It’s all well and good dreaming about becoming a bestselling author, but if you don’t think that’s going to be you, why bother?
As writers, we have active imaginations. We stare out of the window and look beyond the landscape in front of us to paint a brighter picture of our future as we’d like it to look. You know the one – where we have a Plotting Shed with a Writing Desk that we go to everyday and write thousands of words so brilliantly that it immediately gets the attention of agents and publishers (even though we haven’t been through the querying trenches) and is published to critical acclaim and we’re then set for life.
Now, don’t tell me you haven’t ever thought about this as a writer:
we all have a moment when we wonder what it’s like to be that writer at some point!
I think it’s natural for us writers to look around and compare ourselves to other authors. Of course, it’s usually the big name authors we hear most about. So, we see familiar names on the Bestseller lists, or watch debut authors get well publicised deals we wish we could have ourselves.
But let’s face it, in reality we’re more likely scrolling through social media and making ourselves feel bad because that writer is writing, while we’re over here procrastinating. And often, we don’t even KNOW that writer – they’re just a name on a screen. Yet, we use them as a measure as to how well we’re doing.
I will always maintain that ‘other writers‘ – published or not – are evidence that you can do it too – no matter where you are on your journey. But, and this is a big BUT, if you also see them and think: ‘it doesn’t matter how much I want it – that won’t be me‘. Then of course you won’t sit down to write with the excitement that you could be writing the next bestseller – or even a book you can publish.
Not believing will always – always – stifle your capacity to write.
Here’s the thing:
You cannot become the writer you dream about, unless you actually dream about the writer YOU want to become.
You can’t use someone else as a placeholder for your writing dreams – because when you do this, it’s like trying to believe you can become a totally different person! And I’m pretty sure that we don’t (yet?) have the ability to morph into other people like shape-shifters.
You’re a writer
So put that imagination to good use, and imagine what your life as a writer would look like.
What actions would you take, as that writer? Would you carve out more time to write? Would you commit to finishing that ONE project? Would you submit that story for publication?
It’s fine to look around for inspiration as to what you do or don’t want as a writer – be that to write everyday, or just on weekends. But don’t assume that just because your favourite author lives a certain life, that it will become yours if you begin to introduce their habits into your own writing life. Stitch together your own big dream depending on what suits you – be your own bestselling author; open writing schools around the world; earn enough to donate a free book to every struggling child in the UK. Mould your own ambition – because you’re the one who has to live it.
And if it’s too big of a leap to go from where you are now, to the ‘end product’ of that super-successful bestselling author that lives in the countryside and writes two books a year (whoops – that’s my future-writer self) – bring it back:
What does the writer-you look like in two years time, or even one year?
Spend just ten minutes imagining the writer you would be – the one that’s truly, wholly YOU and not some carbon copy of an author you admire – and then practice believing it. Don’t shoehorn yourself into some other writer’s shoes just because they look pretty. Trust that when you find the right pair, they’ll make you feel invincible; not hobble you or your writing ambition.
There is literally no one else out here like you, and that’s an advantage, I promise.
Check out the instant access Masterclass:
Understanding Characters
Readers want to connect with our characters. They’re looking for complex, inconsistent human beings (or other-beings, depending on your story) that jump off the page right away and make an impression. When we relate to characters in some way – be it through a familiar feeling, comparable trait, or similar experience – we want to know more about them.
But how can we create characters that our readers will find interesting and root for in our stories?
How can we make sure that our stories happen to the *right* characters – those that readers will stick with, and who will prove to enhance your plot rather than just go along with it?
All you need to do is ask the right questions…
The Write Catalyst Masterclasses are intended to support your writing life. From Planning your Writing Year, to Which Idea to Write, and Maximising your Motivation, plus many more.