Writing As a Hobby v. Writing As a Profession

What is the difference between writing as a past time and writing as a job? If you go into novel writing thinking that it is something you can do in your spare time between carting the kids to soccer, cleaning the house and catching spa appointments, you may as well quit right now. If that sounds harsh, I apologize. But no matter how much I love my job, I never forget that it is a job. A job that I absolutely adore, but a job nonetheless. I have to make the time to sit in front of my computer for five to eight hours a day, six days a week, rain or shine, and do nothing but write. Before I've gotten one book polished, I am well into the next one. But you know what? It's never boring. It's hard. But I can deal with hard when it is something I enjoy doing this much. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it.

I'm not saying that you can't be a successful writer until you quit your day job and devote every waking moment to writing. In fact, I think that is an awful idea. You just have to be motivated. I know you've heard it before, but you have to set aside time everyday to write. Some days it comes easily, and those are really great days. But sometimes it is like trying to carve the words on the surface of a pond. Those days I'd like nothing better than to go enjoy the sunshine or take my daughter to the pool. But you have to write on the hard days as well as the easy days. It won't always be the next great American novel that you churn out, but it doesn't matter. Even if all you can use it for is toilet paper, you have to keep writing. You can fix a poorly written page. You can't fix a blank one.