Know a lot about something else. Becoming a literary big shot will not earn you much, including happiness, unless you have skills in some other field. Do not, under any circumstances, become paper-centric, shun technology and make yourself obsolete.
Electronic publishing is the future, and it s here today.
Read Salon . Read The New York Times online. If you know about the Web already, and where the printed word is headed, feed that growth. One of the most practical uses of an English degree is keeping up with a Wall Street investor given to quoting Wilde or a manager with a penchant for Shakespearean rants who just happens to have an opening. Network thy knowledge.