How To Become An Author/Writer: What It Is and Career Path

What is an author/writer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

Quoted Expert

Dr. Terry Nugent

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an author/writer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $29.48 an hour? That's $61,309 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 4% and produce 5,900 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to an Author/Writer?

Dr. Terry Nugent

Assoc prof of English, Website

Graduates with a BA in English have more opportunities than ever before in the job market. While most think only about the degree as a stepping stone into K12 teaching or graduate school, the degree can also be a stepping stone into the corporate world. Large corporations need people who have experience writing complex texts, applying critical thinking and analytic abilities, and audience awareness when communicating with stakeholders at all levels of their industry. Industries that hire English majors include nonprofit organizations, government agencies, medical institutions, journalism, publishing, and entertainment. Basically, I would encourage a senior or new graduate to think outside the box—hone in on the industry you think you would be most interested in, think about the kind of work environment you are best suited for, and then look for entry-level positions with companies in that industry.

ScoreAuthor/WriterUS Average

Salary

4.8

Avg. Salary $61,309

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

3.4

Growth Rate 4%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

6.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.36%

Asian 4.93%

Black or African American 5.93%

Hispanic or Latino 7.63%

Unknown 5.59%

White 75.57%

Gender

female 56.77%

male 43.23%

Age - 41

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 41

Stress Level

3.4

Stress level is moderate

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

8.4

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

5.4

Work Life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

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Key steps to become an author/writer

Explore author/writer education requirements

Most common author/writer degrees

Bachelor's

59.0 %

Master's

16.8 %

Associate

11.7 %

Start to develop specific author/writer skills

Skills	Percentages
Web Content	27.59%
Fiction	18.16%
Non-Fiction	7.86%
Blog Posts	5.14%
Press Releases	5.11%

Research author/writer duties and responsibilities

Manage projects diligently under aggressive deadlines while maintaining editorial integrity and ensuring stories have entertainment and/or educational value.
Conduct interviews, extensive research and original photography to accurately source articles and corresponding images within deadline.
Research and edit online company database.

Prepare your author/writer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your author/writer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an author/writer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

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