Welcome to the Big Reveal
I enjoy reading author interviews, but often times they don’t ask the kinds of questions I wonder about. So I’ve assembled a group of writers at all levels, from un-agented to published, and every week I will have a new question for them.

But first, a big congratulations to Mindi Scott
on the release of her newest book yesterday: Live Through This.

Is writing your real job?
How long have you been writing?

Lynne Schmidt, Un-Agented Author
I’m not allowed to say where I work, but I can say I’m a shift supervisor at a retail company.

I wrote as a kid, well before I knew how to create or write words. I destroyed countless papers with squiggles until I got fed up one day and told my mom and her boyfriend I needed to learn how to write. From there I started writing my own picture books (the drawings were awful, always had the MC Amy, and a horse named Buttercup). I’d like to hope my writing has matured a bit since then 

Theresa Paulo, Un-Agented Author
I might not get paid for my writing but I still consider it my job But my real job is in the Marketing Services department at a company that designs, markets and distributes household cutlery, kitchen tools, gadgets, and other houseware products, including KitchenAid, Cuisinart, Mikasa, Pfaltzgraff, Farberware, Food Network, Guy Fieri, Martha Stewart and so on. Interesting right? lol

I wrote my first book when I was seven. As a teenager I wrote poetry, which was awful, but I was always better with expressing myself in words. I started seriously writing about four years ago. I finished my first novel and thought this is it. I’m going to be published and live the good life. Talk about naïve. I was nowhere near ready. The past four years have been the best learning experience of my life.

Mindi Scott, Published Author
Writing is half of my real job; I also have a part-time job doing data entry for many of the State Tobacco Quit Lines. I’ve been writing with the aim of publication for about eight years now. Most of what I wrote as a kid was diaries/journals or things that I had to write for school.

Steph Campbell, Published Author
Well, I have four small children, so they are my “real” job, but I don’t work outside of writing, and it pays the bills. I’ve been writing seriously for the last two years, I’d say. I wrote as a child, but, like most kids, it was mostly short stories and poems.

Christa Desir, Pre-Published Author
I edit romance. It’s the greatest job. I love it & don’t think I could ever give it up completely just to write. It makes me a better writer. I started creatively writing in high school. But I’ve had lots of distractions since then. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you the number of jobs I’ve had.

Dahlia Adler, Agented Author
My real job is an Assistant Editor at an academic publisher, and a contracted freelance copy editor for two e-publishers. I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember, but if by seriously writing you mean writing things I eventually queried, I’d say… ten years?

Jenny Morris, Agented Author
My 8 to 5 job is working for a General Contractor as a contract admin/accounting clerk. I have been seriously writing for 4 years. No, I didn’t write as a kid. I acted out the stories I created in my head.

Mónica Bustamante Wagner, Agented Author
No, writing isn’t my real job…and I’m a stay-at-home mom. I’ve been seriously writing for like 5 years now. But I started writing in Spanish. And I wrote a couple of stories as a kid, but I never thought I’d like to become an author till after I got married.

Is writing your real job?