--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's very unlikely that a writer is going…" description: "\"It's very unlikely that a writer is going to make a living by writing. So then the question is: how do you balance work, life, and writing? If you find..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6c/kelly-link-9393_balance_it-s-very-unlikely-that-a-writer-is-goin_102068.jpg" --- # It's very unlikely that a writer is going to make a living… ![“It's very unlikely that a writer is going to make a living by writing. So then the question is: how do you balance work, life, and writing? If you find out, please tell me.” quote by Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6c/kelly-link-9393_balance_it-s-very-unlikely-that-a-writer-is-goin_102068.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6c/kelly-link-9393_balance_it-s-very-unlikely-that-a-writer-is-goin_102068.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6c/kelly-link-9393_balance_it-s-very-unlikely-that-a-writer-is-goin_102068.jpg) > “It's very unlikely that a writer is going to make a living by writing. So then the question is: how do you balance work, life, and writing? If you find out, please tell me.” [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing rarely pays the bills; creators must juggle employment, personal life, and creative pursuits. **In simple terms:** Balancing work, life, and writing is challenging because writing seldom earns a living. Key Takeaway Sustainable creativity requires practical time management. Themes creativity economics work-life balance career writing Mood reflective determined Type advice personal When to use this quote - a freelance writer scheduling gigs - a teacher writing after school - a parent carving out evening writing time Key Concepts financial sustainability self-discipline Practical Applications - Set fixed writing blocks - Seek supplemental income streams Questions to Reflect On - How can you protect creative energy while meeting financial needs? - What non‑writing activities support your writing? A Different Perspective Even with strict schedules, creative output can suffer under pressure. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Balance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) [Balance Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance-work-277404/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-writing-363342/) [Living Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/living-writing-406975/) [Please](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/please/) [Unlikely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unlikely/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writer Going](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer-going-1039014/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Question](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-question-1167346/) ## Related quotes > [You really don't understand the first thing about writing...for one thing, early in the morning is the worst possible time. the brain is like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/you-really-don-t-understand-the-first-thing-about-writing-for-one/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“You know that part of your writing that you question, —that's weird and doesn't fit neatly into a genre or mold?Write more of that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-thomas/you-know-that-part-of-your-writing-that-you-question-that-s-weird-and/) [Richard Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-thomas/) > [Writing is above all a question of instinct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-powell/writing-is-above-all-a-question-of-instinct/) [Anthony Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-powell/) > [The mind travels faster than the pen; consequently, writing becomes a question of learning to make occasional wing shots, bringing down the bird of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-mind-travels-faster-than-the-pen-consequently-writing-becomes-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Writing is a question of finding a certain rhythm. I compare it to the rhythms of jazz. Much of the time life is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francoise-sagan/writing-is-a-question-of-finding-a-certain-rhythm-i-compare-it-to-the/) [Francoise Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francoise-sagan/) > [ For me, writing \[was\] a question of survival...I could not trust anyone, even my family. The atmosphere was so poisoned. People even in your… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gao-xingjian/for-me-writing-was-a-question-of-survival-i-could-not-trust-anyone/) [Gao Xingjian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gao-xingjian/) > [Every time you look at a blank piece of paper, you're doing something new. You have to step onto that blank territory and remind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/every-time-you-look-at-a-blank-piece-of-paper-you-re-doing-something/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) > [When I started to be a writer, I was not going to run the risk of boring you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-woodrell/when-i-started-to-be-a-writer-i-was-not-going-to-run-the-risk-of/) [Daniel Woodrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-woodrell/) > [I've never been a model, I was an actress for like a minute, but I've always been a writer. That's where I'm going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karrine-steffans/i-ve-never-been-a-model-i-was-an-actress-for-like-a-minute-but-i-ve/) [Karrine Steffans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karrine-steffans/) > [“Becoming a better writer is going to help you become a better reader, and that is the real payoff.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/becoming-a-better-writer-is-going-to-help-you-become-a-better-reader/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [You usually can tell when a writer is going down hill by the size of his liquor bill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-m-cain/you-usually-can-tell-when-a-writer-is-going-down-hill-by-the-size-of/) [James M. Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-m-cain/) > [Unless you're a terribly bad writer, you are never going to have too many readers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-wylie/unless-you-re-a-terribly-bad-writer-you-are-never-going-to-have-too/) [Andrew Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-wylie/) > [Read good books. Read bad books - and figure out why you don't like them. Then don't do it when you write. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/read-good-books-read-bad-books-and-figure-out-why-you-don-t-like-them/) [Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/) > [ I think, as the writer, you're always going to mourn something \[left out of a film\]. But you also just want to know there's… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/i-think-as-the-writer-you-re-always-going-to-mourn-something-left-out/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [I'm only an actor. I'm not a writer. I'm not going to leave any legacy. All I've ever done is learn the lines and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mckellen/i-m-only-an-actor-i-m-not-a-writer-i-m-not-going-to-leave-any-legacy/) [Ian Mckellen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mckellen/) ## More by Kelly Link > [I spend a lot of time loathing the sentences that I put down on the page. Once I'm past that phase, it doesn't really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/i-spend-a-lot-of-time-loathing-the-sentences-that-i-put-down-on-the/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [In terms of style, too, I think I've been working with a somewhat limited -- although intentionally limited -- set of tools. So I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/in-terms-of-style-too-i-think-i-ve-been-working-with-a-somewhat/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [I didn't do anything as active as deciding that I wanted to be a writer. For one thing, I didn't feel like