12 Perks of Being Married to an Author | guest post by Julie Klassen’s husband

Everyone, it seems, wants to be a writer, and who wouldn’t? So many are drawn to the allure of spending all day conjuring up spellbinding stories while wearing pajamas, and with a cat on your lap to boot.

But have you ever considered the other half of the marital equation, the husband of a bestselling author? The “Proser Partner”? How does this station rate in the grand scheme of things?

Well I’m here to tell you that being married to an author is a pretty good gig if you can get it. Here are just a few of the perks:

1. Authors often travel to distant lands like England to do research and sometimes the spouse gets to go along. Sure, while other people are touring Buckingham Palace or Big Ben, I’m spending four hours in the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Museum, but who’s complaining? The best part is the author’s travel expenses are tax deductible.
2. Authors are good at writing things. So when it’s time to fill out those Christmas cards, who do you think gets tasked with that? Yep.
3. Authors are good at spelling and grammar and their editing skills are top notch. These skills come in handy when it’s time to create that resume and those cover letters.
4. Authors get lots of practice writing their name at book signings and such. So when it’s time to sign the guest book at a wedding or funeral? You guessed it.
5. Authors have a wealth of knowledge regarding the time period in which they write. So if “Regency era England” ever comes up in a Trivial Pursuit category or a pub quiz night, I am sitting pretty.
6. Reading material is never lacking at our house. We have stacks of books piled upon stacks of books. My future reading list will take me up until at least 2050.
7. Authors know other authors and some of them are quite famous, and almost all of them are quite nice people.
8. Access to office supplies is off the charts. Not to mention the thousand or so ‘Julie Klassen’ bookmarks I’ve got stashed away in a drawer someplace.
9. Who else gets Figgy pudding at Christmas time?
10. Let’s just say that if I wasn’t married to an award-winning author, our family trophy case would be a lot smaller. 😊
11. I already mentioned research travel, but even better are the group trips Julie leads to England. These trips are truly a highlight and I look forward to any and all future trips with fans who have become friends.
12. Probably my favorite perk of all is getting to eat all the left-over candy from speaking engagements and book signings.

There you have it. Just a short list of the perks associated with being married to an author. I truly have enjoyed seeing my better half doing what she was born to do.