Life as a writer

Hello and welcome!

This is my first official blog entry, and I wanted to start by jumping right into my life and what it means to be a writer. Down the line, I’ll mostly be posting my book reviews and author spotlights, with personal or advice posts interspersed.

So, what does it mean to be a writer?

I think this is a tricky question because most people who aren’t writers don’t know the answer to it, and most writers don’t know the answer either! Why? I’ll explain this to you in two simple words: imposter syndrome.

I’ve never known someone truly creative who didn’t suffer from this annoying little dark cloud that hangs over our heads. It’s hard for us writers to feel we are practising what we dearly preach. When you’re just writing for yourself, it feels like you’re not really writing at all, and even those of us lucky enough to write “professionally”, whether that be through publication or content/copywriting gigs, feel like we’re not doing enough to be considered a writer.

It’s a double-edged sword, no matter how the fictional blade is swung. But while this might be how we feel, it’s not the reality.

I have been lucky enough to make writing my job, and I’ve recently been persistent enough to find the time to write fiction again and, of course, write on a more personal level here. My inner critic will probably forever be telling me that I’m not doing enough, that the only real way I’d be a writer is if I’m a New York Times bestseller with ten books under my belt. If that were the accurate measure of being a writer, there wouldn’t be many in this world, and that just makes me sad.

But here’s the truth. Being a writer isn’t a position you can be given by someone else. It’s not in a degree or a promotion, either. It’s a choice.

It’s kind of like in Harry Potter spoiler alert for the young crowd or the living under-a-rock crowd who have never read Harry Potter, do you even exist? Anyway, when Harry convinces the hat he doesn’t want to be in Slytherin, the hat takes this into account and puts him in Gryffindor. I’ve always liked to believe that to be a Gryffindor, you simply have to want it enough to tell the hat that’s where you want to be.

Think about it!

Harry asked because he felt Slytherin was the last house he’d want to be in. Ron would’ve wished he was in Gryffindor because that’s the house his whole family had been sorted into, and Hermione would’ve been smart enough to know which house she’d want to be in.

You have every right to be a writer; you just have to choose to call yourself one.

There are no tests, levels, or ways in which you need to pursue this goal because it’s not a goal but a way of being.

Whether, like me, you want to earn a living as a writer, write a blog or simply like to write your thoughts down in your diary, it doesn’t matter. What matters is the act itself.

We don’t question whether we deserve to blink when our eyes need to; it just happens and is called blinking. When you put a pen to paper or tap away at that keyboard, you don’t need to question whether or not you’re a writer.

The truth is in the act itself.

This is the hardest part of being a writer, believing that you are one.