[1] In the 1970s, Abbot became a silversmith and moved to Whitebridge to devote himself to writing, but the remoteness of the location meant that orders for work became fewer and the business failed.

Abbot took on a large number of low paying jobs to earn enough money to live, such as casual farm work.

Other positions that Abbot described in the biographical entry of his Avoiding the Gods included barman, different types of drivers, forestry worker, auditor and interior designer.

[3] Abbot explained during this period that he took these positions to try and support himself while travelling in Africa, according to his Scottish Arts Council bursary application biographical statement, but his aim was to become a full-time writer.

This led the Scottish Arts Council to provide a bursary that enabled him to complete the work on the manuscript Avoiding the Gods.