2019 Money Update

Last year I wrote a lengthy blog post about my relationship with money and my creative life:

"Mamihood, Writing, and Money: Moving Past My Money Shame & Crafting a Creative Life I Love.”

As part of that post, I outlined potential streams of income for 2019, and I thought I would update you on how things worked out on the money front in 2019.
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One thing I reflected on as I completed my Write Your 2020 Workbook was how much I earned from different streams.

Overall, writing life related activities drew a little over $1,000 this year. That being said, I invested a little more than I brought in, so I actually didn't make any money this year.

Now that I've laid a foundation for the entrepreneurial aspects of my Writing Life, my goal for 2020 is to actually make a profit.

I plan to invest time on improving my online course, You Need a Website, and offering it again this summer. I also want to strategically share the resources I use and recommend, thereby growing my affiliate income.

Below I've outlined my 2019 incomes and expenses broken down by percentages. I also included the potential streams of income I outlined in my original blog post in 2018, so you can see the difference between my predictions and more or less what actually happened.

​It's not always easy to think or talk about writing and money, but I do think that asking these questions for ourselves is critical.

​I also think discussing these issues with other writers can be valuable because transparency helps us have more realistic expectations of how we shape our writing lives in ways that align with our financial realities.

How about you?

What relationship is there (if any) between your writing life and money? 

What writing life related skills or activities (teaching, speaking, etc) do you use to make a living and/or earn supplemental income?

What resources help bankroll your writing life?

Let me know in the comments.

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2019 INCOME UPDATE: ACTUAL  STREAMS OF  INCOME

• 55% Online Course & Workbook for Writers
• 22% Honoraria / Speaking Fees (not counting in-kind comped conference fees)
• 18% Affiliate Income
• 5% Income from Publications (including individual submissions & book sales)

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2019 EXPENSES UPDATE: ACTUAL EXPENSES

• 28% Education
• 27% Web Hosting, Software & Apps
• 21% Travel & Meals
• 13% Mailbox
• 6% Office Supplies
• 2% Payment Processing Fees
• 1% Advertising
• 1% Submission Fees (I didn't submit much in 2019).

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from "Mamihood, Writing, and Money: Moving Past My Money Shame & Crafting a Creative Life I Love":

2019 POTENTIAL STREAMS OF INCOME

(written on 1/20/19)

Contest

• ([$5,000] Picture Book Manuscript Contest. I've submitted a MSS to a contest and we'll see what happens. Fingers crossed).

Honoraria / Speaking Fees

• $200 Honorarium for a Workshop
• $535 in kind Honorarium (Comped Conference Fee)

Writing

• $50 forthcoming for a poem accepted for publication
• $?? pitch and submit to both paid and unpaid markets aligned with my larger mission

Affiliate Income*

• $?? from Affiliates (I don't have a great sense yet of what will happen with the affiliate programs I've joined. Read more about affiliate income below).

Online Courses for Writers

• $TBD/participant: You Need a Website: A Practical Guide to the What, Why and How of Building Your First Author Website (Click on the link to get on the waitlist!)
• $25/participant: Write Your 2020 Into Existence

Book Sales

• $50-$100 Words or Water sales at conferences & events
• $?? Nuyorico, CA (thinking about republishing this collection as e-book & POD in 2019)

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• *Note on Affiliate Income (updated in 2020):

In 2018 I learned that one way people monetize their blogs and/or websites is by promoting products, services, courses, and other opportunities in exchange for a commission. Since I was already in the habit of recommending books, I thought this was an area worth looking into further. As it turns out, several products I already recommend or would be happy to recommend have affiliate programs.

I've created a RESOURCES page on my website where people can check out my reviews of the products I swear by including:

Weebly, Mailerlite, Scrivener, Passion Planner, Audible, and books from the new online seller Bookshop.
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Signing up and reviewing the products on my RESOURCES page was time intensive in terms of set up, but I hope over time I will earn some income while helping my people find tools that serve them well. Win. Win. Win.