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| Yours truly with my once and (hopefully) future day boss David Zaslav |
I know what you're thinking: "In praise of the day job? You've got to be out of your mind. I became a writer to get out of my day job."
Let me tell you how I learned to stop worrying and love the day job.
Of course, it it's highly ironic that I am writing this blog now. I was recently laid off mid-contract from my day job as a video editor for Warner Brothers Discovery. I'm not too upset about it. It's the nature of the beast. I loved working for the company, but I was strictly a contract worker. I never really sought a full-time staff position. I'm not one hundred percent sure what I would do if I were offered one. I liked our arrangement. I'd take a year long contract, then take three months off before returning again. That gave me plenty of time to write. Plus, overall, it's not bad being a video editor. Also, it doesn't hurt to have a lovely wife who is happy to work for the team! I don't know where I'd without my better half!
I was shocked when I saw what the WGA minimum was for a writer on a ten episode series prior to the last contract. I discovered I was making more as an editor than the writers were making -- without having to deal with the high cost of living in Los Angeles. I thought that was sad. I know getting on a series was a dream come true for everyone working on those shows. However, because of the timing, it is nearly impossible to get on two different shows on the same year. Many of those writers, who worked incredibly hard to get where they are, find themselves having to get day jobs the rest of the year. A pity.
My last "real" fulltime job -- you know, healthcare, paid holidays and vacation, unemployment insurance -- was as a broadcast producer for the advertising agency Gray Kirk & Evans. I was laid off because we lost some accounts. I could have stayed. However, I decided to stay out in the cold. Why? Because I had developed some skill as a film editor and I wanted to pursue my budding screenwriting career more professionally. I never regretted my decision.
When I left the agency, things started to take off in the writing world. I got a great agent and came dangerously close to selling scripts to A level companies. But things were really taking off in my day job too. People really appreciated my skills as an editor. My client base quickly grew as did my day rate. As a result, I never had to rely on screenwriting for an income.
A veteran salesman once said the best way to motivate a young salesman was to convince him to buy a new car. He said high car payments did wonders. I'm not sure that kind of financial pressure works on screenwriters. I follow many other writers on social media. Their posts often express a sense of desperation. The screenplay they're working on has to be successful. Or else. I'm sure that sense of desperation bleeds through to the page and weighs it down.
Because I had a day job I loved, I never had to put that kind of financial imperative on my writing. I could write what I wanted to write. I didn't feel the need to scour the trades to figure out what was selling. Since I didn't need my scripts to perform, I had the incredible luxury to write some thoroughly non-commercial material that I felt challenged me to increase my skills.
I've been paid to write a lot of material: Feature films, shorts, commercials and industrials. I've even got some books out. If you add up all the money I made on those projects, it'd probably be quite a tidy sum. Still, I have never consider quitting editing and write exclusively. In fact, I don't even have a set goal in my mind of what I would have to make to give up the day job.
For example, I was recently anointed the co-creator of a streaming series currently in post production based on some features I co-wrote. The studio backing the series said the production couldn't proceed without my signature. The scripts had already been written. I only had to write three words: Sean Paul Murphy. My NDA prevents me from giving amounts, but I can say I was paid more for each one of those words than I used to make a year when I was a producer at the advertising agency. I'm sure if I got that same deal back in the day when I worked at the agency, I would have left to write full time. Nowadays, it was just a nice bonus. I am thankful for the deal, but I kept on editing reality cable shows.
Why? Because you never know when you'll score your next deal as a writer.... I might be next month. It might be next year. It might be five years from now.
If I gave up my day job, I would have to be continually hustling to find writing work. I'd also feel compelled to take every offer I get. I'd hate that. Don't get me wrong. I don't want to come off as some arrogant bastard, but I like to have the option to say no. Trust me, I honestly appreciate anyone who has ever offered me a paid writing assignment. I'm not above any of them. However, I was once paid more for a script than the film made in its initial release. That made me feel like crap. My main consideration before I take an assignment, provided I like the concept, is whether I feel the film will get effectively distributed. If I don't think the producers have a realistic chance of distribution, I say no. Somebody else might take the money, but not me.
So what kind of day job should you have? Something you enjoy. Something you can see yourself doing for years. Also, if writing truly is your passion, make it a job you can leave at work at five. That's one of the reasons why I left the more lucrative commercial editing market for cable television. When I was cutting commercials, it seemed like I was always pressing against a deadline. There was too much pressure to work late. I don't feel the same pressure working for a cable network. Sure, there's deadlines, but the producers generally allocate sufficient time for the project. I've been working from home since COVID. Whenever I decided to work late to finish something up, I'd often receive an email or text from the producer telling me to stop working. That we'd finish up tomorrow. Gotta love a job like that.
Also, as strange as it might sound, I don't recommend you getting a day job as a writer. I've known too many would-be screenwriters and novelists who worked as copy or technical writers. They discovered the last thing they wanted to do after spending all day writing commercials or grant proposals is work on that screenplay....
I truly believe that a good day job is an essential writing tool. Putting too much financial pressure on your writing prior to reaching the professional level could curdle your career before it even happens. You don't have to be like me and hold onto your day job like a security blanket. You can shed it. Who knows, maybe I will too. I've had some assignments and, in theory, a nice deal will finalize soon. That might be enough to finally get me out of the editing bay....
Maybe.
Chapel Street - Prologue - My Mother
Chapel Street - Chapter 1 - RestingPlace.com
Chapel Street - Chapter 2 - Elisabetta
Chapel Street - Chapter 3 - The Upload
Chapel Street - Chapter 4 - The Kobayashi Maru
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Thanks for this. I found it quite interesting. Last May I had my hours and pay cut in half. Unfortunately I had been given no prior notice, so by the time I was able to adjust my living budget accordingly I had burned through most of my savings. The good part though was that it gave me time to write. It allowed me to finish book 2 in my series and write completely book three, ending the saga in a satisfying way. Now though I will need to rely on my writing to have any kind of retirement (I am almost 64). At least my day job pays the current bills. So yes having a day job is a good thing!
ReplyDeleteI am usually a contract worker so I usually have a three month break between my yearly contracts. That gives me plenty of time to write without any undue financial pressure!
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