makes sense.
There’s nothing wrong with that. Knowing where you are and where you want to go is a great place to be.
Yep, knowing that is huge! When you do make the shift, you’ll be able to really KNOW it.
The tip about making writing a priority was a real wakeup call for me. I’ve been letting other things get in the way because I’m “so” busy doing the other things that aren’t advancing my writing. I’m definitely in the camp of wanting to turn from an amateur to a pro. I’m working on my first book. Do you think you can be considered a pro after writing one book?
You’re a pro when you decide you’re a pro 😉
Agree with J. You can be a pro BEFORE you finish writing that book. It’s about CHOOSING to make the sacrifices that get you where you want to be. You can do it!
I won’t lie, I saw the cover before I listened to the episode and thought “Oh God, Rachael’s forgotten everything she learned about horrible covers!” I laughed hysterically when I found out what you actually did with it.
YOU JUST MADE MY DAY HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
That cover is epic! The colors, the fonts… well done!
On to the question: I consider myself pro. Joanna Penn’s “Business For Authors” nudged me to turn the corner. I listened to it shortly after it came out in audio in late 2014 and so much clicked into place. I knew I wanted to be a full time author, but the book really focused me on steps to take to make it so rather than being scattered about when I wrote and when I got things done.
in January 2015 I set up a separate bank account and set a production schedule for myself as well as set the goal to really be mindful of marketing/promotion. I’ve been on a schedule ever since. I was over ambitious this year with what I thought I could do while holding down a day job, but it was good to try to stretch myself. I plan to be similarly aggressive with plans in 2018, but this time divide up what “must” get done versus what would be a bonus.
I like to revisit Joanna’s book periodically to grab on to things I may not be doing yet. Nearly three years now of being “pro” and I feel there’s so much more to do, especially on the business/marketing side. I think it’s the project manager side of my brain (that’s the day job) that let’s me be at least somewhat realistic in terms of how to use the time and prioritize.
RIGHT? I’m telling you. Give me $500 a cover and I will blow your MIND.
Joanna’s book is great, isn’t it?
That’s awesome, Jeff. So much of life is setting intention and then taking small, measurable steps. I’ve never been much of a “goal setter” because I believe in a weird way it caps your growth potential, you don’t “shoot beyond” your stated goal. Because of that, setting intention constantly pushes you in the right direction because you never quite get there.
Intention vs. goal. That’s an interesting contrast. That’s a new way to think of things since I usually break it down into goals (what has to happen) and stretch goals (what would be good to happen if possible). But calling it all intention…. hmmmm….
Something to consider in the back of my mind while I revise the manuscript I’m working on. 🙂
Great question. One I’ve struggled with for some time. I’ve spent tremendous amounts of time and money feeding certain hobbies over the years that neither factor seems to apply directly to this question. At this time I see the difference between amateur and pro being a question of mindset vs the expectation of reaching that point where I have sufficient income to pay bills beyond covering my costs. I never expected my hobbies to generate cash flow, I hope my writing will one day reach that point.
I just thought of an interesting aside to my previous comment. I am not a professional computer tech and never expect to become one, but I do know enough to pull in a small side income helping people solve common computer problems. Enough that I’m using a % to fund my writing endevours.
Oh, that’s really cool, Edwin!
Nice! Great way to work towards full-time writer.
This was very motivating- the kick-in-the-butt kind of – episode. LOL. Being in the trenches of the middle of Nanowrimo and declaring this week official “catching-up week” it was exactly what I needed to hear. I’m generally good at getting daily time for my writing, but the moment something out of the ordinary happens, like traveling for work, having to paint the home office, etc. I totally lose the routine. I think that is where I still need to work on becoming a pro. Life is not predictable and things happen all the time. A professional will still show up.
BTW: I was supposed to post regular word count updates here as you guys were so amazing to offer to be my accountability partners. Despite not doing anything at all on social media all last week, at least I still got some words in and I’m currently 3,500 words behind at 31K for Nano. By Sunday, I want to be caught up!
Thank you Rachael and J for making this awesome show!
Sweet! Post here when you’re caught up 😉
You can and WILL catch up! Let us know when you do! I believe in you!
Since reading Steven Pressfield’s War Of Art, Turning Pro, and Do The Work just a month ago, I felt my mindset shifting from amateur to pro, but this podcast might just mark the end of my transition. I didn’t recognize myself in the amateur’s mindset you described, and it felt so good because I used to think them all. And I always thought I wasn’t ready to invest any money in my writing, but I just realize that I bought the Story Grid Workshop, marking the most financially important investment I’ve done in my writing career so far.
Rachael, when you said you didn’t really think it would happen, but then you made it happen, it struck me; even though I published only one short story and got paid only a contributor copy, I’m making it happen everyday, by writing, by learning the craft, by reading, by getting inspired by amazing writers like you guys.
In Turning Pro, Steven Pressfield said: « I wrote in the ‘War of Art’ that I could divide my life neatly into two parts: before turning pro and after. After is better. » Well, I think that’s how I know for sure that I’m a Pro now: now feels so much better then before.
Thank you so much, really. You can’t know how good it feels to be reminded every week that the dream job is possible.
Big hug 🙂
Aw! This is so awesome, Leftie. Thanks so much for sharing this with us! <3
So cool that the train writers was successful. Well done!
NB: I always think of it as strangers on a train… which is something entirely different… lol But metal and trains go together.
omg I gasped at what that woman said to you, Rachael.
I saw a twitter discussion recently and some ‘authors’ had no understanding of ANY business language. I mean, you can do research on what the name of a thing is for your book, but you can’t look up basic business stuff?
That cover… now what about that screamed Christmas? the lilac? the lack of red or green?