by Elton Gahr

Created on: April 10, 2009   Last Updated: March 06, 2011

Becoming a writer or even an author is a lot of hard work and the only way to achieve success is to treat learning to write as you would any other skill you wanted to gain. You have to practice a lot, learn every time you do it, study those who do it better and pay your dues. There are three stages to this like in many and in the traditional apprentice style system they would be called apprentice, journeyman and master.

In the apprentice stage the key is not to create those things that will sell or even impress, though both are possible. Instead, it is to practice to learn the many different styles and rules of writing. There will be plenty of room to break those rules, but like with any form of art it is vital to know the rules and understand why they exist in order to know when and how they should be broken. Reading books on how to write is useful, but reading classic books and even attempting their style can be useful, just like an apprentice painter may copy the style of the master training him before he develops his own style.

At some point you become a journeyman. In the apprentice system these are people who know the art well enough to do it completely on their own but who have not yet proved themselves a master of the craft. It is at this point that you have put enough words on paper to have learned why the rules of writing exist and to begin to submit work to those who you want to buy it. These do not need to yet be selling their work, but they should be able to create something that is worthy of being published even if it is not. This means understanding not only the tools of writing and the rules, but also beginning to understand publishing as well. This is the stage that most people will stay at.

In the apprentice structure a masterpiece is not the greatest piece of work someone creates, but the piece that they create to prove that they have mastered the trade. In the case of a writer the third stage is also this. The book, article or story that you write which proves that you have reached the level where you understand the craft of writing well enough to contribute something to the overall craft. Understanding how to best the writing rules to tell an interesting story, using an idea that is rare or unused or finding a unique voice are all signs of a master and is the final stage to being a writer.

No matter what stage you are at, or what stage you want to be at the only truly real stage for writers is that of writing or not writing. At its most basic a writer is simply one who puts words down on paper and so long as you do that and hopefully enjoy it then you are a writer and you should proudly call yourself a writer, but for those who want to advance hard work and passion can help anyone to reach the third stage of writing.

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