10 things you should know if you want to be a writer

if you want to be a writer, be prepared for a couple things: 

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1. you have to want to write all the time

2. you have to need to write all the time (what do i mean by this? you need to be doing something else that you enjoy, and then when that other thing ends--or even during this other activity--you think to yourself i  think, yep, i think i could write right now.) it doesn't have to be fiction...it can be writing in a journal or a reflection on something, writing a blog post, making a list of ideas you've stockpiled in your phone)

3. you have to read. you can't just be a writer of words,  you have to be able to read others' first. you need to know what's out there (not necessarily for competition purposes either). you need to know how others do it. you need to be even more inspired than you already are. you need to find your company (the couple of authors you follow and look to when you need some clarification on "how to do it right"). you need to immerse yourself in the genre/type of writing you want to do. so that when someone asks you "who do you write like?" or "what are your books like?" or "if you could pick an author to model after, who would it be?" you know your stuff. oh, and you'll be asked that a lot.
(mine are emily giffin,  kirstin hannah, nicholas sparks, elin hilderbrand, jane green)

4. you have to have time and focus. and if you're not a full-time writer--as in, you have another job(s)--you have to be willing to work odd hours like early mornings and late nights and weekends to get the time in. tip: it helps to have a deliberate work space to get in your zone whether that be a home office, a coffee shop you like, or the library.

5. you have to actually write the book/story/etc. you have to work when you get to the boring chapters, the lull times. you have to keep writing until you get to a place where (at that moment) you know in your gut that you are ready to write my favorite words--besides sushi- "the end" down on your paper/on your screen. no one else can finish it for you.

6. you have to be willing for it to take a while and be patient with yourself throughout the process.

7. you have to find a method that works for you. (for example: i write my books down by hand in notebooks and sketchbooks before i type them into my software--i use storyist. not only does it force me to have a hard-copy, gives me chance to edit it a little here and there when i'm finally ready to type, but i literally cannot write a story by typing it. nothing comes out. it's like i have type-fright. it only flows if i have a pen and paper. it's weird but, it works for me. woody allen still types on a typewriter...so there :) )

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8. you have to be ready to hear all kinds of feedback. and remember that what you send isn't a three minute song or a short poem, so you will have to be patient and very very grateful for those who take the time to read it.

9. the book industry isn't the same as the music industry (which is what i just came from). in music, the artist is signed berfore the record is made. in the literary world, the book has to be written first before a deal (unless you are commissioned or a celebrity/person of interest who gets a deal to write about something they went through--neither of which category i fall under). the work is all yours, not a producer's, not an engineer's, not a mixer's, not the session musicians. yours. you don't get to come sing and leave--not that it was so easy either. you are in charge from start to finish. then, and only then, you get to ask for true feedback, help, guidance.


10. you have to be willing to not get it right the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, six, and so on.. drafts. and then when you think it's finally ready, you'll get some crazy good feedback that sends you right back to the draft-board again. after all, it's not finished until it's finished--or published.



if all these are met with excitement, you are probably good to go--this coming from an unpublished, so far amateur author. i am currently on number 10, editing the first 100 pages of my novel. it was so close (i thought), but then i got some amazing advice. so now, i'm taking a break from writing with more writing--see what i mean (#1, #2, #3)? 

i have never felt this excited or in my element before. even on this draft. even after all the drafts i've done. this is still fun. every minute. every word. i hope you find your "writing" if you haven't already. 

have a wonderful weekend! 

ashlyne