I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/i-didn-t-do-anything-as-active-as-deciding-that-i-wanted-to-be-a/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [“When his writing is going well, Gordon Strangle Mars likes to wake up at 6 a.m. and go out driving. He works out new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/when-his-writing-is-going-well-gordon-strangle-mars-likes-to-wake-up/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [Most of the things that I remember from childhood wouldn't make a particularly good story: rescuing worms during rainstorms, our schnauzer attacking a wheel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/most-of-the-things-that-i-remember-from-childhood-wouldn-t-make-a/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [The beloved may be treacherous, greasy-headed and given to evil habits, or else it can be a man in his late forties who works…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/the-beloved-may-be-treacherous-greasy-headed-and-given-to-evil-habits/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [“Tell me which you could sooner do without, love or water.” “What do you mean?” “I mean, could you live without love, or could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/tell-me-which-you-could-sooner-do-without-love-or-water-what-do-you/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [You were going to travel for love, without shoes, or cloak, or common sense. This is one of the things a woman can do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/you-were-going-to-travel-for-love-without-shoes-or-cloak-or-common/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [A vampire is a flexible metaphor. You know, death, sex, change, stagnation, loss of self, loss of agency, having to keep one's real self…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/a-vampire-is-a-flexible-metaphor-you-know-death-sex-change-stagnation/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [“If you were to say a witch's chess set instead of a witch's family , there would be some truth in that. Perhaps this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/if-you-were-to-say-a-witch-s-chess-set-instead-of-a-witch-s-family/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [“Hildy has resigned herself to this, that life is a series of sudden disappearences, leavetakings without the proper good-byes. Someday she too might vanish.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/hildy-has-resigned-herself-to-this-that-life-is-a-series-of-sudden/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [“Jeremy and Karl and Elizabeth have known each other since the first day of kindergarten. Amy and Talis are a year younger...Now the five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/jeremy-and-karl-and-elizabeth-have-known-each-other-since-the-first/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [I built a cannon out of ice, and wrapped myself in the funeral carpet which my husbands and wives had woven for me out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/i-built-a-cannon-out-of-ice-and-wrapped-myself-in-the-funeral-carpet/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [“This is the list you carry in your pocket, of the things you plan to say to Kay, when you find him, if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/this-is-the-list-you-carry-in-your-pocket-of-the-things-you-plan-to/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [Becka was almost good looking enough to be on a reality dating show, but not funny looking or sad enough to be on one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/becka-was-almost-good-looking-enough-to-be-on-a-reality-dating-show/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) [Explore all 70 Kelly Link quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) ## More Balance quotes > [Balance suggests a perfect equilibrium. There is no such thing. That is a false expectation… There are going to be priorities and dimensions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-morrison/balance-suggests-a-perfect-equilibrium-there-is-no-such-thing-that-is/) [Denise Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-morrison/) > [The bones of my architecture are very much related to the structure, to the physical fact of how a building can stand up; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/the-bones-of-my-architecture-are-very-much-related-to-the-structure/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [she got a reputation for an easy smile and a sharp tongue, and using one to balance the other, she seemed friendly but distant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/she-got-a-reputation-for-an-easy-smile-and-a-sharp-tongue-and-using/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [Life's unfairness is not irrevocable; we can help balance the scales for others, if not always for ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-h-humphrey/life-s-unfairness-is-not-irrevocable-we-can-help-balance-the-scales/) [Hubert H. Humphrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-h-humphrey/) > [“We don't need to strive towards balance, we rather need to work on the obstacles that are preventing the natural flow of balance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-alebraheem/we-don-t-need-to-strive-towards-balance-we-rather-need-to-work-on-the/) [A.A. Alebraheem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-alebraheem/) > [I think that kind of balance comes with the process of growing together as a band, the Little Dragon. We love to write, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukimi-nagano/i-think-that-kind-of-balance-comes-with-the-process-of-growing/) [Yukimi Nagano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukimi-nagano/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [At times of recession, running a budget deficit is highly desirable. Once the economy begins to recover, you have to balance the budget. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/at-times-of-recession-running-a-budget-deficit-is-highly-desirable/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [It's my intention to make something stand outside the realm of album art, but it also feels comfortable to me to be in it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer-baizley/it-s-my-intention-to-make-something-stand-outside-the-realm-of-album/) [John Dyer Baizley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer-baizley/) > [Once you've gotten your money in balance, you know how much you have to spend on things that are just fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/once-you-ve-gotten-your-money-in-balance-you-know-how-much-you-have/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [I never understood how much running changes your life. I'm now obsessed. When not trying to beat my personal best, I'm talking to other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadiq-khan/i-never-understood-how-much-running-changes-your-life-i-m-now/) [Sadiq Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadiq-khan/) > [Whatever needed to be done, I need to know how to do it just as well as my wife. You know, for us to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-isbell/whatever-needed-to-be-done-i-need-to-know-how-to-do-it-just-as-well/) [Jason Isbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-isbell/) > [I don't think my parents would have let me go straight into acting full time when I was 12. I do like to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/i-don-t-think-my-parents-would-have-let-me-go-straight-into-acting/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) > [When it comes down to music, I have no balance. I am 100 percent. It is like full throttle. Five hundred miles an hour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yanni/when-it-comes-down-to-music-i-have-no-balance-i-am-100-percent-it-is/) [Yanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yanni/) [Browse all 5,166 Balance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's very unlikely that a writer is going to make a living by writing. So then the question is: how do you balance work, life, and writing? 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