by Rachel Smith
06 March 2015
It’s a question I’ve been pondering after stumbling across a YouGov UK poll about the most popular careers.
Apparently, 60 percent of people polled felt being an author was the most desirable career. I’m not surprised. For decades, I too romanticised making a living from writing books. Sure, I’d start out as a journo – but I’d be up every morning at 5am without fail, working on my novel. Eventually, I’d have a charming library to write in with a desk overlooking the sea, where I’d savour my solitary 9-5 churning out best-sellers. How hard could it be? Well, extraordinarily difficult, as it happens. Successful authors who make squillions are pretty much up there with successful rock stars.
I never did get the hang of getting up at 5am and that library to write in overlooking the sea? I’m still working on it. At the grand old age of 41, though, I have my first book on the shelves. I’m hoping it’s the first of many, but we shall see. At any rate, I don’t yearn to be a full-time author anymore. I’m quite happy with my day job and all the different types of writing I’m hired to do. It’s been a career that has tortured and thrilled me in equal measure and I’m now addicted to the variety of working on different stories and projects.
I’m not alone; for 39 percent of those polled, journalism was the desired way to make a living. But there are also those edging out of the industry. I know several journos retraining for new careers; a few List members have let me know they’re doing the same too. I understand that. For many, it’s easier to retrain than reinvent, especially if you’re jaded and can’t make ends meet and are craving a change anyhow.
But me? If I had to go back, I know I’d choose media over and over again. I feel lucky that I found what I wanted to do when I was so young, and that I can still feel passionate about it. I believe it’s this passion that enables me to go with the flow, wherever it might take me.
Would you choose a different career if you had your time over – especially given the changing state of the industry? I’d love to hear from you in the comments.
Like you Rachel, journalism was the start of my career as a best selling writer. At 47 I don’t have my book deal yet but I do have a couple of unpublished novels sitting on the hard drive of my PC and a stack of short stories, the best of which I send out to competitions etc. I’m reasonably confident that one day – hopefully before I turn 50 – I’ll write something worth publishing. I don’t have any illusions about bestselling though, I’ll be happy if my publisher keeps taking each new book because I earned out the advance on the last one.
As to whether I’d choose the same career again. Yes, absolutely. I’d do more than a few things differently but I would probably do it again. I spent a bit over 10 years out of journalism doing a stack of different jobs. The majority were in IT, however, sales, pre-sales and technical support so I’m speaking from experience when I paraphrase the bumper sticker – A bad day writing is better than a good day working in a call centre. I have retrained and I’ve even dipped my toe into a couple of different things – teaching, training, website development – but I always come back to journalism and copywriting.
I know I’ve not reinvented myself as successfully as some colleagues but I’m trying and to some extent succeeding. Like you, I’m still passionate about good journalism and freelancing itself is a great way to make a living. I may have to do a fair bit of stuff that in the final washup doesn’t matter a whole lot to anyone but I also get to do stuff that I think (hope) makes a difference occasionally.
You’re way ahead of me on the manuscript thing, Darren – do let us know how you go down the track! 🙂
Love your bumper sticker saying too. So true.
Good god. I don’t actually know, Rach. If I could do it again I’d probably look at a different form of storytelling – maybe television, rather than print. Simply for the practicalities of paying a mortgage! But I do absolutely love media. Love it. (Though I’d probably love it more if there weren’t so many internal politics…)
I know what you mean. But then, TV is equally unpredictable in terms of job security, I guess 🙂
Personally I think I would be terrible on the telly or in broadcasting. Not least because I hate the sound of my own voice (I’m really that nasally?!), but also because I like playing around with words too much and seeing my stuff in print! Bit addicted to it.
I would definitely do it again. I was a print journalist in the 80s-90s in Sydney (Fairfax Sun & SMH), Hong Kong (SCMP) and London (anyone who would pay me) and radio in Far North Qld (ABC) then in digital from the get go. Great education – all of it. Sometimes the reporting has been disturbing and sometimes heart breaking but there has been fun too. In my early 20s I had dinner on top of the HSBC HQ, attended a party on Malcolm Forbes boat, got a ride in an army chopper which then landed on an aircraft carrier, was in Bucharest for Romania’s first “democratic” elections and got paid to sail the Caribbean and write about it. I would have managed my career very differently though and transitioned earlier and more strongly. Good luck to you Darren with the books!