I find the claim that non-fiction writers are all effectively hobbiests to be less-than-compelling. Non-fiction and fiction alike (at least the good stuff) requ

I find the claim that non-fiction writers are all effectively hobbiests to be less-than-compelling. Non-fiction and fiction alike (at least the good stuff) requires a large amount of research, time that's built into the 6 month figure I put above (and some good writers are even slower than that, even full time). > they can remain amateur and fund it from pocket to make that happen don’t you think Sure - I think it's entirely possible. Even for a confident full time writer it's possible. But - and this is the core point - I have a hard time blaming them for taking the money for their hard work. Same with OSS developers. I have a hard time blaming OSS developers for taking hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars in buyout deals, or in salaries as they write OSS code on behalf of a company. Passion doesn't fill your pantry with food.