For decades, I worked in the real estate industry. My last “real” job [“real” being defined as working in an office, with other humans, with a communal coffee pot and donuts 🤤] was as a residential/commercial title insurance examiner.

I really enjoyed what I did, but today you couldn’t pay me enough to do it. Unless we’re talking millions, but not to worry, that’s not going to happen! 😆

At the time, I was living in Florida, where you’d trip over a title insurance agency if you weren’t paying close enough attention. So, to my surprise, when I moved to Wisconsin to remarry, I had a choice between factory work and factory work. Trust me, I’m so slow I’d have been fired the first day. 🤣

Share AC Cooper Writes

But it was 2009, and I had a better idea.

Why not learn how to write content for a living? I’d loved writing in school, and English was my favorite subject. So, I learned how to write content and copy, along with the business side — landing and retaining great clients.

On the side, I published short stories — my first one was published a million years ago. [2016]

But it wasn’t until I recently put my mind to building my backlist that I began to think about the similarities and differences between my “day job” (content/copy for clients) and my “night job” (fiction).

1. Don’t Take it Personal

Whether you’re submitting to a client or a fiction market, take any feedback with a grain of salt. Depending on who delivered it, they could be right, or they could have just had a bad day. Shrug, and move on, taking only what’s helpful.

2. Keep learning

I love learning, so I suppose you could say it’s something I would do anyway, but it’s important to get outside of your head from time to time. Also, you’d be surprised at what you can learn just by talking to someone while you’re waiting at the grocery checkout. 😁

I’ve paid for courses that helped me learn a ton of things I wouldn’t have otherwise known, which has helped me both in my copy/content business as well as my self-publishing business. So I make learning a priority.

3. The writing process may differ

When I write social media posts, website copy, blogs, articles, emails, etc., I use an outline and/or a formula. So you would think that I’d do the same when it comes to fiction. Not so. The best I can do is follow Lester Dent’s writing formula, but even that can be a struggle.

Nope. Discovering my story as I write is my preferred option. It’s what makes me happy.

4. Nothing is wasted

You can make a living more quickly by writing for businesses, so it’s what I did and still do. I don’t regret making that decision. A girl’s gotta eat, ya know! 🤤

All that time learning about SEO, writing emails, the buyer’s journey, etc., has helped me understand the marketing side of things. And it’s that knowledge that I put to use when it comes to marketing my books. The point is, everything you learn is simply more fuel for your business.

So if you’re debating between learning copywriting, content writing, or writing fiction, know that what you learn will not be a waste of time, if for no other reason than you’ll have material you can use for whatever you choose to write.

What have you learned that has helped you in your writing?