The Balanced Writer: Write Full-Time while Working Full-Time

I never in a million years thought that I would ever release a book—definitely not a book that was 1,300 pages long. It turns out that I love to write, a passion that I believe that many people share with me.

So why aren’t there more writers? In one word—life. Once we get out into the real world, we have many things competing for our time. We have a spouse, children, and work that absorb most of our time.

Once we satisfy those primary responsibilities, we still have minor chores like shopping, paying bills, and cleaning. It can seem like a never-ending battle for your sanity. But, I can promise you one thing; if you let it kick your ass, it will.

Don’t Gamble with Retirement 5

Take control. I am not here to tell you that it will be easy to become a writer, start a business, or open a YouTube channel. I am here to tell you that you can do it. I have a full-time job where I am responsible for people and equipment. I am a US Marine (22+ years).

For the first 20 years, I put all of my effort into the Marine Corps and my young family. I achieved the 1% status when promoted to Master Gunnery Sergeant (E-9). However, we were still struggling with our finances—something had to change.

I stumbled on the words “Passive Income” and started to invest in dividend-paying stocks and interest-paying bonds. The more I learned about passive income, the more I wanted to create new income streams.

I read that blogging was a good source of passive income, so I opened a blog. I knew nothing about the art of writing. My early work sucked but was invaluable to my education. Finally, I read a few books that set me on my current trajectory. 

How to Thrive in the Gig Economy

First, “How to Take Smart Notes” taught me how to create a never-ending stream of content. Next, “On Writing Well” showed me that writing is an art; take it seriously. “How to Blog for Profit” was the first book that showed me that writing could be a viable long-term business. Finally, “The Practice” taught me the importance of releasing my art to the world on a daily basis. 

This combination of books gave me the mental toughness to create every day. You have to separate yourself from the results. Without solid core values, you will have difficulty writing through daily life. 

The Contract. The most important aspect of becoming a full-time writer while working full-time is the contract. You have to make a pact with your audience, whether you have one or not, that you will show up every day. 

You don’t necessarily have to release content every day, but you have to create content daily. This means you need to write, draw, shoot, or sing every day. There are no off-days. Even if you spend the day preparing for the next week of production, you have created something. 

Most people want to write when they feel like it. This creates the false sense that there is such a thing as “writer’s block.” One of my favorite authors, Seth Godin, doesn’t believe in writer’s block.

Earned Income vs. Passive Income

After writing 500+ articles in a row, I don’t either. Yes, your creative tank could be empty, but that means you need to read more content. Mixing ideas is the best way to create new, fresh content. You could easily write every day for the rest of your life and never make a dent in all the topics you want to cover.

Say you love Star Wars and Star Trek, why not make a series comparing the two. We have art design, ships, characters, alien races, uniforms, bad guys, good guys, lead heroes, etc. You could write for two months just on the original series. 

You have to love your writing, and it has to be for you. Every time I look on Pinterest and see my 445+ articles, 75+ book reviews, 120+ Amazon books, and 80+ pdf books, I am proud. It is hard to imagine this all came from my brain. The scary part is that I have only been at it for a year. 

Separate yourself from the results. Writing to get results will make you hate writing. This goes for any business; time is the one element you can’t control. As much as we think our art is impressive, it will take time for you to find an audience. 

Passive Income: How to Stay Motivated

Separating yourself from the results means not counting on numbers and milestones. How many Facebook likes, page views, or downloads. You must take it all with a grain of salt. It takes practice, but you’ll get used to “being surprised” by certain achievements. 

The book “The Compound Effect” talks about how the world works. Every word that you release into the world can find an audience. The more words you release, the more chances you have of someone finding you. However, it takes time, maybe years, for your dedicated audience to find you.

The media wants you to rush this magical effect, usually by buying ads. I tried this method with Facebook ads and wasn’t happy with the results. The people you bring into the fold “are not your people.” That’s why we want to write when we have a full-time job—it gives us time.

Full-time Job/Full-Time Writer. It may seem impossible to spend two hours a day writing and creating, but if you love it, you can easily do it. I wrote an article called “Standard Employee by Day, Passive Income Hero by Night,” which explains the importance of the passive income grind. 

For me, I write in the middle of the night, or what I like to call the magic hours. These invisible hours are great because no one disturbs you. You can accomplish more in the magic hours than most people can in a week. Heck, you can write a book in a week. 

But, you have to find the right timing for you and your family. Yes, I have a wife (16 years of marriage) and kids (ages 15 and 10). I work a 40+ hour work week, and we even have a dog. However, I cannot allow myself the excuse of blaming them for my work ethic. 

Inflation vs. Passive Income

Once you make writing a mandatory piece of your life, everything will work the way you intend. Yes, you need to explain to your family what you are doing, and why’s it important. But why is writing vital to your long-term goals?

Writing as a business. You can build a successful income stream if you can write every day for five years (or 10,000 hours). I never thought writing could become such a powerful wealth generator, but I learned quickly. 

Once you have your works complete, you can monetize them almost forever. With the progress of artificial intelligence, you will translate your books into multiple languages. You can also convert them to audiobooks with multiple voice options. I read about these fantastic future income streams in “Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, and Virtual Worlds.”

You can publish your book to multiple platforms, create special editions and collections, and sell the rights to overseas publishers. Then you have affiliate marketing and sponsorships to increase your income. The books “Creating Income Streams” and “How to Make a Living with Your Writing” go into detail about the business side of the house. 

But before… But Before you try to truly monetize your work, give it five years. Why should anyone take you seriously if you don’t have a track record of success? You have to prove to your audience that you are here for the long haul. 

Mother as Entrepreneurs 2

I am one year into my journey, and it feels good. Things are moving along smoothly, and I have a tiny audience. More importantly, I am proving to myself that I deserve to call myself a writer. I do the work in the morning, after work, and on the weekends. Life is good, and writing has been an excellent addition to my passive income portfolio. 

As a writer, the money is there; you just have to put in the work. One caveat, don’t overdo it. You cannot rush the magic that is compounding. After about six months of grinding, I read “The Relaxed Author.” This book helped me find some measure of balance and not be too hard on myself. 

While the saying “More Content, More Cash Flow” is true, you want to set a daily goal and stick to it. Some days you have the energy to keep going, but enjoy your time off. Take some of your royalties and take the family out to dinner. Trust me, creating a little every day for years is better than doing a lot in one year then burning out. Think about your long-term health and wealth—build wealth slowly. 

Can You Achieve Work-Life Balance?

Conclusion. You have to love your topics. You may not love writing, but that passion comes from writing about something that brightens your day. Creating crazy combinations will lead to awesome content (for example, “Self-Storage vs. Mobile Home vs. RV Park”).

The balance of writing comes from love. You cannot sustain the daily pace if you find it a chore. Similar to working out or going on a diet, you have to find the end state and work towards it. 

Writing can become a full-time career, but you must first prove to the world that you are a writer. That takes five years (my made-up timeline). If five years sounds like too much, this may not be the world you want to enter. People publish millions of books to Amazon every year; why should someone pick yours? 

If you are serious about becoming a writer, join my Facebook group and talk about your journey. Until next time, keep writing and reading. 

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