Writing is not sufficient for my livelihood

Corzhens Level 1

October 25, 2017, 4:09 am

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Writing is not sufficient for my livelihood

I have been contemplating for months now if online work can support me when I retire from my office job. It’s nice to imagine that I wouldn’t wake up so early to leave for work and no more agony in the traffic when I come home. Working at home would be heaven compared to my daily routine at present. However, my main line is writing and the way I look at it, I would definitely go hungry when I go freelancing with writing. Perhaps I have to explore the world of selling. It’s not alien to me since I used to have a boutique before the digital era. And an online store is way much easier to start than an offline boutique. Add to that the convenience of dropshipping where the supplier would handle the deliveries, that would be a great team up. All I have to do is to peddle the merchandise. Do you think an online store can help me sustain the house budget?

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JonathanS98

JonathanS98

Unfortunately, freelance writing by itself isn't a sustainable online income to be sufficient for your livelihood. As a writer, the best chance you have at earning a sufficient income for your livelihood is through hosting your own content. Basically creating a website, continuously publishing quality articles, and monetizing that content within your website (AdSense as an example).

Regarding the process of creating an online store and implementing techniques like drop shipping. The concept can work, however, you immediately go into competition with many other online stores most likely in the same niche as yourself. I too was interested in creating an online store. But when I realized the vast level of competition I faced, it sort of doubted my confidence in the whole thing, altogether. To be clear, it's not that I'm not recommending creating an online store. You just need a solid strategy towards attracting visitors to your website and gaining a loyal following.

7 years ago

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Authord

Authord

Yeah, a very strong strategy if I may say, because they are a lot of forces to be battled with in the Niche. Setting up an online store, can only be profitable and successful, when you have traffic plans prior, to the deploying stages and confidence as well.

7 years ago

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JonathanS98

JonathanS98

I'm glad you see my point. To be clear, that's not to say drop shipping isn't profitable. I have a friend who has a digital photography drop shipping niche that does pretty well. But it's not like profits started overnight. Plus, he's been in it for a while and stuck with the project long-term.

7 years ago

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TimothyAlex

TimothyAlex

Without a significant upfront investment, you will have a hard time being competitive with an online store. I would say that since your area of expertise is writing, then write. No, you will not make a living writing for content mills and those types of gigs. You will need to marketing and sell yourself directly to businesses. As the writer, you are cutting out the marketing agency or content mill. As a result, you can give a business a better price while you earn more.

7 years ago

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Pixie06

Pixie06

I actually have an online store and I earn a decent amount from this. I have started online selling some years back and it took me some time to grow my business. At the start you may fail but you must not be discouraged. You must advertise for your products and try to show how different they are from competitors products. Advertising on social medias is what actually helped me to grow my business. My friends also encouraged others to join my Facebook page.

7 years ago

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peachpurple

peachpurple

It is really not easy to start a business online. I wanted to try to sell my handmade crafts at Etsy and Zazzle but nobody buys anything from me. It has been 2 years already. You mentioned about advertising at social medias, how do you promote?

7 years ago

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Pixie06

Pixie06

I have to be honest on this one. When it comes to Facebook my friends have really helped me by referring others to my page. I consider myself to be lucky to have such friends. Creating a Facebook page for your business is important. The most vital thing of all is advertising. You can use Facebook adds. I strongly believe that advertising is what will help to increase your sales revenue. You can hire an expert to help you with your marketing strategies.

7 years ago

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augusta

augusta

I believe having your online store would be more sustainable and beneficial and in the long run keep you busy but if your retirement benefits would be huge then I would say follow your passion which is writing.But you could start your own blog and grow it before it time for your retirement you must have put every necessary thing on grounds for your blog to start earning something substantial from it.

Just go for whatever works better for you.

7 years ago

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vhinz

vhinz

Are you earning money by writing articles to someone else? or do you create e-books and then sell it? If you haven't done yet the latter, then do so because big money really comes from selling. Or how about create an online course that teaches newbies how to become a writer and earn online? Set up a subscription website for those totally beginners that want's to learn writing.
You have your writing skills already, you just have to think ways on how to optimize it so you could earn big money and not be worried about quitting your job.

I think online store is also good because it is the trend today. Just like dropshipping. I haven't know yet dropshipper from the Philippines. You could try that also. I might follow you on that journey and learn from you.

7 years ago

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Barida

Barida

I would like to learn how writing and selling of e-books work. I've been writing for me and I must say that the money that I've made is not always enough for me to survive the day.

7 years ago

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vhinz

vhinz

Think a good title on the e-book that you want to create. Having a compelling title attracts people to look into your e-book. And of course the content is also valuable. You can sell that on amazon.com. or if you have your own website you can sell it there. Having your own website has a great advantage to establish your presence online and build regular readers so that you already have potential customers when you offer your own e-books.

7 years ago

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peachpurple

peachpurple

It depends on individual. Some people could earn money online which is similar to offline salary because they have the ability or talent that customer wanted. For example Upwork and Fiverr, these sites pay good money if your can satisfy the customers. However for me, online money could only be a side income, hardly able to pay my telephone bill. The most is a couple of time visits to Starbucks and that's it.

