I will NEVER commend someone for ’sacrificing’ for a writing career. That’s a SILLY art myth.

I WILL commend someone for achieving happiness and making smart business decisions.

I also realize that some people work better under pressure – fear of failure – living in the garrett. I do not, so that kind of starving pressure would KILL me.

I don’t find it noble. I hear that story and think of all the ways she could have done it better – wait one year – save up more money – etc. But that is just me.

I’ve changed jobs two times to reduce stress and give me more writing and family time. And yes one of those times was a significant paycut.

Again – this is a tough topic because of ALL the variables.

One question – Why do so many lawyers become writers? If I had known that, I would have gone to law school.

Kids aren’t just another expense item to consider, because they have the legitimate expectation of being supported by their parents. My comments are really a reaction to a speech I heard some time ago from a now-successful author, describing how she quit her high-paying job, yanked her her daughter out of private school in her senior year of high school, sold the nice house, moved to a crappy neighborhood away from all her kid’s friends, and stuck her kid in a public school that wasn’t a very good environment, all so she could follow her dream to be a writer. She was bragging about it, touting herself as a role model for her daughter, and commending herself for the sacrifices she made for her writing career. Seemed to me she wasn’t the one making the sacrifices. That’s the kind of situation I was thinking about when I wrote my post.

If people are depending on you to be the bread winner, then I think bread comes before art. If you have only yourself to support, starving in the garrett may indeed be noble.

That’s the hard part about his conversation. SO many darn variables.

I went under the assumption of if you had hypothetical children then you had a hypothetical SB making some cake, making it very similar to my situation.

My only point was that kids are not really that different from other expenses that need to be considered other than they are also a time factor.

Pre-existing medical condition is another, like you say.

I agree that medical coverage IS one of the challenges and from what I hear, the coverage and group rates available to artists is still pretty weak.

This is such a difficult conversation because everyone has different needs, expenses, and ways of handling money.

Your example is very similar to what my plan is. Some of it is included in the way I operate today. I am prepared to be laid off and have other potential jobs that I keep tabs on.

But I see this same philosophy in writing. Take you for example – you have, basically, contracts that will pay over the next two years. You are meeting your deadlines.
In this situation I would be writing other books in between, so I would be shopping WELL BEFORE the current contract runs out. (I’m not implying you aren’t. I have no idea.)

It’s a tough conversation and there is no right or wrong answer.
There are so many ways to do it right and equally as many ways to do it wrong, but you don’t know until you try.

At the time my wife quit, it turned out that I wasn’t making enough to support us. Ooops.

If you’ve got a stable source of income from a variety of sources (lottery winnings, investments, etc.) then you aren’t really relying on your freelance. Independently wealthy (or semi-independently wealthy) is a different situation. Certainly, if I were a multi-millionaire, I wouldn’t be thinking about rent or health insurance so much.

However, I would also consider SE a great deal higher than mine (the number I set was 150% my other income) to be unsuitable, if merely due to the cost of decent health care. For example: periodic premiums for catastrophic individual health insurance costs as much to me as the cost of very swank full coverage family plans at my previous place of employment. If I were trying to cover a family, as Hip Mama mentioned, I’d need a significantly larger amount of money. If I’d wanted one that provided maternity benefits… the price tags begin to get astronomical. Thus the “really healthy” clause.

Had I some chronic illness, I would also not have left my job, as I would have needed more coverage.

Really, it’s all about the health plan for me. I was crunching numbers on that for quite a while before I gave my notice.

You need to set your own level, taking into account what you require regarding fixed expenses for dependents, health needs, property, etc. Since I have very little of this, it doesn’t enter into my figures at all. And yes, having very little of this makes it easier to take the risk. If the answer to B2 had been different, so would the answer to all the rest.

Also, not all forms of SE are created equal. There are many, certainly, which provide a high level of stability. Plumbing, for example.

Art is not a stable enterprise. Though it may appear more stable on a day to day basis, because I know, according to contract, my employment for the next two years, while my friend’s place of work just laid off half their staff w/o notice last Friday, my friend is more likely to find another job very quickly, whereas openings in my industry are not as easy to come by. I know a lot of writers who have struggled to land new contracts after being “laid off.” Sometimes for years.

Patrick, your wife quit her job. You, to my understanding, didn’t. Isn’t that Plan A?

And of course, these are all concerns I’m dealing with for the past year and for the next one. When situations change, I will change with them. When SB and I are married, when SB starts living up to the Plan A promise, when I’m finally diagnosed with carpal tunnel…

You are implying that ANY form of self-employment is a risk to a child. You are incorrect in doing so.

The decision of whether or not to quit your day job has nothing to do with children if you are smart about money. This does not mean living on ramen and depriving your child.

My wife quit her job when our son was born…

Was that a risk to my son?

I don’t think so. In fact, it was the most important thing we did! If only I could get her to write!

Yes, kids add to the expenses. Things like school districts affect where you live. That’s all.

And don’t tell me that day jobs are more stable. I’m at an office where several hundred people are being told their jobs are moving to a different part of the country. Move or lose! Nice stability…

So, yes, with the right combination of book contracts, investment income, and possibly a part time or menial job, I would quit my current job, regardless of the age of my son.

And if the first book contract isn’t big enough, it just goes to increase my investment income so the next one doesn’t have to.

What I will owe my kids is definitely on the non-negotiable list for me. I can live on ramen noodles and go really light on the health insurance and be a starving artist, but I didn’t sign my hypothetical children up for that.

A great many writers I know (some making a lot of money writing) still have their day jobs, whether becuase it’s something they love, or they like the benefits, or they have a higher standard of living or more financial obligations (to kids or whatever).

And I so agree with you on the impact children have on the decision when and if to quit the day job. I’ve heard several writers claim it’s good for your children to see you chase your dream, and use that argument to justify giving up the hated but lucrative day job and downgrading to a life of humble means. IMO, SELF-sacrifice in pursuit of a dream is all well and good, but chasing your dream at the expense of your children is self-centered and wrong. Just my opinion.

This worked really well for me.