Becoming a fulltime writer

[djourner]

I have been struggling a lot with the idea of how to become a successful writer, how to make this ‘hobby’ I have into something that can actually sustain my life and allow me to focus 100% on it.
Feel free to skip to the end if you don’t want the context.

So last year I started rebooting my story, and I found a lot of personal success in doing so... The writing reads better, I’m keeping a better pacing in the story, characters are more interesting and less like walking tropes.
I’ve also grown more consistent with both the quality of the writing, as well as the frequency, last year I was able to keep uploading on a weekly schedule from February onwards. And I only skipped a single week due to very personal reasons.
But I didn’t find that much success on the other website, hence why I moved here to Tapas. And though I have found some success already and have a few subscribers, And I am very thankful for the support I’ve received so far.

But I still find myself wondering if this is what I need to become a bigger writer.
It’s no secret for me that my writing doesn’t fit exactly what tapas is all about... My novel is a lot larger than most of the stuff in here, just to put it into perspective, when I’m done posting all that I have already written it will be over 150 episodes on Tapas, and that is because I am trying to cram as much as I can into every act without losing cohesion.

I’m confident in the quality of my writing at this point, I believe I succeeded in creating something I could turn into a book you’d pick off a shelf on the local bookstore, and I believe if I could fully focus on doing just this I could make it as a fulltime writer.
But I live alone with my husband and we’re both making minimum wage here in brazil. So that leaves very little room in our budget to pay for a publishing company... Even something as little as 50USD would be a significant portion of our monthly income. Neither can I hope to just quit my job and ‘see if can make it’ we’re basically living paycheck by paycheck.
I know this might sound selfish, or arrogant, but I’ve heard of companies that hire writers so they can just keep doing what they’re doing, while they take on the advertisement and publishing side of things.
I feel like if I found something like that, it would be the best for me right now.

I know very little of the business side of writing, so this is the reason I created this thread. I’ve read some things about it online, but I know one can never fully trust the info we find on a general google search.
Can anyone help me understand how does this side of the writing world works?
Is what I mentioned above common? Is there a caveat to it, like they would seize creative control or something? Or maybe royalties?
Is there an alternative? Should I put more of myself out for bigger publisher or smaller publisher? Is patreon or other donation-based sites more solid alternatives to be a fulltime writer? Am i just missing patience? Should i just wait a year or five or how many?
Is there even an answer to the questions above?
Well, I hope so.

[joannekwan]

If you want to make money writing your own work, then the first step is to finish your manuscript for your novel!
Self-publishing can definitely be expensive, but you could possibly launch a kickstarter or other crowd-funding campaign to cover the associated costs (cover, layout, editors, etc.).
Otherwise, you could try to find an agent to snag a traditional publisher. There are ways to break into this, the main ones I know of are Pitch Wars and PitMad on Twitter.

Pitch Wars

You can also look for agents online and check out their wishlists for what they want to see in the work they'd be interested in picking up. You could also find certain imprints or smaller publishers that accept unagented and unsolicited submissions. But just be wary of vanity publishers!

Vanity publishers will ask you to pay them to publish your book for you. Never pay a publishing company to produce your books! A real publishing company is supposed to cover all the costs and pay you an advance of what they think your book will sell. Sometimes you will exceed that and that's when you get royalties. Other times you won't sell as much as your advance, but you will keep that advance money anyway if the publisher is legit.
If you're going to spend money, you might as well self-publish and not split your profit with some shmuck vanity publisher.

I'm not sure how the traditional publishing industry is like in Brazil. It may be easier to break in, but it may pay less than anything based in North America. But Pitch Wars and Pit Mad are open for international submissions and I'm sure any decent agent will be as well.

I’ve heard of companies that hire writers so they can just keep doing what they’re doing, while they take on the advertisement and publishing side of things.

I have not heard of companies like this. The only thing close I know of are sites like Tapas where you either submit your story to try and go Premium or reach out to them and negotiate the development of a Tapas Original where you both share the IP.

As for how writers usually make their money, they normally have a day job.
Their jobs can be related to writing or not at all. For one's related to writing: a lot of writers do ghost-writing to pay their bills. Essentially, they're just writing various things under names not their own for other people as a paid job. Or they write the copy for a consumer product. Some people also do editing, from copy editing for a company, to editing freelance.

[Caro]

Have you considered into querying literary agents? As far as I can tell most (if not all) major publishers don’t take unsolicited pitches from unrepped writers and that remains true for even mid-sized publishers as well.

Here’s a zine made by someone who is now a literary agent herself that might be useful to you!

SLUSH: A Guide To Querying Literary Agents (Digital Download!)

Also, be sure to manage your expectations. Its not easy to make it full time on books alone. An overwhelming number of properly published books you’ll see in a book store are written by folks who also maintain a day job.

[therosesword]

You might want to check out these guys. Lot of writing jobs, tips, etc. and resources for other places.

http://www.freedomwithwriting.com/

[djourner]

Thank you the detailed reply, especially that last bit.

if you could let me bother you one more time.
One thing i could not find was information on what being tapas original entail, I assume it's different from premium, so is there like a proper page or someone in the tapas team i should be reaching for in specfifc?