7 years ago

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Judas2018

Judas2018

An online store is a good idea but you should never fully quit writing. The world needs writers and storytellers more now, than ever before. You can still do the online store thing but writing should also be left in the fold so you can collect whatever income from it that you can. It'll be just another source of income. Along with the online shop you apparently want to open. Now speaking of that store, first you'll need a good name for it, a solid logo for it and some great merchandise or inventory to sell. What sells the most at online shops are electronics.

Apparel is a bit more complicated as people are only attracted to certain brands, colors and sizes. But video games, consoles, dvd players and flatscreen tvs... along with iphones and smart phones are huge sellers. Especially if brand new and priced at a fair rate.

7 years ago

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Tronia

Tronia

I think that you're very clever. It's extremely smart to try and combine all of your skills so you will earn more and most importantly, enough, once you stop the normal job. I know that it's hard to make enough money just from writing itself though. I also have to combine it with my other skills!

You should definitely do some research about online stores because if done correctly, it can be very profitable. Just make sure to read articles and guides about it from the experts.

7 years ago

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Barida

Barida

I wouldn't say that working online as a freelancer can be easy especially when that person is starting out on the journey of online earning. However, I would say that I'm one of those lucky ones that were able to work both offline and on the internet as well.

7 years ago

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DarthHazard

DarthHazard

I would definitely go ahead with the idea of selling online. It is just much better, especially if you can develop a proper brand and website which can help you make a massive amount of money. The biggest benefit is that if you are able to create a strong enough brand for your business, you will be able to do very little work in terms of marketing so you can just concentrate on getting the items delivered to the customers.

7 years ago

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kgord

kgord

I don't think there are many people who can earn a living strictly from writing. You have to be very talented in order to do that, and there is a lot of competition. I just think that many people would like to do it, but few people actually succeed. It is difficult to do.

7 years ago

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Everett

Everett

I have read many posts about writers basically giving their opinion on writing when it does not necessarily pay the bills. I have written content on a few platforms, and while the pay rate may be nice but it is not enough to earn a living. I would still have to do other work such as a day job (9 to 5), or other various online tasks.

Some writers believe that they will just create really great articles, and be paid top dollar. Those that come into the industry of freelancing often believe that they will make it, ya know because they've been writing for X amount of years and have so much experience. But this isn't the case in the slightest.

Most websites will always cap your writing earnings. Sometimes this is to deter fraudulent content, and sometimes this is done on purpose to restrict the amount that is given to the writer. Now, some content is really valuable therefore the writer that has authored the content should be paid more than the regular freelance writer.

If you ever think to make it online as a freelance writer and to make it as your full-time job you may want to rethink your decisions as there is not really a market for it, unless a website wants to drive traffic to their platform and offer goods and services.. then you may be able to at least make a part-time income.

7 years ago

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Authord

Authord

Well, I won't really say that writing that support your livelihood. It is a 9-5 job of course and it can only support your livelihood when you have retired, if only you saved the return that came from the writing expenditure, when you were still working. Other wise, I can\t grantee you that.

7 years ago

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Baburra

Baburra

I think writing can work just as well as any online store because it takes the same amount of time and effort to be successful in either one. You just have to have a good plan and take steps towards the right direction such as finding out where you could be more profitable in writing. The online market is constantly in need of articles so there will almost never be a scarcity of jobs or business opportunities, and in my opinion, it's way easier than having to worry about shipping and customer returns.

7 years ago

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potentialwriter

potentialwriter

Despite the challenges faced in becoming a writer, it's still not sufficient for a living as it only drops a few cents into your purse even if you are conversant with the job. In addition to any regular Job, this is still worth doing at all and, of course, it's worth doing well. The few cents it drops can help a financial life in many ways. After all, drops of water fill up a giant drum with time.

In the meantime, you can still be doing it while working on a greater way to make money online, but certainly, if you are able to find a better money making job online, writing is not worth dropping because it builds the giant in you with time.

7 years ago

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Everett

Everett

Good response!

Despite the challenges faced in becoming a writer, it's still not sufficient for a living as it only drops a few cents into your purse even if you are conversant with the job.

Too true. I believe the only freelance writers are those that work for news stations. There is a market there, and the news stations usually have a lot of money to offer writers to write about news. However, paying someone $5 to write a 1000 word article for their blog won't pay the bills. Even if you could earn 100 per day, you'll be dead in a month and wont want to do it any longer.. Believe me, i already tried this long ago and it didn't last for me.. was mentally exhausted most of the time..

7 years ago

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iamawriter

iamawriter

A commodity that is ordered for over and over again could perhaps see through your needs for survival. You therefore need to first plan on what you want to sell. An online store of such commodities plus giving vent to your writing prowess should see you through.

7 years ago

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coolavender

coolavender

Retirement is a time when you should be enjoying the fruits of your labor during your youth. Hence, you'll be enjoying social security benefits such as pension which should cover a good part of your living expenses. Hence, if anyone still intend to work after retirement, I'd suggest a lifestyle that will allow him/her to relax and enjoy the remaining good years of life. That means starting a business or source of income that is more passive than active and not having to stress oneself out too much trying to earn money. A safer source of passive income would be investment in government bonds which are safer and have assured annual earnings that are considerably higher than regular savings accounts.

