Being a published author is kind of like being a sports superstar. Everyone wants to be one but only a very very small portion of us actually make much money from either profession. That is what this post is about.

Let’s face it, not many of us can be an author for our day job. We need something to keep us afloat while we enhance our abilities. According to an article in the Feb 27th edition of the Guardian the median annual income of published authors for all their writing related activity was about $6,000 in 2017 and roughly 25% of authors earned $0 in income from their writing.

But, I guess just being a “published author” is no big deal anymore. Anyone with a few hours times can publish a book on Amazon and put it up for sale. But any measure of success is when more than your family buys one of your e-books. I would love to call myself a published author but I won’t do that the easy way. That is about the same way that some bloggers claim to be successful. They put on the sites that they have had thousands of views when in reality that is FAR from the case.

The best advice I have heard is if you really want to make it as a writer get a job that gives you the money you need to live on but also give you the time and space to write. It takes time to hone our skills and to recognize what people want to read.

I am closing in on my 4,000th post here on RJsCorner. That’s about two million words I have written here. The average novel is about 80,000 words, so I guess I have written the equivalent of about 25 novels. 😏 Why do I do that when I am asking for no money in return for my words?

I write because that is who I am. Due to my Aspie traits I have difficulty in one-on-one communications, but when I write I can always reword my thoughts before you see them. I do a LOT of that. Another reason is because I have many things to say that I believe need saying. There is just so much happening in the world that makes no sense to my very logical mind. I know I am not the only one out there that thinks this way. I want to let you know that you are not alone if you have those feelings.

Finally, I think I write about my life because I have made so many mistakes living it that I can maybe help a few of you make less in your life. I know the old saying “Don’t do as I do, do as I say”. I heard that sentence often growing up. I have kinda turned that around. If you can learn a lesson from my mistakes, you might not have to make them yourself. How’s that for a late life purpose?