Blog 75 - Money Monster!

Blog 75 - Money Monster!

September 2025

Alright, fellow word-wranglers and story-spinners, gather 'round. Let's talk about the elephant in the room that’s currently rifling through our pockets: the ever-increasing cost of being a writer. Now, before you start picturing me in a velvet smoking jacket, puffing on a pipe, let me clarify something: I’m one of you. I’m an "average Joe", a bloke with a day job, a family that needs feeding, and a mortgage that laughs in the face of my artistic aspirations.
The title of ‘writer’ conjures up some romantic ideal, right? A quiet corner, a flickering candle, a battered notebook, and a pen. That, my friends, is the pure, unadulterated essence of writing. It’s free. It’s glorious. It’s the closest thing to magic most of us will ever experience. You conjure worlds, characters, emotions out of thin air, and all it costs is a few quid for stationery. Beautiful. Unfortunately, it couldn’t be further from the truth.
When you write, a funny thing happens. Once you finish that manuscript, and you’ve poured your soul onto those pages, probably neglected a few chores (and maybe the spouse to boot) in the process, you’ll find that you want to share it. You’ll want to unleash your masterpiece and let it out into the world. And that, my friends, is where the "free" part of writing goes out the window, replaced by a hungry, gaping maw that demands your hard-earned cash. It suddenly morphs into less of an artform and more of a Money Monster. All be it a beautiful and soul-satisfying monster, but still an utterly draining, cash grabbing, never satisfied Money Monster.
My first foray into the publishing world was, as many of you will know, down the traditional route. Querying agents. Soliciting publishers. It sounds so grand, so official, doesn't it? In reality, it felt more like throwing confetti into a hurricane and hoping for a thank-you note. I spent hours – precious hours I usually carve out of my sleep schedule or lunch break – researching agents, tailoring query letters, perfecting synopses. Each one, a tiny masterpiece of polite desperation. And while the actual process of sending emails might be free, the invisible costs pile up: Every "no thanks" (or, more commonly, no response at all) chips away at your writerly spirit. It doesn't cost money, but it costs something far more valuable: your motivation. There’s also an underlying pressure; While no one explicitly demands you hire an editor before querying, the unspoken expectation is that your manuscript should be pristine. And unless you're a grammar ninja with eagle eyes, a professional developmental or copy edit will improve your chances. Guess what those cost? Yep. I had a choice, do I get a professional edit done or buy a small villa in Barbados, they cost about the same.
Then there’s Networking & Conferences: Before the digital age, it might have been all done by the post. Nowadays there’s subtle pressure to attend writers' conferences, workshops, or online courses to "learn the industry" or "network with agents." These are often fantastic, but they're rarely, if ever, free. Travel, tickets, accommodation – suddenly, your creative hobby requires a travel budget and a suitcase. You might not believe it but I’m still meandering down this road, by the way. Still trying. And still realizing that even in its most basic, email-sending form, the pursuit of traditional publishing asks for an investment in time and emotional resilience that's hard to maintain when you’re juggling work, family, and the faint, sweet scent of your own creative sanity slipping away.
So, what are the options from here, I suppose there’s always Self-Publishing: The Siren Song of Freedom (and the Quagmire of Hidden Fees). "Ah," I thought, bruised and battered by the traditional rejections, "self-publishing! The savior of literature! I'll just upload my book and voilà!"
Oh, sweet, naive fool, that I am. Luckily I did a little research before plunging headfirst into this particular nest of vipers, I was glad I did, I hadn't got a clue.
Self-publishing initially appears to be the answer for the money-strapped writer. No gatekeepers, no agents to impress, just you and your story. True, you can upload a Word document to Reedsy for free. But if you want anyone beyond your mum (who will, bless her heart, tell you it's a masterpiece even if it's written in crayon) to read it, you need to treat it like a professional product. And professional products have costs: There’s the Editor (again!): I cannot stress this enough. An unedited book screams "amateur." Readers will forgive a lot, but they won't forgive sloppy writing. Editors are worth their weight in gold, but that gold isn’t cheap. Developmental edits, copy edits, proofreading – each a vital step, each with a price tag that makes your bank account whimper.
Then you will want your masterpiece to stand out, look good and attract readers so there’s The Cover Designer: People absolutely judge a book by its cover. A stunning, genre-appropriate cover is your book's most important marketing tool. Unless you're a graphic design wizard, you'll need a pro. And guess what, those magical visual conjurers also need to eat so there’s a fee. The list goes on; Formatting: For both e-books and print, your manuscript needs to be formatted correctly. ISBNs: which is a unique 13-digit number assigned to a specific book or edition, used by publishers, booksellers, and libraries for identification and management purposes, and you’ve guessed it, you need to buy your own ISBNs, which can add up if you plan multiple formats or books.
Then there’s Marketing & Promotion: This is where the real money pit opens up. Ads on Amazon, Facebook, BookBub. Building a website (domain, hosting). Email list services. Blog tours. Giveaways. Suddenly, being a writer isn't just about writing; it's about being a marketer, a publicist, and a small business owner. And that requires capital.
For someone like me, with a family, a home, and a budget tighter than a pair of skinny jeans after Christmas, these "hidden" costs aren't hidden at all. They're glaring, impossible obstacles. The small allowance I give myself to "shoehorn in an hour or two" of actual writing is strictly for the writing, not for the publishing machine that demands to be fed.
It’s easy to get disheartened, isn't it? To feel like your dreams are trapped behind a paywall. But here’s the thing: we write because we have to. Because stories demand to be told. So, how do we navigate this publishing landscape without selling a kidney? I’m not sure I’ve figured that one out yet, but I’ll let you know if I ever do!
It’s a tough road, my friends. I often feel like the publishing world, in its current incarnation, is designed for those with deep pockets or endless disposable income. But I won’t let the Money Monster silence my stories. I’ll Keep writing. Keep dreaming. And who knows? Maybe one day, I’ll write that breakout hit that proves you don't need a fortune to share your heart with the world. Until then, I'll be over here, budgeting for next month's coffee and dreaming of a world where words are truly priceless. And maybe, just maybe, I’ll find a way to get my story into your hands.