When Elin Hilderbrand sits down to write her next novel, it will be with pen and paper, just as it has been for the previous 30- plus. This painstaking, almost old-fashioned approach is fitting for an industry in which it might take a year for an author to write a book; another year for the manuscript to make it into print; and then another six to 12 months before the first sales statement arrives. For authors like Hilderbrand, who are trying to make a living as a writer, though, uneven royalties and long periods between unpredictable paychecks can pose a financial challenge. “I’ve had two publishers, and each sends out royalty checks twice a year, so I get paid four times a year, and I never know ahead of time how much it’s going to be,” Hilderbrand says. Even once you become successful, what’s been a precarious way to make a living can remain complicated.

Finding personalized financial advice

That’s why Hilderbrand first sought out a financial advisor from Merrill. As she describes in the video above, it was 2013, and she was finally making a healthy amount of money from her writing. But she was going through a divorce and wanted to better manage her cash flow so she could spend with confidence and start investing for growth. Another priority: being able to simply focus on her writing and her kids. “I’m a very, very busy person,” she says. “The last thing I want to do is unravel the mental spaghetti of trying to figure out my unusual tax situation and what my money should be doing.”

Faced with unpredictable earnings and no workplace benefits, writers and other creators also need to be thoughtful and intentional about planning for their future. “I went in knowing nothing and really not caring about investing and not thinking about the future in a very specific way,” Hilderbrand says. With the guidance of her advisor, she’s addressed a range of planning considerations including balancing long‑term goals, family needs and evolving priorities.

The ability to pursue your dreams

Most importantly, Hilderbrand says her advisor has helped her arrange her finances so she can meet her professional goals, giving her the latitude to be pickier about writing projects and to devote some of her attention to bringing her work to television and film. Hilderbrand explains her pivot: “Because I’m now confident about my finances, I’m able to pursue other types of writing and other projects in Hollywood, and I don’t need to rely on what had been my bread and butter, which were my Nantucket novels.”

For Hilderbrand, knowing she has a team with deep experience helping others in her position and that is focused on her life and her aspirations means she can focus on her priorities. She’s now in a position to allow her creativity free rein to produce what she wants, when she wants, and to pursue her goals without the pressures and the distraction of financial minutiae.