Dear Writer, Your Stories Want a Paycheck: Here’s How to Get Them One
Your Fiction, Essays and Abandoned Google Docs Deserve Better—This Plan Pays Them
How to Turn Your Writing Projects Into Income: A Roadmap for Writers
Today, I was brainstorming how I will reach £1.5M in 12 months. A million ideas bounced around my head, but I kept coming back to what I’ve already got—a lot of pieces that I’ve never really put out there.
So, I thought the best course of action was to create a roadmap, looking at everything I’ve ever written and how to use them as assets to generate income.
If, like me, you’re juggling half-finished novels, short stories, a forgotten blog, and one brilliant play you wrote in a flash of rage and red wine… you’re not alone. But if we want to get paid like professionals, we need to organise like strategists.
Here’s how I turned a pile of creative chaos into a multi-stream income plan—and how you can too.
Step 1: Audit Your Creative Assets
Make a list of everything you've written or started. That includes:
Finished or half-finished novels
Short stories, flash fiction
Essays, plays, poems
Scripts, scenes, fanfiction, blogs
For each piece, note:
Format (e.g. short story, novella, script)
Genre and tone
Ideal audience
Status (finished, draft, notes only)
✅ Use the downloadable template to track this.
Step 2: Match Projects to Monetisable Formats
Don’t try to monetise everything at once. Pick the easiest wins first.
Here are just a few ways one story can be monetised:
PDF short story bundle (instant Gumroad sales)
Serialised fiction (recurring Substack or Ream income)
Voice-recorded versions (Patreon or paid podcast)
Script product or zine edition (for stage plays)
Digital + print pairing (sell a PDF + offer signed print via Shopify or Etsy)
Example:
Step 3: Prioritise High-ROI Projects
Pick your next move based on these filters:
Is it mostly finished?
Can I repackage it quickly?
Does it match a platform I already use?
Tip: Focus on what you can monetise this month. Don’t get distracted by the 3-year novel plan.
Step 4: Structure Your Work Like a Business
Organise your projects like assets. Think of them as digital products that can:
Be repurposed in different formats
Stack into bundles
Feed into a content funnel (e.g. lead magnet > upsell > masterclass)
Bonus idea: Group stories under a theme or brand.
My "Disturbing Little Things" bundle includes a novella, a one-act play, and a flash fiction story—all unsettling, all monetised as a single product.
Step 5: Launch & Build
Once you’ve monetised one piece, promote it like a pro:
Create a launch thread or email
Offer a subscriber bonus or bundle deal
Use scarcity or seasonal themes (e.g. Halloween for horror)
Repeat. Stack. Expand.
Download the Template + Roadmap
Paid subscriber bonus:
You don’t have to be a coach. You don’t need a traditional publisher. But you do need a system.
Treat your stories like assets. Treat your audience like customers. Treat your talent like a business.
And start getting paid like one.
Hope this helps!
H. J. x
