Blog of Monica Valentinelli, Writer & Content ConsultantAs I’m sure everyone knows, there’s a big shake-up happening in the world of traditional journalism. Print newspapers are shrinking — both their staff and their printed size — sending many journalists to the highly competitive world of online publishing.
Online publishing is fairly competitive, because in many writers’ minds — in order to get [...]
One of the hot topics over the past, few weeks as been the “future of publishing.” At BookExpo America, the Future is Digital, according to the Washington Post. (You can also find a lot more information on the topic through Publishers Weekly.) While I’m offering my opinions related to the future of professional publishing and [...]
After a very, busy week following my appearance at WisCon 2009, I felt it was time to sit down and share my philosophy toward other writers, readers and critics. In the past, two weeks I’ve met more new people on-and-offline than I have in the past year. Since many people are unfamiliar with me and [...]
In an earlier post, I wrote a letter to new writers where I described how the path of a writer is one that winds, ebbs and flows. How do you keep following the same path? One of the qualities that a writer must have is the ability to be persistent. Well, that one word can have a lot of connotations, so I’d like to explain what “being persistent” means to me.
So what does it mean? Well, if you want to be a writer it means you don’t give up. It means when you “think” you have no readers, no chance of success, or that you’ve just written something terrible you keep on the path. You see, it is too easy to drown in self-pity or thoughts about how you’re a horrid writer, but the truth of the matter is that you (and only you) have control over that. To be blunt, if you think you suck — get an editor, or get your work critiqued. If you believe you can’t write horror because your fight scenes are terrible, try perfecting your dialogue for a while instead. Practice, practice, practice and play with your words. If you take a break, plan to get back on that wagon, but don’t ever give up completely.
Dear Writer,
First? I’d like to congratulate you on your decision to become a writer. Being a writer has never been an easy thing for anyone to do, at any point in history. I’m not talking about technology, I’m talking about writers like the Marquis de Sade or Edgar Allen Poe or even Beatrix Potter. Journalists like Margaret Fuller, Alice Dunnigan, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward have challenged the way we think about our world through their reporting. From comic book writers to biographers and everyone in between, the list of writers who’ve influenced our social consciousness goes on and on.
But I’m not writing this letter to talk to you about why writing is “difficult” or why it’s “important.” No, I’m putting these words together for an entirely different reason. You see, the path you take to becoming a successful writer really has three trails that intersect with one another. The first trail is the one that led you to your decision to write — whether that be “just” a short story or a blog post, that’s what started you on the path.
One of the things that I’ve discovered, is that if you overload yourself on the business of writing and the essentials of everyday life, your writing can be affected in ways that you don’t even realize. I find that this is especially true if you “rush” toward a deadline.
If you find you’re not enjoying your writing anymore, or if you realize that your writing has become crunchy and mechanical, I recommend putting away your keyboard and picking up a physical pen instead. Sometimes, all it takes to create a great story, is to channel the writers of old by getting back to the basics of writing implementation. Sometimes, all you need is a great pen, a journal or an old typewriter and some fancy paper to remind yourself that writing is not just about typing away on your computer. Often, the way we put the words down on the page can have as big of an impact on us as what we’re writing.
