Do you envy writers, imagining that they live a carefree, romantic life? If so, it’s time for a reality check. Most writers aren’t sitting down writing earthshakingly great works of art. What they’re doing is frantically racing against an impending deadline. They’re more likely to be writing about how to get rid of acne than writing Pulitzer prize winning journalism.

Freelance writers have it a little better in that regard, because they can, at least sometimes, pick subjects of interest to them to write about. The downside to freelancing is that freelancers spend almost as much time looking for work as they spend working.

Now and then, though, the writer gets a break and for a period of time can live the writer’s dream. They get a nice big assignment to write about something they’re passionate about. Occasionally, these assignments can last for several weeks or even months. A female writer, for instance, may land a commission writing content and product descriptions for a fine jewelry website. For a period of time, she will be writing about rhodium earrings and other jewelry she loves.

There was a time when freelancers were able to make a decent living writing online. That still can happen, but the competition is getting fierce, thanks to the economy. Increasingly, even professional journalists and college professors are moonlighting as freelancers, just to earn a little extra cash. An extra $20 comes in very handy and surely beats sitting in front of the TV worrying about the bills.

For all of the downsides to writing, you would be hard pressed to find a writer who wants to give it away in favor of a nine to five job. Once you’ve done it for awhile, you get addicted to the freedom of freelancing, even when you’re working longer hours for less money than you would in a day job.

Another thing writers love about their work is the challenge. Even when you’re writing about something you don’t want to write about, you find it challenging and fulfilling to successfully finish the task. There aren’t a lot of men who are overjoyed by the prospect of writing about hobo handbags, but they tackle the job and find an angle that works anyway. They have to.

There’s a great deal of satisfaction that comes from doing this. Aside from the obvious fact that your completed work is going to feed you for a little while, there’s the satisfaction of having completed your job successfully.

A day in the life of a writer is rarely as romantic as the writer’s image is. Then again, it could be a lot worse. How many other jobs give you the opportunity to do what you want to do, when you want to do it?