Is the Writing Life Worth It?

I have to believe it’s worth it. Otherwise, what’s the point in trying anything at all? I write because I love it. I also write to make sense of life and heartbreak around me. Nothing good is ever easy.

Writing’s a privilege, and a voluntary activity. It has its moments of frustration, sure. It has its disappointments. And there are the lights defined by these shadows, the joys of recognition, and warm glow of accomplishment

It’s not life and death – and life and death are out there. The deepest lows in a writer’s life are nothing compared to holding a child who moments before was warm with life and hope – and whose breaths are now fading into a death rattle.

I’m not trying to rope in some good hyperbole. But I think we need to remind ourselves that we’ve got it pretty good, and avoid, in our hearts, over-dramatizing the challenges – and finding that we have spent emotional capital on moments that didn’t warrant the cost.

If we do, we’ll one day realize that we cried when we should have laughed. As writers, emotion is the currency of our trade. The danger is being caught up in it.

That, more than anything, is the potential price.

Writing’s worth it. Buying a sorrow of my own manufacture – never.

It’s certainly worth it to those who end up making a decent living from their writing. Hard work and perseverance won’t guarantee success, however.

As a matter of fact, I am not a big fan of hard work and have never been. I am a proponent of working smart.

These important words from one of my favorite writers apply:

“It’s better to do a sub-par job working on the right project than a great job working on the wrong project.”
— Robert J. Ringer

Working on the right project requires having the critical skills to know what projects to work on and what projects to avoid altogether. Problem is, most people think they have critical thinking skills but really don’t.

Highly successful writer Russell Blake says on one of his recent blogs:

“Yes, hard work is generally a good recipe, although not a guarantee of success, in any business. I think there are lots of authors out there with tremendous talent, but because of their day job, inadequate time resources to devote what it takes to make this happen.”

“There are also plenty who are marginal, but have the time, but lack the critical thinking skills to figure out what the best way to proceed is. These are the folks who buy the “How To Sell Blazillions!” books and then invest thousands of hours in marketing that doesn’t work for them.”

“I believe that every author’s journey is different, and no two will have the same experience. But each success will be atypical, and impossible to duplicate, which is both part of the magic, as well as the frustration, of this business. Hey, if this was easy, everyone would be doing it . . . ”

No, this business is not easy. Even so working smart is the key and not working hard.

Once you make it in this business by working smart, the monetary gains are just one of several great benefits. Another benefit is hearing from readers that you are making a difference in their lives. Even though I have received hundreds of letters, emails, and phone calls from readers over the years, I still experience great satisfaction when I hear from another reader.

This is one of the shortest and sweetest e-mails/letters sent to me recently.

“Been reading your books forever Ernie!
I still have them on my bookshelf and frisk my guests on the way out so the books won’t be ‘borrowed’.”
— Brenda Thompson, Nova Scotia

Of course, if you are writing just for the pleasure and satisfaction that comes from writing, with no desire for any other rewards, every thing I have said is totally irrevelant.

Ernie J. Zelinski
International Best-Selling Author
“Helping Adventurous Souls Live Prosperous and Free”
Author of the Bestseller “How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free”
(Over 175,000 copies sold and published in 9 languages)
and the International Bestseller “The Joy of Not Working’
(Over 250,000 copies sold and published in 17 languages)

This is an excellent topic and one I was JUST thinking about before I saw this post. I spent much of yesterday struggling through a revision. And as if that weren’t enough, I also worried the entire time whether I was spending enough time with my kids. Do I sacrifice them to write? Do I sacrifice writing for them? Am I striking the right balance? Because, of course, there are days I spend entirely with them and do not write. It’s on my mind constantly… And as for those moments of bitter despair, I think there’s a lot of truth to that quote. Getting through some of those most difficult writing moments — when you think you have nothing — is something I am very proud of. It’s true, in some ways they are instants I treasure most. Overcoming. Conquering. Reaching deep down and finding something I didn’t know was there. It’s an amazing feeling. And, I guess in the end worth the sacrifice. But I’m sure I’ll keep worrying anyway. It’s part of my process.

To write is to dream. No one starts to write a novel or a book of any kind without first dreaming of completing it. And whatever reality may prove, we all dream of readers buying our books, reading our books, and being changed in some way. The dream is worth it. Even if no one ever reads a book we’ve written, the dream is worth it.

This is a question I have dealt with over and over. I feel that I have been trying for so long and not getting anywhere. I love all my books and am not sorry I wrote any of them, but do I want to keep going through the agony of submitting and being rejected over and over? It would be worth it if I knew that someday I would be successful, but I’m not sure about that at all.
And there is also the possibility that I will get published and that life as an author will not be what I want or expect, and then I will really decide that it wasn’t worth it. But for now, I keep trying…

For years, I stood quietly in a line-up of other meek pleasers. Then I heard a line in a movie that blew me away, “a life lived in fear is a life half lived”.
Huh.
God didn’t give me a spirit of fear,it was dumped on me by a few adults who mistook shyness for pliability. A few decades of “do this, because you cannot possibly think you can do that” and one either fights back or fails under the weight of it all.
I’m not writing to impress anyone who shot me down, I’m writing for those who need to be lifted up.

I already know it’s worth it, I just need to make sure the ‘half lived’ part gets rescued and put to rights.

