How To Be A Writer
(This post is mainly a reminder to me. If it encourages you too that is wonderful.)
So, you want to be a writer? Me too! I want to be a successful blogger and novelist. Probably more on the novelist side of things when it comes to “success”. And when I say success in this context I mean that I can make a living doing a thing. I would love to write books for a living. But that would require me being a writer, and a good one at that. You want the same thing, huh? (Or maybe you don’t but the coming advice applies to most things in life)
Here is the best piece of advice I have heard from multiple sources:
If you want to be a writer, then write! Quit thinking about it and do it! Go ahead! Get up off your duff, then sit back down on it in front of a keyboard or piece of paper and start writing!
There. If you followed that piece of advice then you have succeeded. Now keep doing that. Writing, that is. That is what it means to be a writer, right? A writer is one who writes.
Now, being a successful writer? That is a whole other ball game, right? Not really. All you need to do is:
Write a lot! Don’t quit writing! Keep going! When you feel like quitting, don’t! Now write some more!
The point is this: practice. Writing is just like any other skill. If you don’t practice, you won’t be any good. I am not guaranteeing success will come with practice but I can guarantee that success will not come without it.
On a recent episode of Writing Excuses (if you are an aspiring writer this is a great resource) they gave the following example. When you first learned to write your name how did it look? Pretty messy, right? It took practice before it became anything worth looking at. Writing is very much the same. The first things you produce will be messy and only your mom or wife will probably like it. And you will be a writer. But with lots of practice it will begin to shape up. And as it shapes up you may just become a successful writer. That is the hope.
So, what are you waiting for? Go write!
(Again, this was a reminder to me as much as it is content for you to read. Thanks for letting me talk to myself out loud in public.)
Oh! And if you have any advice to give, please do.
Brian
