Check out MY new BLOG!!

"You can’t make a living writing." Really?

May 30th, 2008

by Marsha Maung

Many parents would mortgage, re-mortgage and sell of properties just to get their kids through college. My parents did the same thing and in exchange for a law degree. With that, it’s natural for them to expect me to make something out of it. Hence, when I pounced on them with the news that “I am going to write for a living…on the Internet…not with a magazine, not with a newspaper, not with a renowned financial or law journal…but on the Internet”, my parents cried themselves to sleep every night for months on end.

It’s natural for people to think that creative people are bound for the less-trodden hard-traveled road of poverty. Writing is a passion, as with acting, singing and painting. You’ll never and should never (according to some obscure, source-unknown folklore out there…it’s the X-files we’re talking about there) expect immediate return. If your writing brings you financial security, you better start thanking your lucky stars!

But no, that’s not my opinion. Yes, writing is a passion, especially creative writing but it’s a lot of hard work! And it’s not impossible to make some money out of writing stuff for others from all corners of the earth. When you write on the Internet, you’re just basically tapping into technology, riding the wave of techno-freedom in finding your clients and people who need to get things written professionally because they’d rather spend their time doing something else.

The most important thing about writing for a living is this – you’ll have to be persistent and resourceful in everything that you do. persistent in trying to find your clients. Persistent about making mistakes with your writing. Not being paid for your writing – bite the bullet and go on. Finding the right mood to write….the likes.

The likes of my grandmother and mom, who were born with chickens running around in the backyard, were obviously shell-shocked when I popped the idea to them and they said, “But you can’t make a living writing!”

Oh yeah? Well, not only have I proven them wrong that writers can earn a decent kind of living from the Internet, many others across the globe continue to prove them wrong. I love my mom to bits, as with my grandmother but if you’re a new writer just starting out in the Internet market and writing arena, don’t be defensive about it when your parents, friends or family members give you the ‘evil eye’ when you tell them that you want to start a writing career using the Internet. Smile at them and nod, “Yes, I know. But I’ve got it to be a writer and the Internet is going to be the vehicle that is going to help me achieve my dreams”.

Being confident, persistent and resourceful will help you prove to everyone else that earning a decent living writing on the internet is possible.

---

Marsha Maung is a renowned (ahem!) freelance writer who is based in Malaysia, who ghost blogs, writes web content, website copy, advert copy and SEO stuff for her clients. She's been doing this for the past 9 years and counting and is kinda wishing she didn't have to write about menopause or kayak-making for a change. She's, after all, one of the most kick-ass SEO writer in Asia for now (until someone kicks her off the chart) and loves the idea of putting food on the table...so. Marsha actively and passionately contributes to http://www.contentmagician.com as well.

For more info on Marsha, visit http://www.marshamaung.com. For the drying of dirty laundry on the life and times of a freelance writer and mother, visit her blog at http://marshamaung.blogspot.com