Many people want to write a book. Far fewer actually finish one. Many people call themselves writers but all they do is talk about writing - the true writer is one who actually writes.

Why Do You Want to Be a Writer?

Maybe you want to be famous, or make a lot of money. Maybe you want to work from home. Maybe you want to tell stories that get made into movies so you can get invited to the set and meet your favorite actor. Or maybe, you want to be a writer because you can't imagine yourself as anything else.

How Do You Become a Writer?

Write. Write again. Write and write and write, then write some more. (And then one more time.) You can talk about writing. You can blog about writing. You can tell everyone you meet that you're a writer, but unless you actually write something, you're nothing but a wanna-be.

What Do You Write About?

Write what you know. Write what you love. Write what scares you. Write what makes you feel. If you don't feel it when you're writing it, chances are good your reader won't, either.

How Do You Find the Time?

Many writers don't earn their livings with their words. That novel they're so patiently crafting is written in bits and pieces of time around their "real" jobs, their daily lives. We're all busy. Jobs, families, lives - it's easy to put everything else in place of writing. Make your writing important. It might be difficult to find the balance between spending all your time at the computer and watching television with your spouse or doing laundry, but it can be done. If you want to be a writer, it must be done. Make the writing important, or it will never be.

How Do You Get Started?

Writing is scary. You might have a story burning a hole in your brain, but when you sit down to write it, nothing comes out. You stare at a blank page of screen, wondering why on earth you ever thought you could do this. Well, you can. Write the first word. Then write the next. They don't have to be in perfect order. That's what editing is for. You can't edit what you haven't written, though, so unless you get the words on the paper, you'll never finish a book. You'll never be a writer.

How Do You Keep Going?

Writing is hard. It's not always as much fun as watching television or sleeping or even doing laundry. Writing can be a hobby, set aside in favor of other activities, or it can be a job. Even if you're not being paid, writing can be a job. If you never look at it like a job, it will never become your career. Yes, you might have to have a "real" job to supplement the money your writing isn't making, but once again - if you don't write the book or story or article, you will never finish it. If you never finish it, you will never submit it. If you never submit, you will never sell.

Do You Really Want to be a Writer?

You might never be famous. You might never make any money. You probably will never see your book made into a movie, be invited to the set and meet your favorite actor.

But can you imagine yourself doing anything else?

Learn more about this author, Megan Hart.
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