When to do it Yourself and When to Call in an Expert
Each of us has strengths, talents, resources, and motivations. We each look to our day and weigh the priorities and assess our capabilities in addressing what the day requires. In that assessment, we must consider time vs. money–whether we want to tackle each task or whether we should handoff a project to someone else.
Many of us are do-it-yourselfers. We’ll give up a weekend or a week to fix the problem or complete the project. Motivations in this realm range from the satisfaction of getting the job done to saving money to an obsessive need for self-sufficiency. Writers are, by definition of the occupation, do-it-yourselfers. We make our own stories.
Others would rather call in a trained pro. Maybe they don’t want the hassle. Or they like the comfort of work covered by a warrantee/guarantee. Or they’re worried they’ll botch the job.
Maybe they value time over money.
Long ago my wife and I decided our time was more valuable than our money. We’d rather pay an electrician to come figure out why the lights are flickering than root out the cause ourselves. We’d rather have a pro come blow out our sprinklers than buy an air compressor and spend two hours doing it ourselves. Our time–time for doing things together we enjoy–holds sway over our money.
“Writers are, by definition of the occupation, do-it-yourselfers.”
This is not to say we don’t do our own household chores (mowing, vacuuming, dusting, cooking, dishes…you get the idea). We have simply drawn a line in our lives and projects that are over that line get professional help.
The same applies to my writing life (and should to yours). Writers in today’s market hold multiple titles: editor, promoter, designer, communications expert, marketing expert, and self-medicating psychotherapist. Not all writers have the skills, let alone the drive, to fulfill each of those roles. And they shouldn’t.
Each writer–each entrepreneur really–must figure out what parts of the job they’ll tackle on their own and what parts they’ll handoff to someone else. We must balance our resources, assess the value of time vs. money.
If a self-published writer has the means, I recommend hiring a professional cover artist, web designer, and editor (at least pay beta readers to help out). Full disclosure: I run this website myself and have designed the covers of every self-published story I have out there. But I don’t want to. I’d rather spend my time writing, editing, promoting my writing, and interacting with others in the writing world.
Now, I am not trying to start an argument over how much money it costs to do x, y, or z. This is not a blind declaration assuming all of us have the same monetary (or time) resources at our disposal. I am pointing out that, if you are someone who focuses on the financial above all else, perhaps boost the value of time in your equation, just a bit.
Traditionally published authors have to do a lot of this same list of chores. Publishers and agents help out, but not so much you’re free of the burden to get things done on your own. Balancing time vs. money is just as crucial for them.
