Have you ever asked yourself that question? Or do you even consider yourself a professional writer in the first place? Do you delineate between the titles “writer” and “author” perhaps? I’ve seen all sorts of artificial definitions.
A “writer,” according to some, is anyone who keeps a journal, a blog, a diary, or otherwise scratches down words, thoughts and even the occasional story. If you enjoy putting down words in any fashion or form, you are a writer. Others consider a “writer” to be someone who actively pursues writing as a form of art, or craft. You don’t have to be doing it for publication, but writing is a way you express yourself, and you strive to improve your technique. Perhaps you study it and subscribe to writing magazines.
Calling yourself an “author” however, draws in a bundle of qualifications, so it seems. First off, an author must have received payment for their writing. Or you can’t call yourself an author until you’ve written a Book. Short stories and all don’t count. I’ve also seen the claim that you can only be called an author if you write full time and can support yourself solely on that pursuit.
Australian author Sean Williams has this article in which he hashes out the factors that make a writer professional or not. He also lists a Code of Conduct the SFWA once posted.
A professional writer in any genre should:
· Respect intellectual property. That is, writers should not plagiarize, pirate, or pilfer the work of others, or encourage anyone else to do so.
· Honour commitments, both explicit and implicit. That is, writers should enter into contracts in good faith and do their best to fulfill them. These contracts include more than just delivering novels on time. They cover rewrites, appearances and other forms of publicity.
· Deal honestly and courteously with members of the public.
· Refrain from spreading falsehoods, rumors or innuendo with the intention of damaging the careers of other writers.
· Neither seek nor grant unfair advantage. That is, writers should not try to influence editors or reviewers except by the quality of their work.
· Present one’s self and one’s field in the best possible light.
His general conclusion (one of several main points he makes) is as follows: A professional writer is someone who is actively writing, and being paid to do so.
I would also add this on the previous arguments over whether you have the right to call yourself an author, or writer, or a snobbledygorp. If you know yourself to be a writer, then that is what you are. If you consider yourself to be an author, then that is what you are and what you should strive to be. Letting others define what you think of yourself as is a self-imposed limitation. It may seem like they are the ones making the rules of what you can call yourself, or what title you can put on the Occupation line when filling out tax forms, but ultimately it comes down to what you know you are. And hopefully we all have a good idea of where we fall on the spectrum. The question now is, where do we want to be, and how do we get there? Give me your thoughts. What is the term you refer to yourself as, and how do you rationalize it?
I see that smile.
The conference chatter went like thise: A conferee turned to me (nice rhyme, that!) and asked, “So what do you write?”
I answered, “I write for magazines and newspapers mostly.”
Conferee’s reply?
“Oh, so you’re not a real writer. You don’t write books.”
I beg your pardon?
I wasn’t pretending to write!
By that man’s oh-so-limited definition if it didn’t have a title and chapters and a table of contents–it wasn’t writing.