Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau for September 27, 2012

Joannie, Alex doesn’t know the meaning of that word.

Out of the mouth of babes !

Lotsa luck ! it’s a lot harder than you can even imagine. Even serious novelists, are paid a pittance compared to thirty or forty years ago.With the exception of J.K.Rawlings, even best selling authors make squat !

I’m a writer. I’ve taken years of writing classes, belonged to four different writing groups, and appreciate the importance of peer-reviewing/critiquing to improve my writing skills. And every one of my writing classes professors told me the same thing: “Do not expect to get rich, or be able to sustain a living, as a writer. You’ll not only be sorely disappointed, but you could also be living out on the street, without that ‘day-job’. Keep a day-job, and write on the side.” This blogger needs to have a day-job, and write on the side.

‘Edit, child, edit’ made me LOL. Liked the way this was drawn, too, with the third panel just on Joanie’s reaction and then her punchline coming in offstage in the fourth.Writing pays my bills, but only because I have a particular training in another field that lets me edit a trade magazine. In general, trade and professional magazines offer opportunities for people to write, and while contribuitors are often unpaid by the magazine, it can be part of their paid ‘day job’; to write articles that are published and raise the profile of the writer or the company they work for. One option for the frustrated scribblers amongst you…

Occupy the Huffpost well we know that won’t work. How about we stop all reading wardrobe malfunction stories on the site? That should halt traffic?

working on a “tongue-holder” – a kind of mint flavored tongue saddle, anchored to teeth by tiny orthodonture rubber bands. edits speech & freshens breath.

Joanie will survive. She is a lawyer. After Armageddon hits, the the only things crawling around will be cockroaches and lawyers.

Joannie is well above retirement age. Rick is probably over 62, as well, thus old enough to draw early retirement.

but even when they get published, most writers need to keep their day jobs.

Upon reading this, my reaction was “ALEX!!” ‘Fraid that’s what I would’ve said. Of course my “reaction” didn’t read it, but you get the drift.

Assuming Rick was around 30 when he first appeared in 1976, he is probably drawing on a very nice pension from WaPo. His biggest concern isn’t financial but remaining professionally active and relevant.

I thought the main characters didn’t start aging until after the break in the 80s?

This is probably the worst time in history to be a writer. The Internet did to writers what the Pill did for prostitutes. It’s hard to get paid when so many are giving it away for free.

Samuel Johnson would have agreed with Alex. As he said, “No man but a blockhead ever wrote, except for money.”

Well, no one can say this isn’t topical— Chicago teachers strike, NFL refs strike, a riot at the Chinese Apple factory…

Here’s a thought,Blogging for Huffpost = commenting on GoComics.

Reporters at WaPost were/are represented by the Newspaper Guild. That suggests a pension.