47 and thinking about law instead of writing

[Womanofwords]

I'm 47 and the author of non fiction books. I'm currently in the early stages of writing my 4th and finding it a huge struggle. My advance is £12k but after tax and agents cut etc this will obviously be much less. Plus I get it in 3 installments so it's spread over nearly 2 years. I'm feeling burnt out by the massive task of writing and researching and wondering if it's a mugs game, really.

I am wondering about jacking in the book and giving the same level of time and committment to retraining in law. I'm bright and passionate and think I could pass exams etc. And then after all the work I'd have a qualification and a new career that maybe paid well? Instead of a book that might never sell out it's advance.

What do people think? I feel life is whizzing by and I'm not earning what I should be for someone with a decent brain! I'm sick of being broke. Is law a better investment of my time? If not, all suggestions and advice considered!

Thanks all.

I'm bright and passionate

Law is definitely not for you.

But seriously. Were you thinking of the Bar or becoming a solicitor? If the first, do you have Firsts? And academic prizes? From a recognisably top university? Or a parent / uncle / aunt / godparent currently a head of chambers or sitting as a judge? If not then - certainly ‘go for it’ (🤮) if you have energy and resilience and won’t mind if it all ends as an expensive waste of time and effort. It’s a career that defines the word bottleneck in the early stages. And if you make it to tenant you may long for the amazing wealth of your writing life as you wait months or years for your fees to materialise - while you still have to pay chambers rent. But some people thrive.

By the way is your non-fiction writing Law based? This might be a plus if you are a highly thought of legal authority. Or write / update textbooks. Less so if it’s Law-Lite.

If you’re keen to join a firm of solicitors - find one and get them to pay for your study and training from the earliest possible point. Will you be happy to be supervised by people half your age? If you want a relatively quiet life you’ll have to choose a not terribly thriving (possibly provincial) firm. If you want a top whatever number firm be prepared to say goodbye to your evenings weekends and maybe your bed. At least you’ll get paid, though …

I’m wondering if you have already rejected the idea of fiction? You already have potential material (your non fiction subject(s). You already have a reputation and working routine and know how to pitch successfully. Why not?

Thanks @CountryCousin - ha ha - you are by far the first person to say similar to me in the past few days! Wow, how depressing that such a seemingly 'good job' as law is actually quite closed and complex to advance in. But it's good to know this and I will think on.
I did go to a top Uni but didn't get a first, no, and no, my books are not in the area of law, and no, I don't have fancy relatives in high places sadly!
Fiction - hmmm - yes, it's definitely something I wish I could do - I've written quite a bit of a children's book actually but am now caught up in getting on with the latest non-fiction. In fiction you have to have written the WHOLE book before trying to flog it, whereas in non-fiction it's only the proposal. Much easier to at least get some money up front for your work. Maybe I just need to get on with BOTH but wow - with 3 kids there never seems to be enough hours in the day.
Deep sigh.
Thank you for your thoughts x

You have tor regard writing as something you do as your job, not something you do in your spare time. You have to have set hours and tell yourself you are going to write 1000 words every day. When you stop leave yourself a note as to what you want to write next.

Yes I agree @mdh2020 ! I've written 3 books and am working on book 4 as we speak! But it is very hard to make a living out of it, is my issue. I wondered if a change of career would be better for my income over the 20 years or so of working life I have left!

The problem with law is that everyone who can't get the maths/science A levels to be a doctor or a high end computing engineer thinks "what's a good career that pays lots of money and doesn't get my hands dirty? Lawyer" and stops there. So there's massive oversupply.

There are a million good desk-based jobs out there where you won't be competing with a thousand sharp elbowed twenty-somethings with perfect legal cvs. HR, facilities, compliance, and a load of others too dull for me to remember. They admittedly won't get you the huge bucks of Magic Circle law but there's no way on earth you'll get a job in magic circle law anyway.

Well, thank you for your realism there @CredibilityProblem 😁

If you were dying to fulfil your childhood dreams of being Rumpole of the Bailey that would be a different thing.

But it seems as if you're actually trying to fulfil your middle aged dream of being paid at least fifteen quid an hour for a thirty five hour week, and for a well educated person with reasonable soft skills and no disabilities there are much easier ways to achieve that than retraining in law.

Suggestions then @CredibilityProblem ? (Bearing in mind I don't live in a town or city).

