Hello everyone, I have been lurking around these forums for a month or so and decided it was time that I joined and said "hello" and tell you a little bit about myself and my goals. I am new to professional writing, but I am hoping that it is something I can fit beside my day job as a source of extra income. For me, I see writing as a business rather than a hobby - my aim is to have a series of self published books that will help me reach my long term goal of £40k passive income before I'm 40 (I am currently in my mid-20s). I hope to do this through a variety of income sources not just writing. My heart is in writing Fiction books (mostly sci-fi) but if I can take other people along my journey in building a passive income then I may look into Non-Fiction writing under another pen name assuming I can find the right niche. I have around 5 book ideas at the moment, over the next few weeks I am going to take time every night to brainstorm and add/develop these ideas until I have around 30-40 possibilities (most of which I'm sure will never see the light of day!). From there I will try to flesh out my chosen idea until I have a basic outline of the story. I searched out this forum as a way of learning from experienced authors and generally share my experiences with other people going through similar situations. I am not expecting this to be a quick and easy career so I have the utmost respect for anyone that has "made it" in this industry and look forward to joining this amazing community!
That's an interesting goal! It's good to hear you're interested in diversifying and exploring lots of options, including non-fiction. I'm not sure how it will work from a business perspective - my impression is that most people who earn a living from writing are pretty open to all new opportunities and willing to write in any field, but the passive income idea may not work as well that way... in order for the income to be self-sustaining I imagine you'd need a following of some sort, and I don't know if that's as likely to happen if you're not specialized. Interesting!
Hi BayView, thanks for your comment! You make some good points, and as you suggest I am definitely open to exploring lots of options. I don't believe I have the ability to reach my passive income goal solely through writing, but alongside investments, p2p lending, and property investment I hope it can play a part. It's a goal that I think will be challenging but achievable if I put the work in. I definitely agree that building a following will be the key to success, so I am not going to underestimate the importance of marketing. The first stage for me is the fun part; deciding what to write about!
