3 Deadly Mistakes I See Aspiring Writers Make And How To Completely Reframe Your Thoughts Towards Success
I know because I have made a ton of mistakes. A TON.
Writing is tough. Read that again. The act of writing is tough, and the business of writing requires time to figure things out. Success needs time.
Even a cup of noodles requires 3 minutes to be ready.
Everyone starts with stars in their eyes. Maybe we are here because we heard of superstar writers taking home 5 figures a month from writing.
We may assume, after reading their work, that we are as good as they are. Then we plunge head in.
And then, just as any other ventures in life we start, reality steps in to smack our heads down and make us bleed.
We wonder what is wrong. The best part? We jump to conclusions. We believe that even the online world is discriminating against us.
No, no, no. Wrong, wrong, wrong.
Post-mortems are required when we experience recurring setbacks. We need to know where we have gone wrong. Sometimes, we need to know the many areas we have gone wrong.
This is akin to peeling the onion. It hurts, and it hurts more when we peel layer by layer. I will focus on 3 layers in this story, each distilled and synthesized from my writing journey.
One — Allowing Rejections To Squeeze You Out Of Your Aspirations.
Children steamroll through rejections because they do not know it exists. Adults? We learned embarrassment.
We write and send our manuscripts to publications where we discovered our favorite writers’ work.
And we wait. A day passes. Then 2. Make it 3. Sometimes, it takes a week. And we receive a private note telling us that our stories are rejected.
We wonder if it is our issue, with no clues given. It can be, of course.
We try again by sending manuscripts to the same publication. We wait for another week. We receive the same private note.
After the 5th attempt, we exit our aspiration without even getting started.
What You Can Do.
If this is you, let me assure you that you are not alone. I have been walking this path since I started in August 2020.
We need self-awareness and appropriate allusions to push us further. Have you heard of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA)?
In MMA, all aspiring fighters want to win the Heavyweight World Champion title. Even the bespectacled scrawny ones. You know, dreams do not discriminate.
But dreams do not lead to the next level by default. When the bespectacled scrawny standing at 1.60 meters with 47 kilograms enters the ring to compete for the Heavyweight World Champion title, the results are determined from the start.
Be self-aware. There are World Championship titles in other weight categories that are suited for our body types.
The Atomweight World Champion Title might be the playing ground for you.
Send your stories to many other publications and observe which ones will give pointers for improvement and subsequently accept them for publication. Start there.
Feed on the positive momentum. Feel good, so we can stay the course.
Two — Not Finding People To Read Our Work For Feedback.
There are 2 types of feedback. They are: -
- Comprehensible feedback — They are fantastic because we can act on them.
- Incomprehensible feedback — They are ________ (fill in the blanks).
And then we wonder. Where are we getting the feedback from when our work is not getting published?
From Editors.
Feedback has to be relevant, timely, and relevant to our level of writing prowess. We are not likely to benefit from Isaac Newton’s mentorship if we are struggling with algebra. Chances are, he will continue to devote his time to alchemic endeavors.
What You Can Do.
These are the editors I owe a Mountain of Debt to. They extended their olive branch to me when I was struggling to swim in the sea of writing.
They also pointed out that I am in a much better position if I get my ass into the toddler’s pool. Oh, they bought me styrofoam floats to paddle with too.
These editors are: -
Liam Ireland — He told me even Steven King uses Grammarly. I was floored.
Maria Rattray — She reminded me that commas are there for a reason, and we should use them like sea salt grinders.
Terry L. Cooper — She sends me private notes of improvement after publication. How is that for constructive feedback!
Lanu Pitan — She reads, highlights, comments. I wonder if she is my editor or fan. Haha!
You need to find publications where editors can help you to get to the next level. This is how we grow.
Rejection letters are important because it builds iron-will of steel. Beyond that, the next step is to seek growth through specific points of improvement.
Three — Not Writing Enough.
Top-dog writers have one thing in common. They write a lot. And do not confuse that with publishing a ton of viral stories and having a slew of bestsellers.
Those glitters result from their meandering journey.
Writing requires diligence more than anything else. We build our writing muscle through writing. If we want bigger muscles to flex, then we have to do: -
- Keep pumping iron.
- Pump bigger iron plates.
- Continue pumping even when we want to go for a beer.
Superstar writers write even when they do not feel like writing. They make things happen by setting aside schedules to write. And they write.
This is the top lesson I learned from superstar writers with a 5-digit following. It is known as commitment.
What You Can Do.
An hour a day keeps the exit at bay.
Focus on the act of writing and nothing else. Block out an hour from your calendar and start writing. Figure out what comes naturally to you.
It is tough at the beginning because the results are dismal. My perspective is simple. Learn to love them because some results beat none.
These are my perspectives.
- Love your $0.01 stories.
- Love your readers, even if there are only 5 of them.
- Learn to love the yellow lines from Grammarly.
- Love the process, even if it means writing after 12 hours of work.
Love these for a start. If you cannot bring yourself to do that, it is impossible to propel you to the next level.
Success As A Summary.
Success is highly individual.
Writers seek different forms of success, mostly teetering between the line of monetary or non-monetary success.
We have to put in the work, regardless of our choice.
And we have to dig deep at the start because it is the toughest then.
There will always be people who are willing to show us the way ahead. I hope this story has shed some light on aspiring writers with stars in their eyes.
Keep writing.
We will achieve what we want so long as we put in the work.
Aldric
About the Author:
As a content contributor, I write my observations from daily life and my business exposure.
Because our life experience is the bedrock of our unique perspectives.