You Are A Writer (So Start Acting Like One)

by Jeff Goins

When do you become a writer? “When you say you are,”

Before others will believe what is true about you, you’ll have to believe it yourself.

Now write the following words: I am a writer.

This is dangerous territory, when your creativity hijacks your productivity.

There is no wrong thing. Just begin.

You have to choose your priorities, or they will choose you.

I chose to write for one—and only one—person: myself.

writer—taking yourself seriously so your audience will too.

All first drafts suck, so get it over already.

GOOD WRITING IS IN THE EDITING

Writing is about space. It’s about what’s not said. About showing rather than telling. About making every word count.

Remember: Every. Word. Counts. Act like it.

Until you’ve trained yourself to notice words you would normally ignore, you’ll need help. Here are a few things to look for:

Just writing for the sake of writing.

Writing is hard—really hard. It’s work.

Not just your fingers and brain, but your whole self.

If you’re writing something that matters, people will disagree with you.

This is serious work, so if you want to do it right, it will have to cost you everything. Including your life. No two ways about it.

“Don’t be the sacrifice; make it.”

You don’t have to suffer; you can work instead.

write, not deal with ridiculous bureaucracies.

I found that when you stop seeking public approval, something interesting happens: People will be deeply attracted to your work.

Passion is contagious.

You will need others’ help. You will need a community.

There’s too much noise in this world.

Here’s the thing: If you have something worth saying, you want people to listen because it matters to them.

To gain momentum, to build a community of friends and fans and patrons, you have to have an image and personality people recognize.

One of the biggest mistakes writers make—one of the biggest ones I made—is believing they don’t need a brand.

Finding your voice is one of the hardest, most important tasks a writer will undertake.

Most writers don’t like promoting themselves.

This is the third tool every writer needs: a channel—or better yet, channels—to share your work and allow readers to interact with you.

You’re going to have to join some existing channels and networks—if you want your message to matter.

Without your audience’s trust, without permission, you’re only adding to the noise. The best way to combat this is to be over-the-top helpful, to be unexpectedly generous.

all of this began with a pledge, with a simple understanding: I am a writer. I just need to write.

So how do you get potential patrons to notice you?

What’s the difference between published authors and you? What do they have that you don’t? Maybe nothing. Except they know how to get published, which is actually quite significant.

SAMPLE #1: FIRST CONTACT

SAMPLE #3: GUEST BLOG POST

Don’t keep following up after they’ve told you no.

Make this a relational transaction, not just a business one.

If you can learn to pitch well, you’ll get an article published.

Every writer has a moment of “arriving.”

You are a writer. You just need to write.