My mom always said "don’t try to decide what you are doing for your life, just decide what you are doing for the next 5 years and commit to doing it for 5 years, you can always change. "

I do accounting, and some sysadmin stuff, I like accounting because you can do it at any company in any industry, or government, or whatever - nearly everyone deals with money. I do not try to go up a career ladder but it’s there if you want it and are good with people, as you move up that gets more important than the numbers!

The kids, a mix of medical, science, military, and one who I think will become an electrician. The oldest who stayed in military and quickly rose through the ranks is rolling in cash, so if you literally have no ethical concerns, that is one way to really rake it in. Second highest earner (and balanced life) is a genetic counselor, so a medical specialist but not doctor.

I think you are taking the right approach, mostly here to say that it’s really ok to just have a job that pays the bills, especially if you like writing, finding something that gives you enough money but also enough time to work on that might be a better life, and really what you are trying to do is build a good life, yes?