I like that quote — it really sums it up. And it is a question I do consider from time to time, which is really fine with me. I know I’d be questioning whatever I decided to do. As Socrates said: an unexamined life is not worth living. And for me, the same can certainly be said of the writing life.

You have captured the daily writer question very well. At the end of the day sometimes the answer feels like a “no.” In the morning though, the previous answer is forgotten and a new day brings a welcome “yes.” Such is the roller coaster life of an addiction. Thanks for the piece. – John

“Only you can decide how much is too much….” We really need to exercise extreme caution not to compare our journeys with everyone else’s. (I’m reminding myself here.) Everyone has different circumstances, and one writer might endure for ten years while another might for two. What matters is being in God’s will. Thanks, Rachelle, for sharing such a great quote.

Writing comes from a Source far greater than myself. It is my purpose to write because It tells me so; therefore, I am worthy to write and thus my work has value.

Thanks for your post.

I’ve had two books agented out and editors loved them both. What they hated was that my books were memoirs and I’m not a celebrity

4 years of work and they said they wouldn’t take a chance on me and that they needed money from celebrity memoirs to make money to take chances on novel writers

I sold over 4,000 of them as a self published writer and still hate the books, the process and the ridiculous notion that only celebrity memoirs sell

Most of the really good memoirs were written by nobodys like me

Yes because it’s what I do. It would be great to be recognized as some great writer with millions reading it. It would be great just to get it published. But it’s what I do. I do it anyway. Life is a gift as is story telling.

I started writing when I was in high school…a few more decades have passed since then. I’ve been rejected and done the questioning that all comes with it, just like every writer does.

BUT… last week, I walked into my local Walmart and looked at the book section, and there it was. My book. On the top shelf of the Harlequin section.

I started to cry, and in that moment…every little bit along the way was worth it.

Yes. Simple as that. If it’s the passion placed on your heart, nothing else is more fulfilling than pursuing it. As Ms. Meyer said earlier, we are a society that gives up way too easily. It’s the things we strive, sweat, and struggle for that are of the greatest value when the day is done.

You have to decide for yourself the value you get out of writing. Some people simply want to do it to get rich or become famous. They don’t stay around long because that’s an unsustainable goal. Plus, writing is HARD. Me? I HAVE to write. I have to open up a vein and let the creativity flow out of me or else I don’t function as well. Do I want people to read what I’ve written? Yes. Would I love to support my family doing what I love most in the world? Absolutely. But its value to me isn’t monetary, it is deeper than that, and therefore worth all the struggles and pain and hassles that occasionally come along with writing.

A question I’ve asked myself a lot, especially when it seems I have too much other on my plate. To write, I have to make sacrifices in other areas. My house isn’t going to be clean. The kids might have to stay with a sitter or I’ll give up a night of quality time with my husband. And if I don’t ever get paid for it, will I think I’ve wasted my time? Donald Miller says the more conflict in a story, the better the story. So, if the writing life is filled with pain, grief, desperation, disappointment, etc., in the end, it makes for a better story. Not the easiest thing to hear, but sometimes it makes the next step a little easier.

Thanks – I needed that today! My poetry book is 90% complete for the self-pulbisher, but that last 10% has escaped me. I only need the permissions for scripture I used, the back of the front page and an afterword. Having a broken leg has derailed me, but it is no excuse. I’ve got to focus!

In this wonderful world of duality with which we are always faced (and should leave behind) the next question is:

If it’s not worth it, do you have the courage to leave it behind?

If you do, then yes it has been worth it as you are closer to finding out what you are, and value, by discover that which you aren’t and don’t.

But if writing calls you back and you just can’t ignore it’s whispers, then it is worth every moment…until it’s not.

I found every step of this journey a valuable and worthy of part my life.

Is it worth it? Some days I’m not sure, but the risk of not trying is too big of a risk for me to take.

Absolutely writing is worth it. Those times when I get a tidbit that my writing has a positive impact on people’s lives are more precious to me than gold. I can’t think of any profession where things go well all the time. It only feels different when it comes to writng because we put our hearts and souls into our work. I imagine artists, musicians, and others in the creative professions have similar ups and downs.

I think we just have to put self-doubt in its place – right in the trash bin.

Loved the quote. Simply said, and I think most writers will say, “Yes, it is worth it.”

I hate to say it, but I think that one has to write for one’s own benefit, with the actual publishing being a prize for only those wonderfully crafted few books. Not everyone is due the prize, so in order to continue to write, there must be another reason for doing so. In my case, writing is cathartic, calming…
I may never get the prize, but I still enjoy the journey!

I doubt that traditional publishing concepts hold very well these days. So in that sense, no, it’s not worth it! Face it, very few people will read your works. But on another plane, yes, it is worth it. Just knowing that you’ve taken a story from concept to edited completion is quite an accomplishment. And no one can really say if you’ll succeed or not. In that sense, writing is a gift that you’ve correctly utilized. There’s more reward than immediately meets the eye for using one’s talents.

I find writing to be exceptionally worthwhile if I’m sitting in a comfortable chair at Starbucks, drinking a bold grande.

For someone who writes as a day job, I can understand the frustration of not getting published and getting your work “out there” for people to read and enjoy. For me, the reason I started up my blog(s) is because I have a passion for writing. Whether people are reading or not, I still enjoy it, just for the fun of it. =)