They say there’s a book in all of us. but only a tiny fraction of us will ever write one.
Most people have no desire to write. Some might like the idea of being a writer and say they ‘could’ write, if they didn’t have to work, raise a family, etc, or that they’ll do it when they retire.
But if you’re reading this then I’m willing to bet you think you’re different, right?
You’re a member of that select and often crazy group of people brave enough to call themselves ‘Writers’.
Or perhaps you prefer the less committed “I’m Freelance” or “I write”? You’re not quite ready to turn that verb into a noun. Writing is what you do, but it’s not who you are. You’re still padding in the shallows, not quite ready to swim in the deep end yet; but you hear the siren call, don’t you?
You dream that writing could pay your mortgage. It’s a passive income, all you need is a laptop and your ideas, no commute, no boss, you could work from a beach in Bali or a Café iIn Paris. What could be better?
For many writers, nothing, that’s why we do it. It’s flexible, it’s creative and if you’re good at it, it pays well. But it’s not easy.
To make money from writing you need to be willing to put the work in. It’s not for everyone.
However, if you can answer yes to the following questions it might be for you.
You already write creatively
No big surprises here, but if you haven’t written anything more than a shopping list since you left school it’s unlikely that writing is the best career choice for you.
Successful writers, well… write. They keep diaries, they blog, they write short stories for fun. It is just something that’s innate. I’ve worked in offices and I’ve set up several small businesses. I have three young children. But whatever I’ve been doing I’ve always been writing as well. I haven’t always written every day, but in the same way, some people get restless if they don’t exercise daily I feel better if I’m writing regularly.
You have ideas you want to share
I think about writing a lot, When I’m walking the dogs, when I’m bathing my youngest, I’ll be composing blog posts in my head. If something happens that affects me, I’ll be thinking about how to make a post from that. The most successful writers have expertise in their niche, but more than that, they have a passion for it. While there are lots of ‘100 blog post ideas on Pinterest, if you’re not passionate about your subject, your writing will be dry and boring. Nobody will read it and you’ll give up. Decide what you want to write about before you start posting.
You read a lot
Find me a writer would doesn’t love reading, I’ll wait. Good writers read, a lot. and widely. Novels, news articles, magazines, trade journals, blogs, everything. It’s no coincidence. We love words, we love learning, we love seeing things from other people’s perspectives, even if we don’t agree with them. especially if we don’t agree with them. it also helps with point two, if you read a lot you’ll never run out of inspiration.
You’re consistent.
Writing isn’t a 9-5 job, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have to put the time in. Especially in the beginning; this is one of the few cases of quantity over quality. writing is a skill that needs to be practiced. you can’t hone and refine your work unless you have a body of work to refine. so once you’ve found a subject you want to write about, write like crazy. I’d recommend 1000 words a day, but 500 is the very bare minimum to build up a serious body of work. Around 1000 words is also the ideal blog length. This takes the average person around 5 minutes to read, anything longer and you risk losing your reader’s attention, but anything too brief and you risk them feeling short-changed.
You can self-edit
Writing is (if you’ll pardon the pun) only half the story. once you’ve written your initial draft, you’ll need to come back and edit it. Spelling, grammar, but also how it flows, does it encourage you reading to keep going? is your message clear? have you delivered what you promised in the title? If you’re going to blog on a freelance basis you’ll need to know how to write in a distinctive ‘brand voice’ that may be different from your usual style. Or you may be writing for a different target audience.
You’re not afraid of hard work
Writing is fun, sure, but it’s not easy.
If you going to make a career out of writing you need to treat it as a career.
If at first, you need to fit this round a day job that pays the bills, it’s going to be tiring. tI may help in the beginning if you treat it like a desk job. set up somewhere you won’t be disturbed. make it clear to other family members you’re working, and don’t stop until you’ve got your 1000 words. success won’t come overnight, but working consistently will bring results
You can take rejection
when you’re first starting out, you’ll be told no a lot, you might be told a piece you were really proud of needs to be completely re-written. It’ll suck. but you must remember it’s not personal, accept constructive criticism gracefully, and eventually, you will get a yes.
Nothing else will make you happy
So you’ve read what I have to say and you’re not put off by the idea of hard work and rejection? In fact, you’re still excited, then, go you! You may just have what it takes. Good for you. Once you take the leap and start to think of yourself as a writer, it really is the best.
Where are you on your writing journey? let me know in the comments.
jesca
xxx
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