I've decided to start learning about affiliate programs.
I don't know whether or not its a worthwhile venture, but residual income is the name of the game when it comes to building a real life now a-days.
Since there are only 24 hours in a day, it makes sense to use them wisely. No one can work all 24 hours and no one would want to. Hell, even if you could it wouldn't make you any more money.
Residual income works for you no matter what else is going on. That's the whole reason that writers do what they do. When you create a novel or screenplay you are paid upfront if you sell it. But over the course of time the residual income can add up to quite a bit more than you were initially paid.
Writers like Stephen King and Dean Koontz could stop writing right now and still be okay for the rest of their lives because of their past efforts. Guys like that keep writing only out of love for the craft. They have long passed any need for large influxes of money.
Anyone who does creative work dreams of the same thing in their lives. That one or two major hits that spawn an entire level of income that they can draw off of for years. And it builds on each success. Sell 9 novels and each novel will have its own income for several years after they are published.
Of course this is dependent on how well you negotiate your contract and how well you market yourself. The publisher will do some of that for you, but how successful you ultimately become is up to you.
There are dozens of creative commons authors who do their own advertising and marketing. As a result they have built a loyal fan base without the need for a huge marketing machine and the expenditure of lots of money.
People like Scott Sigler, Mur Lafferty, Chris Lester, J.C. Hutchins, Phil Rossi and more. They believe in their craft and believe in their ability to light up a crowd of fans with well written stories. It isn't about the flash and bluster. It's about building a legacy.
And believe me when I say that legacies always outlast the creator in the long run.
So I'll build my legacy one click at a time. When I start publishing I'll build it even more.
Never stop trying to be more than you are.
Peace