You would really struggle to get taken on by any decent firm let alone chambers. You would therefore waste a huge amount of time and money on the course/s for no return. Try and find an alternative which has a reasonable prospect of success.

Tell us more about your skills and interests. Are you numerate? Would you like to work in a commercial environment? Introvert or extrovert? Do you enjoy teamwork or prefer solitary?

Software engineering, cyber security, compliance - all have the potential to offer secure, decently-paid roles where life balance is possible, and you can work remotely all or part of the week.

What are your non-fiction books about?

OP you could make a bundle running classes and doing 1:1 mentoring, editing. And no outlay required. I’m trying to write but this is actually part of my end game financially.

Have you thought about offering your writing services on platforms like fiverr and Upwork? Because if your experience you could apply to go in at Pro level and charge more for writing. Freelance blog writers and copywriters are in great demand and you can manage your own schedule and hours. I've dabbled in fiverr and it was very lucrative but I just didn't have the time to dedicate to it.

Alternatively, if I was retraining now I would definitely look into doing some of the free computer coding courses or an apprenticeship with a guaranteed job at the end.

I’m moved to wonder whether you’ve come to a decision, @Womanofwords ?

I want to write novels like you. I’m just so lazy though. I remember someone saying the hardest thing about writing a novel is just writing it! I’m thinking of doing a masters in creative writing to help me be more disciplined but not sure. Thankfully, I have passive income of 20k a year which covers food and bills (no mortgage). I want my 50’s to be different but I’m sat here watching YouTube instead of writing. I do work 10 hours a week still earning £350 a week from this and I can keep this going for as long as I need to. I just feel like I have to abandon everything and everyone to go somewhere and write. I’m my head I will of course emerge a best selling author 😂. I have the stories in my head it’s just sitting down and writing them, it’s so hard. Hope you got through your recent dip in enthusiasm for your craft. You never know Hollywood may still be waiting just for your next book. (BTW I’m terrible at spelling and grammar. I have grammarly and my DH helps me edit).

Writing novels isn't a way to earn a living. It might get you a nice second income, that's all, and the skills from writing non-fiction aren't necessarily transferrable. I write women's fiction novels, have nearly 30 published, agent, trad publisher, and I still need a day job.

Could you find a job as a researcher? If you're writing non fiction then your research skills must be good. Also, have you asked your agent or your publisher if they are looking for people to proof or copy edit?

I’m thinking of doing a masters in creative writing to help me be more disciplined but not sure.

Don’t choose ‘creative writing’ @Caloriecount24042023 - decide on your speciality within the writing field and study that. Every single person on Twitter is a ‘writer’, it’s not a distinct thing nowadays.

@CountryCousin thanks I know it’s a lot of money and tbh I was only considering it because I’m so lazy and undisciplined. I do think the way I was educated conditioned me to perform. I’ve just need to start writing I honestly don’t think it will go anywhere I just have this story in my head and I want to get down before I leave this planet. Time has flown by and I’m now 50! I think my main problem is self motivation and I need to work on that first.

Ignore my typos too 🤣

You responded to a different point to the one I made, @Caloriecount24042023 …

Have you considered Higher education roles? Possibly In admin/support/research staff.

You say that you don’t live in a town/city, who are the major employers in your area?

Apologies, @CountryCousin did you mean pick novel, screen writing or poetry pathway?

No apology required! But to succeed you need to be clear about what you want to achieve. Probably about 5 billion people think they want to be ‘a writer’.

What form do your narratives take? Are you sure they’re novels? Maybe they’d be better as musical theatre, or VR games, or spoken word poetry, or very serious plays. You can take academic / professional courses in all these disciplines - where you would gain the requisite skills, study alongside your direct competitors (and thus gauge where you’d position yourself amongst them), work with people actually practising those occupations, and form the connections that enable one to launch a career.

Or you could waste your time dreaming amongst the 5 billion …

(Or screenwriting, of course - but British female playwrights seem to be best placed right now for film work.)

A lot of negativity on this thread. Its much essier to qualify as a solicitor these days. The SQE has levelled the playing field somewhat and allows paralegals to qualify without a training contract.

Its hard to advise without more details on geography but being a paralegal is not poorly paid in the commercial law sector even at the lower end. Some firms woukx certainly prefer a more mature candidate although you would likely struggle at the high end.

There is much more to the law than the bar and the City