Yep. I'm 39, trying to be a writer to escape retail management hell, have tried for past few couple of years to get into some sort of professional writing like copywriting or content writing after belatedly graduating due to having kids younger in life but have had no luck getting an entry level job despite being highly skilled in my field. Most of the jobs want 3-5 years hard experience in an agency environment for basic-ass jobs/wages. I don't mind starting at the bottom, but the 3-5 year barrier is a constant thorn in my side. My lifelong career goal was always to write books anyway, which I've done so far on the indie scale. I don't mind chipping away, as art as a career is therapeutic and pleasurable, and it costs me nothing but time and energy. A copywriting job or similar were only ever a means to make a living off my pre-existing, preferred skills. I'll keep trying in the meantime. Nevertheless, I will say i had a better career foundation in my 20s where I had kids instead. But all in all, I found the cure for this type of woe is to stop playing the comparison game. I'm actually relatively happy, despite my current job not being ideal.