In “The Unbearable Costs of Becoming a Writer,” a gut-wrenching narrative posted online in
Esquire.com last April 3, young novelist Nicole Chung looks back to the extremely high risks she had taken by putting in many years of hard work at very low pay as a fledgling writer and later as an editor in the publishing industry.
Nicole’s efforts now appear to be finally paying off with the recent publication of two books she has authored,
A Living Remedy and
All You Can Ever Know. Still, she wonders whether the sacrifices she had taken to attain her level of success had really been worth it. She had persisted in pursuing her creative craft although she was the only child of low-income and perennially ailing parents who needed her personal care. She later got married and had two kids for whom she says she and her husband couldn’t afford full-time childcare.
IMAGE CREDIT: ILLUSTRATION FOR ESQUIRE.COM BY SARAH KIMNicole ponders her situation with a heavy heart: “I continue to grapple with the instability of this industry and what kind of opportunities will be available to me in the years to come, as well as larger questions about whether my editorial work was valued. Whether it was worth it, especially given my family’s needs. I think about who gets to be a writer or an editor, who can afford to wait for that livable salary or that higher advance. Who can choose to prioritize their creative goals, take potentially career-making risks, invest precious years in this work without the guarantee of financial stability."
Read Nicole Chung’s “The Unbearable Costs of Becoming a Writer” online in Esquire.com now!
