If you're interested in becoming a writer, one of the best things you can do is find an activity that gets you writing fresh material every day. I don't mean "writing" as in working on a magazine article or book manuscript. Write every day in a journal. Keep a diary. Start a blog. Write your family's memoirs. Write detailed letters to long distance family and friends. By sitting down to write every day like this, it builds up your stamina for writing. It trains your brain to craft sentences and form complete thoughts. It develops your ability to communicate your ideas through the written word.
I know far too many people who dream about writing. They talk about writing. They read about writing. They edit and rehash and rework manuscripts that they've been working on for ten years. They belong to two or more critique groups. They read other people's blogs and read through the newest writer's markets every year. But I don't see evidence of them actually sitting down to write new material.
It's overwhelming to think of sitting down to work on a magazine or book manuscript. It's scary to work on those projects with the thought of your critique group watching over your shoulder. It's hard to break through writer's block and work on the next page of your project when your brain freezes and doesn't offer the perfect ideas for the next scene or point.
But if you sit down each day for at least fifteen minutes and "allow" your brain to enjoy the process of uninhibited writing in your journal, diary, blog, memoirs, or personal letters, your writer's soul will be fed. It will grow. It will mature. You will come to realize you ARE a writer and that you're on your way to learning to express your thoughts to the world through the written word.
2 comments:
Hi, this is Ruowen Wang - a Chinese-Canadian author for children. I was on your website for the whole morning reading away. I would like to share my website with you too: www.ruowenwang.com. Here are my Virtual Books. You and your husband are invited to read them from cover to cover on my website:
Little Joy - ISBN 978-0-9738799-7-1
To Share One Moon - ISBN 978-0-9738799-5-7
The Hidden Treasure –ISBN 978-0-9738798-1-0
Eeni Meenie Minie Moe –ISBN 978-0-9738798-4-1
Are You Thinking What I’m Thinking?–ISBN 0-9738798-0-7
Zigzoo – When a Dragon Catches a Cold.–ISBN 978-0-9738799-8-8
Little Wen – What Is this Saying in Chinese? – ISBN 978-0-9738799-3-3
Please go to: www.kevinandrobinbooks.com. Click on Virtual Books, use "review" as the user's id, and "abc123" as the password.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Happy holidays!
Ruowen Wang
Thank you Nancy. You're an inspiration to aspiring new writers like me. I will take this tip to heart and I know it will make a difference. May God continue to Bless you for using the wonderful gift he has given you.
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