Writers are weird this way. If you look at musicians, you’ll see many of the greats started out as anonymous session musicians on established artists’ albums…this sometimes happens even late into their career (Eric Clapton unnamed on While My Guitar Gently Weeps and Peter Frampton unnamed on My Sweet Love for example). They dont’ consider it some kind of sin to be ashamed of.

I grew up in a financially poor household and had no security through my childhood. I also never imagined I’d be able to make money from writing. It literally seemed impossible to me, like being an astronaut. So, to this day, after years of making my living with words, I am still grateful every single time someone pays me a cent for writing or editing in ANY way, shape,or form. The idea that some forms of writing are “beneath” me just seems like such an entitled, privileged perspective.

I think of myself as a blue collar writer, grinding, getting it done however it needs to get done, and I like thinking of myself that way. Whether it’s getting paid for my original fiction or a ghostwritten blog post, I’m grateful every day to get paid for writing. It’s a blessing, cheesy as that word sounds.