by Patricia Gilliam

Created on: June 29, 2010

While it's still possible to have fun writing for profit, there are a few factors you need to consider when you make the transition from hobby to business.  Not all of these changes need to happen overnight, but they'll help you get off to a good start as far as profitability:

1)  First, you need to familiarize yourself with the writing industry and general business concepts.

It is rare to get a practical business education from high school and college alone, which I think is a major reason many businesses fail before they get off the ground.  Spend some time browsing the personal finance and business section of your local bookstore, and you'll encounter the concept of residual income.  In terms of being a writer, this is also known as royalty income.  Long-term, you'll be more successful financially if you focus your business on making repeat income off of single projects, including articles and books.  You also need to speak to the person who does your taxes, since he or she can advise you of things you can save and record that can help you.

The writing industry itself is changing rapidly along with technology, so you need to stay informed of changes in both to position yourself.  Offering your products in both a traditional and electronic format can increase your profits and gain you a wider range in audience as well.

2)  Patience and persistance are vital to success.

If you become bored with a hobby, you can always drop it and pick it up again whenever you want.  If you want to treat writing as a business however, you have to persist through the times that aren't as fun.  Writing quality articles on a regular schedule or producing a novel require a degree of self-discipline.  In my personal experience, I started off with articles and short stories until I developed the right habits needed for more massive projects.

What will separate a successful writer from his or her competition is how they handle resistance and set-backs.  A vast majority of people will give up on their first initial failure or set-back.  If you understand and keep perspective that everyone encounters these issues, you can learn from them instead of let them discourage you.

3)  There are changes involved in writing for others compared to just writing for yourself.

Your skills as a writer may not be as refined as they need to be when you first start out, but you can get feedback and improve over time as you learn new concepts.  Criticism can be helpful when it's done in a respectful way, which is why I recommend joining either a local or online writing group.  In these situations, you can help other writers with your strong points while they help you with your weak ones.  The community of Writing.com is a good place to start, and there are others as well.  It's also good to make an effort to learn from any author more experienced than you because it will save you a lot of time and hassle getting to the same point.

I hope you've found these tips helpful.  Good luck and best wishes to you!

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