{"id":4539,"date":"2011-04-17T17:36:43","date_gmt":"2011-04-17T23:36:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/?p=4539"},"modified":"2011-04-17T17:36:43","modified_gmt":"2011-04-17T23:36:43","slug":"a-year-later","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onelowerlight.com\/writing\/a-year-later\/","title":{"rendered":"A year later"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>So a year ago, I came back to Utah after a terrible internship experience, with no idea where I was going to live, how I was going to support myself, or what I was going to do with my life.\u00a0 I was leaving the cloistered halls of academia and venturing for the first time out into the “real world.”<\/p>\n

Now, a year later, I can honestly say that even though there have been ups and downs, overall it’s been a great experience.\u00a0 I’ve learned a ton, both about myself and this “real world” business, and I’ve changed in some surprising ways.<\/p>\n

How, you may ask?\u00a0 Well, let’s see…<\/p>\n

1) I never want to be salaried.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This was probably the most surprising thing I learned.\u00a0 Even if my writing career never takes off, I would rather work for myself and own the value I create than work for someone else and have them own me. Even if it means not knowing where my next paycheck is coming from, I’d rather have the control, the independence, and the satisfaction of working for myself doing what I love.<\/p>\n

Sometimes I wonder if we’ve unwittingly become a nation of wage slaves.\u00a0 So many people work at jobs they hate, only to have the illusion of financial security.\u00a0 Well, that’s not me, and it’s never going to be me.\u00a0 I’d rather work for myself and love it than spend the rest of my life counting down the days to my next vacation, or the years to my retirement.\u00a0 I’m a smart, resourceful guy; I’m sure I can figure things out.<\/p>\n

Which brings me to the next point…<\/p>\n

2) The idea of being an entrepreneur excites me.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Writing is not just an art, it’s a business, and the more I research the business aspect of it–or indeed, business in general–the more excited I’ve become.\u00a0 Leaving academia has helped me get in touch with my entrepreneurial side, and surprisingly it’s a lot stronger than I’d thought it would be.<\/p>\n

As a writer, I see myself as a self-employed small business owner who creates intellectual properties and licenses the rights to publishers, film makers, game designers, etc.\u00a0 With ebooks, now I can sell my work directly to readers, and you have no idea how excited that makes me.\u00a0 It’s not just because of all the hype surrounding Amanda Hocking or Joe Konrath–it goes much deeper into who I am.\u00a0 All things being equal, I’d rather be an indie author because I see myself as an entrepreneur.<\/p>\n

Those are probably the two biggest things I’ve learned.\u00a0 I can probably summarize the others with a simple list:<\/p>\n