Starting an online store and spending time to promote the store does not readily equate to making sales or earning from the store as there are tons of competitors out there doing basically the same thing and getting mixed results. On the other hand, freelance writing can be a source of regular income if you can join writing sites that offer regular jobs. However, it may be too stressful for a retiree to live off earnings from sites as they are quite strict with deadlines.

7 years ago

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tiffiecute

tiffiecute

It depends on your needs. If you live a simple life, no loans, no kids to put in schools and not sickly, writing online or offline can be an ideal job.

I have the opposite fate which is impossible for me to rely just on being a blogger or writer. My needs are way up higher. I have mouths to feed. So it really depends. I love writing online. It makes me happy in a sense that I feel better as a person really. I don't care if I get paid lower than the usual as long as I'm happily enjoying myself writing online.

7 years ago

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Soulwatcher

Soulwatcher

I think that writing can not sustain most people's income unless you live in a third world country. In the united stated the average 1 bedroom apartment is around $700+ and you're not going to get that making $5~20 a day.

I don't know how drop shipping works. But I have a friend that goes to estate sales and resells the stuff on ebay for a huge profit. Some of the things she has bought for $1 has resold on ebay for $50+. The only problem with this method is getting enough estate sales in a month to be able to support yourself.

7 years ago

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AmieBotella

AmieBotella

It is just like having an offline store too. There are good sales days and then there are slow moving days. But people need to understand that when you compare your earnings from a 9-5 job and a self employed business, there are no constant take home pays for self employed as compared to a regular job, but you can gain more from a self employed line of work than the 9-5 one unless you have an additional commission pays from your job. So it always goes down to learning the trade of a business and putting an effort into building it up.

7 years ago

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AmieBotella

AmieBotella

I suggest you start doing that online store now while you're still working so that you can see if it's a good thing for you to venture in. In every line of work, there always two sides, the ones who succeed and the one who don't. Go to the direction of success and make it happen no matter what. study the sources for your items and how to purchase it at the safest and lowest costs. If you can still do the writing, you can use this to advertise your products too. goodluck!

7 years ago

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rage35

rage35

Well. Writing solely as a means of income is really not sufficient enough to sustain the basic needs at home due to low earning. Talking about an online store, it is hard to tell whether it is enough or not but chances are, if you don't have the market yet, your way to make a sustainable income from it will be difficult. Before you open an online shop, you need to make sure what items you will sell the market of it is big if you are starting so it would not be difficult for you to earn.

7 years ago

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limberg

limberg

Back when Knoji was still active and content mills were ruling the search engines, I was able to earn a living simply by writing. I submitted review articles to Knoji and received an upfront pay of $7 to 20 dollars per article plus some page view earnings. I was able to submit about 3 reviews per day and I was able to earn more or less 600 dollars per months. In my country, that's just enough to get by day by day.

But in this Era, it would be hard to make a living by solely worrying for others. You'll have to develop a website, make it grow. If you have a huge amount of traffic, you'll probably be able to quit your day job.

7 years ago

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Krisleen

Krisleen

It's true that writing alone can't support life especially when you are married. It's much better to replace a job with a business then you do writing on the side. This is what I've been doing at the moment. I retired from employment at the age of 25. I was able to find a business at the age of 27 and started it right away. I am doing online/offline freelancing part time for my extra income. Right now, I am focused on my Christmas goals as I finish this year strong and start 2018 with excitement. I do freelancing to cover my monthly expenses so my business income will be untouched. I am about to use it for my Christmas goals. This has been my set up for now until my business gets stable in on its 5th year.

7 years ago

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jaymish2

jaymish2

As much it's helpful to listen to other people's stories also remember that life is what you make it. Only you can decide what works for you and what doesn't. They are people whose business is writing and they make a full-time income and some from writing. In my opinion, this can't be ruled out as a genuine income stream. They are people who are also been successful in drop shipping. Do your research learn how it works. Get a mentor that is already successful in it. The bible says 'my people perish because of lack of knowledge' The difference between you succeeding and failing in this is your know how. Keep all your options open you may succeed in both and have multiple income streams.

7 years ago

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Adesuwa08

Adesuwa08

Writing in general is a sustainable way of deriving a good income. But when you talk about online freelance writing, I think its probably not enough to sustain you in the manner at which you expect.

But in other ways, if you're good at what you do and are able to access a large part of the freelance writing platform, then you could actually derive a sustainable means of livelihood from it. It all depends on your mindset and how far you are willing to go.

7 years ago

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jaymish2

jaymish2

They are people who charge 500$ for an article and because they are good, they get constant clients.If they write an article per day for 5 days a week, that is $2500 a week. I think this is more than a full time income.You will definitely not earn a full time income from posting in forums. However if you get serious about writing, get constant training and improve your skills. You also need to target direct clients through job boards and learn other skills like SEO. You can also start a blog and promote affiliate links to it.

6 years ago

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