Based on my own writing experiences, when the creative juices are flowing you are transformed body and soul, but, there is nothing so cold as a blank piece of paper (or screen) when your ideas are nowhere to be found!

I am a writer. A columnist for a local newspaper. I am considering syndicating. I love my job and it IS the greatest occupation in my eyes.

This has to be the best profession that a person can have. You make your own hours, work from the privacy of your own home, and pick your own projects. The beautiful thing about being a writer (as opposed to many other occupations) is that age will never work against you. As long as you have the talent and the ideas, your fans won't care if you are 21 or 101. They won't care what you look like as long as your books are enjoyable. Also, what a wonderful way to leave your mark on the world. How incredible to think that hundreds (or even thousands) of years after an author has died, someone will pick up a book written by that author and gain some insight into an actual event in history, enjoy an imaginative or amusing piece of fiction, or marvel at an inspirational poem. The individual who has the talent to make a living this way is truly blessed.

There is no career greater than documenting the great ideas and events in history. A writer is like a great sage; they inform future generations of the great feats and defeats and the lessons they learned from it so younger people do not make the same mistakes that had already been made in the past.

This is a career I have always desired. I have several published shorts, but I have always wanted to write a novel, and put out a few technical books. Unfortunately, my dot-com career always seems to get in the way.....

Here is the classic dream occupation question: Would you rather be the best athlete that ever lived, the best pop musician that ever lived, or the best writer that ever lived? Whenever I think about this question, I always come back to writing. As a top athlete you would earn incredible money and incredible fan adoration. As a top musician, it would probably be similar. As a writer however, more than any other profession, you have the chance for immortality. You get to provide the documentation for an era - to be the spokesman for that era for the rest of time. Talk about leaving your mark...

Being a writer is good in theory. You get to make your own hours. You can work from home, or anywhere you want to work (for me that would be on the beach). You can create stories in you head, or write about a life experience, or even research a topic that interests you. All these positives are out weighed by some heavy negatives. It is unstable on account that you don't know if people will buy what you write. You spend a lot of time alone. You get critized constantly (more than you'll get praised). You are under deadlines. It takes a lot of patience and talent to be a writer. As much as I would love to be one, I just don't have what it takes.

Personally I think this would be an amazing job, but it's clearly not for everyone. Spending long hours alone in front of a keyboard, wrestling with writer's block, weathering harsh criticism, dealing with that naked feeling you get when you expose something really personal to other people... Being a stubborn, thick-skinned introvert would definitely be an asset. On the plus side, there aren't too many other professions I can think of that would be quite as rewarding.