Because the majority of Americans want to write a book at some point in their lives, it begs the question: should I become a writer? Creative writing isn’t necessarily the best way to build your fortune, but it offers so much more than just a paycheck. When you have bitten by the writing bug, there is simply no way to deny that you have to put pen to page.
Not sure if you should pursue this career path – or even practice being an aspiring writer as a hobby?
Here are seven clear ways you can tell that you have what it takes to hone your writing skill and maybe even dive headfirst into book writing.
1. Everything is Fodder for Books
“If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better,” says the brilliant and very successful writer, Anne Lamott. The truth is that whatever happened to you is indeed the raw material that you can transform into a long and happy writing career. Maybe you think about that fight with your spouse, the snide comment from your mother, or the boring conversation you had with a coworker at the communal coffee pot.
No matter what it is, a professional writer knows that paying attention to the routines is just as important as paying attention to the out-of-the-ordinary moments.
If you find yourself dashing away to jot down a piece of dialogue or can see alternate endings for the reality of your life, then you might want to consider becoming a writer.
2. You Don’t Mind Being Alone
Any freelance writer will tell you that there is nothing more lonely than sitting at your computer in front of a blank page. No one else can do the heavy lifting for you; no one else is going to hold your hand while you become a better writer. The only way through to the other side (a finished book) is the work you do right now (sitting alone and putting words on the page).
Writing is a skill very much geared toward introverts who don’t mind spending vast amounts of time in their own imagination. Indeed, you likely have some very serious conversations with yourself when you think about sitting down to get work done. Why should you need the company of others when you have characters chattering away at you in your mind?
If the idea of sitting alone makes your skin crawl, there is good news.
You can join communities like the Heart Breathings Writing Community and do your work in tandem with others. Think of it as a writing cooperative where everyone comes together at a set time and does their work. It’s still solo, but you know that there are other people in the battle with you.
3. Reading is Your Idea of a Good Time
Some people want a night out on the town or a fancy dinner to feel like they have something worthwhile to do. Whether you’re freelance writing or just working on your first novel, you might be a writer if reading is your idea of a good time. You can read English literature or translated works, poetry or prose, craft books or fiction.
It doesn’t matter what your go-to comfort read is as long as you are cracking the spine on a good book.
Not everyone who reads is destined to become a writer, but no professional writing has ever come to pass without studying their writing craft. To know what the market wants and to study your storytelling, you should be devouring books with the ferocity of a lion on a zebra in the African plains. Read anything and everything you can get your hands on.
You never know what might spark your next idea.
4. You Express Yourself Better in Words
Whether you are a content writer or a published author, you likely realize that words come more easily to you when you are working them out on the page. Writing allows you to select the perfect words, like gold wrapping paper on an expensive gift. Words flow faster and more smoothly when you have solitude and time to think them through.
Should you become a writer?
If you feel like you can better express yourself through a short story as opposed to a long and meandering conversation with a loved one, then it may be a sign that you need to invest more time in your fiction writing. Don’t allow faulty speech to take over what you want to say. Give yourself time and space to reflect and express through the written word.
5. Imaginary Friends Follow You
Most of us had a stint in our younger years where imaginary friends followed us through the day. A fiction writer never seems to lose their penchant for imaginary characters. Fellow writers will tell you that they have tons of voices in their heads from the time they wake up in the morning to the time they go to sleep at night.
A good writer doesn’t try to banish these thoughts from her mind; she embraces them and shapes them into the stuff that stories are made from.
6. You Don’t Mind the Hard Work
Budding writers are those who have an intense need to improve their craft. They will take constructive criticism from any place they can find it if it will help them improve their writing. Attend a writing workshop, sign up for a conference, get a critique partner, or take a class at the local community center. Pick up the book on how to write better stories or get a better writing job.
You might even enter writing competitions again and again, seek out a literary agent for feedback, and do anything else you can do to get feedback on your work. Then, you do the heavy lifting to improve what you have already committed to the page.
If the prospect of editing and revising doesn’t scare you away from the writing habit, then it might be time to consider if you truly are a writer. Tap into a thriving community where we all want to uplift each other and you’ll find that your writing process feels much smoother.
7. You Love the Writing Process
Good writing doesn’t come out of thin air. You have to have time and dedication to the process. Whether you want to write a blog post, focus on content writing, or write the next romantasy novel, you need to make sure you love the process: the brainstorming and plotting, the writing and editing, the criticism and reviews.
Your writing isn’t over just because you hit The End of your book.
It’s a long and uphill battle to revise and shape your story. Make sure you are utterly in love with what it takes to get through the inevitable storm of writers block which will only abate when you sit down and put the hours into your story.
Should I Become a Writer?
No one can decide for you. At some point, you will have to decide whether you truly want to be a writer or if you are merely in love with the idea of writing. Make a list of all the reasons why you should be a writer and pin it to your desk or computer so that you can remember why you got into this craft in the first place.
Only you can pave the way from where you are right now to better writing in the future.
Read, survey your surroundings, study your craft, and fall in love with writing if you want to add your voice to the masses as a published author. And if you are a writer, join me on the 90 day novel writing challenge I posted earlier this month!