When do you become a writer? When you say you are!

Jag är så glad att jag hittade Jeff Goins blogg när jag surfade runt på nätet för ett par månader sedan. Jeff är skribent, talare och kommunikatör och för att använda en utnött kliché så föll jag som en fura för honom. Hans ord träffade mig redan från början rakt i hjärtat och det dröjde inte många dagar innan jag utsåg honom till min mentor när det kommer till mitt eget skrivande.

you-are-a-writer-blog-ad-1-300x300Det var när jag läste Jeff Goins bok You Are a Writer (So Start Acting Like One) som jag på allvar började kalla mig själv skribent. Vissa dagar tror jag stenhårt på det, andra dagar inte men om man ska se det ur Jim Denneys (Quit your day job!) perspektiv har man rätt att kalla sig skribent om man skriver minst en, helst två, timmar varje dag. Och då har jag ju i egentlig mening ingen anledning att tvivla längre.

Vid det här laget har jag läst Jeff Goins bok tre gånger och eftersom den har kommit att betyda så mycket för mig tänkte jag bjuda dig på en kort sammanfattning av den. Förhoppningen är att den kommer att driva dig till tangentbordet för att göra det du älskar mest av allt, att skriva.

  • Like most writers, I like to write. Not sell myself, or pitch ideas, or wait for publishers to pick me. Just write.
  • I´ve learned the secret to writing for the love of it and getting acknowledged for your work.
  • Writers are born, not made.
  • It´s a choice, writing is. One that belongs to you and me. We get to choose it (or not) every single day. So whether or not the world hears your message – whether you leave the impact you were born to make – is entirely up to you.
  • You are a writer. You just need to write.
  • I found my dream not by searching for it, but by submitting to what I had always hoped was true: I was, in fact, a writer. All I had to do was write.
  • Whether you´re starting to tackle writing for the first time or a lifelong veteran, rest assured. There is better work you´ve yet to create. If you will make one important choice: Stop writing for accolades, and start writing for passion.
  • A year ago, I never would have imagined I´d be writing words that would be moving thousands of people every day. Now, I can´t imagine living any other way.
  • It´s time to kill the excuses and start writing. Time to become a writer again. Not a marketer or an entrepreneur. Not a blogger or businessperson. A writer. A real one.
  • Writing is mostly a mind game. It´s about tricking yourself into becoming who you are. If you do this long enough, you begin to believe it. And pretty soon, you start acting like it.
  • When do you become a writer? When you say you are.
  • When you start writing every day, you´ll find yourself getting more comfortable with your voice. So will others. As those two intersect, you´ll discover your message. This may take months or years. But if you keep showing up, keep practicing and doing the work of a professional, you´ll find it.
  • The only person you need to worry about writing for is you.
  • I watched other writers succeed in ways I hadn´t, and I envied them. Eventually, I grew to resent them. Why? Because I wasn´t doing what I wanted. I was writing, but I wasn´t enjoying the process. I was only chasing results. So what did I do? I went back to the basics: writing for the love of it. Not profit or prestige. Not analytics or metrics. Just for writing for the sake of writing.
  • When I started writing every day, I realized a painful truth: I can´t react and create at the same time. Neither can you. Our brains don´t work well when we try doing too many things. Though we may have eclectic interests, we can only do one thing at a time and do it well. Multitasking is a myth. You can either create or react. But you can´t do both. Choose wisely.
  • Do you know what´s at work here, when we trash around with countless projects? FEAR.
  • Here´s the truth: There is no wrong thing. Just begin. Once you learn how to finish, you´ll be able to start again. Cancel all backup plans, pick a project (it may be a book, blog or whatever) and move forward. Start writing. If you don´t, all you´re doing is waiting.
  • If you´re going to fall out of love with public approval, something interesting will happen: People will be deeply attracted to your work.
  • The truth about writing. Writing is hard – real hard.
  • In order to succeed as a writer, you need something more, something vibrant. In other words, there must be a life behind the writing.
  • It´s time to stop waiting to be asked and start creating.
  • Are you ready to get started with this? To live the life every writer dreams of? To stop pitching and start writing? It begins with having the right tools.
  • Three tools every writer needs: A platform to share your writing, a brand to build trust with readers and channels of connection to distribute your art. Without these tools, your reach will be limited. Your art will only go so far.
  • If you decide to build a platform – to create a brand and connect with others, you will see things you´ve never before seen. You, the writer, can now create a destiny for yourself that was never before possible. Amazing right? Here are some of the potential opportunities awaiting you: Book deals, offers to write for magazines, money, free stuff (like books and products), interview opportunities, chances to connect with other writers and influential people.
  • Getting started is the hardest part.
  • Having a free account on some blogging service is nice for updating your grandma (who is, apparently, pretty tech savvy), but it´s not enough for a professional. If you´ve got a presence on a platform you don´t own, you´re leaving yourself vulnerable to the whims of a stranger who doesn´t have your best interest in mind.
  • There are three must-have relationships that will extend your reach, and each of them is absolutely necessary: Fans, friends and patrons.
  • What it really takes to be a writer: This isn´t easy, this writing life. It is, however, a noble calling. And like most things worthy of fighting for, it will require all of you. Not just your fingers and brain, but your whole self.
  • The best way to get good at something is to practice. You probably already knew that. Here´s the twist: The best way to practice is to do it publicly. Musicians become professionals by playing a hundred live shows. Likewise, writers become authors by publishing a lot of bad work (until it´s no longer bad).
  • Before you write a book, you should write a dozen magazine articles. Maybe more. You should guest post on popular websites and blogs and do radio interviews. You should create a platform (i.e. a blog, a podcast, a newspaper column, etc.) and build an audience now. You should start generating buzz around the brand of you.
  • We´re done here. Now, go do something that matters.

Sådärja, där har vi Jeff Goins bok i några få punkter.

Om du vill läsa hela boken kan du snabbt och enkelt klicka hem den på bokens hemsida.

Boken diskuteras även på Twitter och vill du delta hittar du flödet via hashtagen #youareawriter

 

Comments

  1. Tror att det är en återkommande fråga hos många av oss. När kan jag kalla mig författare?
    Gillade verkligen dessa tips, de är så ”huvudet på spiken”.
    Läs gärna om mina funderingar i samma banor.
    http://holavedsbrudar.blogspot.se/2013/07/konsten-att-skriva-en-hel-roman-del-1.html
    Ewa K recently posted..Att skriva i förfluten tid

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