The One Strategy I’m Applying To Become a 6-Figure Writer
My simple gameplan to get to the top.
My dream has always been to be a 6-figure writer living a life of freedom — preferably on a beach somewhere.
So a couple of days ago, I made the call to scale down my entrepreneurship endeavours and become a full-time writer. But using your art to feed your family has always been a scary and unreliable thing; the very nature of creative work means that assurance does not exist. Therefore, I came to the conclusion that I need the next best thing: I need a strategy.
And my strategy is simple.
I’ll continue writing long, thoughtful articles — the catch? I’ll be introducing short personal essays between them.
You see, there are only 3 types of successful internet writers.
- The teachers.
- The entertainers.
- A combination of the two.
And unless you are tremendously skilled at either instructing or making people feel emotional with your words, the best way forward is usually the third path. The addition of short essays between my usual long-form articles also serves a dual purpose. They allow me to:
1. Upload consistent content without sacrificing quality.
I take a minimum of two days to write a well-crafted article.
Which is a problem, because it’s no secret that when it comes to writing, consistent, quality content is king. A full day of writing nets me anywhere between 1000–2000 useable words. This is excluding miscellaneous tasks such as the research, quotations and sourcing of pictures, all of which are essential for an article to shine.
However, a 3–5-minute blog post such as this one only takes me about two hours to write. In interspersing my regular articles with bite-sized stories, I will be able to post consistently without sacrificing the quality of my main body of work— work which I take great pride in.
This way, I engineer a win-win situation. I will always have something to write about while waiting for the big publications to accept (or reject) my work, and in turn, my constant readers will always have something new to read.
Which brings me to my next point…
2. Interact more personally with my readers.
A great many of you enjoy reading my full-length articles, and I thank you for that. I put a lot of effort into them.
But there are some of you who would like to interact with me at a more personal level; to hear my stories, to find out how I got here, and where I’m going next. The first two I will gladly share in all my naked, vulnerable glory. The last I have no idea.
All jokes aside, to these readers, I thank you. I’m flattered beyond belief. It is to you that I write these informal posts for. Make no mistake, my usual self-help stew will still be served up — they are what brings the bacon home on this site, after all.
But look for the addition of a curious side-dish; personal stories, slow-broiled and well-lived, served up with a dash of humour. I look forward to penning down my misadventures in this mad journey called life and bringing each and every one of you with me, every step of the way.
Love, as always.
Alvin