How to be a Writer

[midnightsmagic]

The world is full of writing advice. There are probably hundreds of books on the topic and innumerable websites and blog posts full of rules, tips, tricks, and hints. Some of these are helpful. Some of them are not. Whether they are helpful or not doesn’t really have much, if anything, to do with the actual content of the advice. It’s all about the

Comments

[crowinator]

Thanks for this post. I'm in a huge writing slump and have been for a while, and the three "rules" you list here are the ones I have the most trouble with, too. It's nice to see that some writers edit obsessively as they write and don't write every day and spend time on the Internet while writing -- maybe if I just allow myself to write like this, which comes pretty naturally (editing as I go, mini-breaks, etc), I'll be able to loosen my brain enough to get out of the slump.

[midnightsmagic]

It's all about finding what works for you and not forcing yourself into the writing processes that work for other people. The "write every day" rule is the one that still sometimes sends me spiraling into self-doubt, because it's probably the number one most repeated and adamantly stated, often by writers I really respect. And I guess if your goal is to become a full-time writer who lives off money made by writing, that might be more important.

If editing as you go and taking mini-breaks is what comes naturally to you, and you find that you're as productive doing that as you are otherwise (or more productive), then obviously that's how you should be writing!

I'm glad you found the post helpful.