Doin' it for the money

Now, I’m not one of those who claims that writing is every bit as exhausting as road-mending or coal-mining, or as nerve-wracking as surgery. There’s no comparison. But it is work, frequently challenging if not difficult, and you have to care about what you’re doing. That’s just basic professionalism.

Every so often, though, I meet friends doing similarly non-manual jobs who equate not wearing a suit with not really working. And I think this attitude also prevails among some clients.

“You creative types!” they laugh – or at least they do once I’ve exaggerated them for comic effect. “Why, you rise at noon, chew your quill, stare out of the window at the daffodils and let your minds fly free with the wild birds! Surely such a life is its own reward, untramelled by care for material things!”

To which I reply, “Dear Sir, following my reminder of the 5^th inst., my invoice number 201 remains unpaid. If this remains the case…”

Here’s the thing, though; as a group, we writers don’t help ourselves.

I can’t put my finger on the exact quote – the book’s in the loft - but Stephen King said something along the lines of, if you’re only writing for the money, don’t be a writer. Well, fair play to him. He wrote when he had nothing, and still writes now he’s got plenty.

But too many of us miss the word “only” out of that sentence of his. There’s a feeling among the poetry groups and writing circles that (a) they could do what we do but (b) they don't because it would be prostituting their art.

Can we please ditch this 19^th-Century consumptive-poet crap and get back to something more intellectually honest? How about the 18^th century Grub Street hack, James Ralph, who said…

“[The author] is laugh'd at if poor; if to avoid that curse, he endeavours to turn his Wit to Profit, he is branded as a Mercenary.”

Testify, Brother James, testify. Yes, we are prostituting our art. But art it is, and we create it to a high enough standard to get paid for it - we take a pride in doing so. 

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a street to walk.