Comment 1: Writing is work.
Writing feels hard because it is hard. If you’re finding it difficult, that doesn’t mean you’re bad at it.
It just means it’s work.
Comment 2: Good writers start as bad writers.
You don’t become a good writer first and then write. It’s in the struggle to write well that you become a better writer.
The bad news is that the first few things you write likely won’t be very good. The good news is that if you feel like a bad writer, that doesn’t have to stop you.
You can just start and get better as you go.
That’s what we all do.
Comment 3: Consistency will take you further than “talent” (whatever that is).
Are some writers more talented than others? Of course.
Does talent alone guarantee success? Of course not.
If all writers improve through the struggle, then it is those who struggle consistently who will rise.
Comment 4: No one will take your writing seriously until you do.
We can’t critique an un-pitched article.
We can’t engage an unarticulated thesis.
We can’t read an unwritten book.
Only after you take yourself seriously will we get the chance to do the same.
Comment 5: The hardest thing about writing is writing.
This isn’t a punchline.
It’s the unvarnished truth.
The hardest thing about writing is writing.
And yet—for so many of us—it’s worth the struggle.
As someone currently in the throes of taking a manuscript over the finish line, I’m feeling all of this more than I normally do.
Seeing a writing project through to completion can be a long, hard process.
Here’s the best advice I can give:
It helps to have company along the way.
Find a mentor
Join a writing group
Make friends in the writing community
Hire an author coach
Go write the thing.