Until now, the roadmap of my career has gone something like this:

• Publish my writing consistently for free online, looking for opportunities to grow.
• Keep building The Dare to Dream Podcast, because between my babbling monologues and Greg’s enterprising mustache, we’ll eventually be a top dog in the personal-development space.
• Continue traveling, writing books, taking photos, and cultivating the Vincent Van Patten universe.
• Work whatever day jobs I can find in foreign countries or online to sustain my creative pursuits.

I’ve figured that after years of diligent work perhaps something will hit, or a door will open that I can’t expect. Then, I’ll be making a living by doing what I love. This has been the plan for as long as I’ve been a writer: work hard. Stay on the path. Put my faith in the universe and cherish the ride.

I’m committed to the long game because I know that what I’m trying to do will take time, patience, and persistence. It’s not getting to the finish line that will make me happy, anyway. I’m happy now in the midst of the adventure, figuring it out as I adapt, stumble, grow, become.

I’m incredibly proud of the work I’ve put in and the path I’ve taken. I’ve self-published two books, have maintained a podcast with over 200 episodes, sold the first edition of my magazine at a zine festival in Tokyo, and have published nearly 650 articles online.

Creatively, I feel like I’m heatin’ up. I’m just lacking in the one area that determines “success” in modern society, and that is making money.

But last week, it hit me.

There could be a way to stay aligned with my mission and my heart, while asking my audience to take my work as seriously as I do.

For years, I’ve told myself it’s not my goal to make a living from writing online. The priority has been writing books, as books are substantial and may last for generations, whereas articles come, go, then fade into the digital realm.

I’ve realized it doesn’t have to be one or the other, old school or new school. It can be both, because I’m a modern man in an old soul, damn it! I’ve been telling myself that I don’t want to make an income writing online by writing click-bait titles or by feeding an algorithm. I just haven’t wanted to play the game.

The thought process has been to write from the heart, and if money came, awesome. If it didn’t, so be it. I’ve told myself that monetary success isn’t the point, and it isn’t. I’ll do this for the rest of my life because writing is how I grow, understand, heal. But I gotta make a living.

Money is a part of life, no matter how much I tell myself that it’s romantic to be a struggling artist. I want the freedom to do what I’m doing now without the financial anxiety, and I’m realizing that I can one-hundred percent make that happen without compromising on my values.

The only difference between me and those making a living from writing online is mindset.

Those getting paid for their work believe they deserve it. They embrace the fact that we live in a digital age. They think like entrepreneurs, and treat their writing career like a business.

That doesn’t mean it’s heartless. In fact, because they get paid, perhaps they write with greater depth and respect for the reader. I know I will.

Professionals get paid for what they create, and I’ve been afraid to treat myself like a pro. That fear comes from a place of lack, the belief that I can’t quite crack the code of creative entrepreneurship like others can, and that nobody will hop on board to pay for a subscription if I ask for it.

But I’ve never thrown my hat in the ring; I haven’t taken a genuine shot at making my passion my living. I’m tired of wondering what could be. I’d rather have five dedicated paid subscribers who are truly benefiting from my writing than five hundred free subscribers who couldn’t care less.

I’m at a turning point of my life and my career, and it’s time to shake things up.

The first change is making my newsletter a paid newsletter, because I believe in my path, my experience, and what I have to share.

The second is switching over to Substack. Substack is a growing community where writers choose the price for what they create. There are free newsletters, and there are paid ones for up to $1,600 a month (don’t worry, that ain’t me). It’s up to the creator and what the audience believes the content is worth, and that’s pretty cool.

The third update is changing the name of my newsletter from Citoyens du Monde (Citizens of the World) to Vinny’s Field Notes.

Citoyens du Monde will remain the name of my magazine, as I hope the magazine will grow to be stories and perspectives from a global network of thoughtful souls.

The name Citoyens du Monde has never been about me. It’s about us, as we are all citizens of this world. Through my writing, I hope to meld cultures, inspire bold action, and illuminate the more meaningful aspects of being a human being on planet Earth, which derive from both the darkness and the light.

These aspects transcend borders, race and gender, and say something about the human spirit and our call to find meaning in this life. We are all citoyens du monde, and we’re all much more similar than we realize.

So why Vinny’s Field Notes?

Because these stories often begin as notes in my journal scribbled in the wild. I’m a traveler, a wanderer, an observer. I often wonder what home really means to me.

One day, it will be a place of my own, a community, roots. But for now, no matter where I am in this great big world, all I need is my weathered journal and bronzed pen, and I feel like Vinny. Writing brings me peace, and that’s home.

Why become a paid-subscriber? Because perhaps as I share what I’m enjoying, struggling with, or finding meaning in, you’ll see yourself in these weekly tales.

Maybe they can serve as a reminder that we’re all dealing with the same shit, and if writing helps me find beauty in the pain or gold in the mundane, maybe my words can do the same for you.

It could be that you enjoy seeing this planet through my stories. I’m not going to stop exploring, that’s for sure. If you’ve been a part of this journey for some time, you know that I’m from Los Angeles, but have lived in Europe and, most recently, Japan. I soon hope to be departing to another country to satisfy my wanderlust.

The beauty of our landscapes and cities is astounding, but what captivates me most is how people live in everyday life. The ways in which we differ are boundless, but it’s the ways we relate that make us human.

Writing helps me better understand what it means to be alive, what it means to be me in this body and this soul. My aim is to inspire the same for you.

Moving forward, the newsletter is going to focus on my story of the week. That’s it. I’ve realized that the other information I’ve always included (lyrics, podcast, books, etc.) takes away from my primary intention, and that is to tell a story.

I want to keep this newsletter clean, focused and impactful. You can find everything else I do on my website.

So that’s it, fam. If you’ve been a part of this journey for years, months, or even days, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I do this because I fucking love it; I couldn’t stop if I wanted to.

This is the adventure—not reaching the goal—but iterating, trying, failing, and pressing on into the great unknown, having gained a bit more wisdom with every step.

It’s time to go all in.