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Becoming a writer is not always an easy road to travel. Unless you are lucky enough to have a private income, or a partner who earns a good salary, you will probably at some point have had to sacrifice your art in order to earn money to pay the mortage or rent, to put food on your plate and pay for utilities.
Being a writer myself, I am particularly aware of how difficult it can be. Writing a book is a lengthy business, and without any guarantee of publication - or even if it is published, that people will buy it - all those hours sweating over the paper or keyboard may remain completely unpaid. You have to find ways of earning an income, but you also have to find a way of not sacrificing the thing you love.
I passionately believe that we have the right to do the thing that we most want to do. However, this does not mean that you should ignore some of the harsh realities of being a writer. Once you understand these, you can then plan how you are going to achieve your own writing goals.
The first thing to get clear about is the kind of writer you want to be. However, even if you only want to be a novelist or a poet, it might be worth while having a look at other kinds of writing to see if you can branch out into something more lucrative.
For example, if you love writing historical fiction, you might find that you have a flair for writing historical articles, which can be sold to history magazines. I have done this myself, and while it is still precarious, and you won't make a lot of money, it can bring in a little extra from time to time. If you could write three articles a week, and get them all published, you could earn quite a nice income. It's possible, but unlikely, particularly in the early days while you are starting out and trying to get a name for yourself.
There are certainly several other outlets for the non-fiction writer. As well as writing articles for magazines, you can try journalistic writing for newspapers, copywriting, or enter into the world of freelance writing, where you write for companies who need content for their websites or reports written.
All the same, this is competitive field to break into, and most of the big corporate companies use in-house writers. Earning a living as a freelance writer is not as easy as it sounds, and if you need to pay the mortgage right now, it's not going to give you that kind of income as quickly as you need it, unless you strike lucky.
This is not meant to be negative. I am laying out the realities as I have experienced them myself. The point is, any of these things need a huge commitment from you in order to succeeed. If you feel that you would absolutely love writing for other people, or submitting articles to magazines about your favourite subject, then by all means, go for it. However, it is important that you understand what the possible income might be, so do your research. It may be that you can supplement your income with a part-time job, or perhaps you may find that you can start off your writing career while you are still in a full-time job.
The important thing is that you know exactly what it is you want to do. If you really only want to write novels, then write novels. If you have a full time job, then find a way of writing every day, even if it is only for half an hour in the evening, or if it means getting up half an hour early to do it.
When I was working in a college as a learning support assisant, I wrote a novel during my break times. I would take my notes into work, and sit scribbling in a quiet corner of the staff room for half an hour every day.
I do not subscribe to the idea that I have heard some so called writers say, that they can only write in a particularly place. For me that is just an excuse for not writing. If you really want to write you can write anywhere. I have written on trains, in waiting rooms, in hotels - anywhere where I have some spare time. I have written four novels on top of other work.
I believe it is necessary to be aware of the realities of being a writer, but I do not believe in allowing those realities to stop you. If you really want to become a writer, then be one. Start right now. Write down what you want to achieve as a writer and set it as a goal. When, realistically, can you achieve this, given your present lifestyle?
It doesn't matter if it takes months or years, the point is, if you find a way of writing every day, then you are a writer, and you have achieved your dream, whether you ever get published or not. Becoming a writer is not something that you might do some time in the future, if you really want it, you can become it right now, this minute. So, what are you waiting for?
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