Monte Burch is one of the nation's leading writers. He works in many different genres and is both a book publisher as well as a magazine writer. Monte is one of the most widely-read and prolific freelance writers in the nation.

QUESTION: How long have you been writing?

ANSWER: I've been writing for about 40 years.

QUESTION: How long have you been fulltime freelancing?

ANSWER: About 26 to 28 years.

QUESTION: How did you get started writing?

ANSWER: I liked to write. I wrote magazine articles and sold them when I was in high school and college. I worked for a newspaper as a rep photographer and practiced wedding and studio photography and writing at the same time. I ended up editing for a magazine headquartered in Kansas City, Kansas, called Workbench, a woodworking magazine, for seven years. At the same time, I created a syndicated comic strip, the "Good Earth Almanac," which lasted about five to six years and was carried by all of the major papers across the country. It had a circulation of about 3.5 million. I also wrote a book, The Outdoorsman's Fix-it Guide, a best seller with the Outdoor Life/ Popular Science Book Club. Then, I quit my job with Workbench, and my wife and I moved out to the country. We both decided to become freelance writers about 27 years ago.

Check back each day this week for more from Monte Burch...

• Day 1 - In The Beginning
• Day 2 - Becoming Successful
• Day 3 - Writing For Magazines and Books
• Day 4 - Advice And Earning A Degree
• Day 5 - Life's Treatment
• Writer's Page