Even if you do not reply to this one, thank you for taking the time to explain to me.
I'll be sure to look for my own path in this complicated world ^^

[djourner]

I did not even know there was such a thing, thank you for helping out.

I do not think i qualify for this option though as my story is not really done, but rather a continued piece.
One could count each individual part as history in and off itself, like a manga/comic book chapter, but i'm not sure how well it would be received in that format... Even if i did write it specifically to be 'episodic' like that.

[djourner]

I'll be sure to look into it, thank you as well.

[joannekwan]

Tapas Originals are generally Premium titles, since they want a return on their investment in the project.
The difference is that Premium titles can be creator controlled leaving you full rights to your work. Tapas will set you up with an editor to proofread and make small suggestions to your work.

Originals you partner with Tapas to produce the story and share the rights to the story.

Right now they have created Studio Tapas as a space for people to submit ideas and to further their current projects, shooting for media adaptations and such. Currently it's for comics only, but every comic needs a writer.

https://studiotapas.com/

[CJYoung]

Have you tried pitching one of your books to Tapas for the premium program?
If approved, you could earn royalties from that. And if the story does well, you can make decent money based on success. (I started as a premium author here a few years ago)

StudioTapas, like mentioned, is also a good avenue to research, as well as writing for a Tapas Original. As, if approved for any, you will earn royalties.

There are also sites like Radish Fiction, where again you can pitch your written novel for online publication on their site for a royalty percentage.
I also think that Radish Fiction had a full-time offer, where you could write stories for them for a certain amount of money each week. But I don't know of they're offering that anymore, or whether it would be worth it for your time at the moment. (each writer and person's situation is different, after all)

And like some have said, you could self-publish without a company. But I think that can be tricky if you don't have a large fanbase or any marketing experience.
You could also solicit publishing agencies, but you will likely have to have some patience with that route.

It's also possible to find a commission here in the forums. I see artists looking for authors at times, though few are paid offers. Still, when you see those you could look into the possibility.

Just research whatever you decide to do! Each option has its own advantages and challenges.

[CarltonIsaac]

Is there even an answer to the questions above?

Try freelance ghostwriting. It's one of the surer ways to get a foothold into the business to garner experience and make decent initial earnings.

Find buyers that need articles and stories written for them for a fee. They usually post their requirements on freelance job websites. And always ask for 50% of the payment upfront.

[Kaydreamer]

Try freelance ghostwriting.

This is one of the most practical tips here! I know a couple of freelance ghostwriters, and they pay their bills entirely through that work. You may not be working on your own stuff, but writing is still a lovely job, and you can set aside perhaps a day each week for your own creative projects.

Not that I'm a fan of the race-to-the-bottom Dutch model of places like Fiver at all, but that site and others like it may help you make a start with getting some initial clients. Before that, though, build yourself a portfolio of writing examples for potential clients to look through. Once you have a steady workflow, you can transition away from Fiver and look for a freelance writing agent to find you work.

When it comes to your personal creative projects, the best way to monetise them is still traditional publishing. Traditional publishers don't charge you money - they pay you for the privilege of publishing your work, and take a cut from the sales. They only pick up stuff they think will sell really well. As such, it's as insanely competitive as it ever was. You'll need an agent to submit your work to them, and an agent will be easier to get if you have some freelance writing experience behind you.

So the roadmap goes:
Make an online portfolio -- find work on Dutch model freelance sites -- find an agent -- build a reliable body of work -- ask your agent to pitch your novel to publishers.

As for the initial transition to freelance work, I'd recommend cutting just one or two days of work per week from your current job, then waiting until you have enough clients to fill that time with writing work before cutting more hours. That way, you still have a job to fall back on, and your income doesn't just end overnight. It's what I'm doing, transitioning away from teaching to go into illustration. I earn enough teaching part-time to get by, while having time to dedicate to 'illustration workdays' where I make my comic, do commissions, and improve my craft.

[CarltonIsaac]

I know a couple of freelance ghostwriters, and they pay their bills entirely through that work.

I may not be one of the freelance ghostwriters you know, and I have been paying all my bills and more entirely through the ghostwriting gigs for the last twelve years.

[sc101]

What site do you use?

[CarltonIsaac]

What site do you use?

Elance, initially. That is now Upwork after merging with ODesk in 2016.

As of now, I have a client base of my own.

[Ordinaryaverageguy]

May I ask what kinds of things you ghost-write? Just in general, not asking for specific titles or any such.

[CarltonIsaac]

May I ask what kinds of things you ghost-write? Just in general, not asking for specific titles or any such.

Usually, and also as a rule, proper ghost-writing jobs require an NDA to be signed when it’s copyrighted material.

Generally for Non-Fiction - content for websites, articles for news/info sites, technical write-ups for know-how sites and publications, business proposals, white papers etc.
Rates vary depending on the volume and research required. (10 cents/word to 10USD/word)

And for Fiction – Short stories to Full length Novels; mostly of the Sci-Fi, Fantasy and Mystery genres.
Rates vary depending on the volume and popularity of the genre or title. (6 cents/word upwards)

The key is to exceed expectations on each project to retain clients so that you become their go to person and have continuous earnings.

[Ordinaryaverageguy]

Yes, I was pretty sure you were covered by some NDAs.
Some of that sort of writing is what I've done for years for a regular job, but I had to be in the office to do it.