Who says you can’t be a writer?

We writers have good days and bad days. The good days are when ideas come gushing out of our minds so fast that our pens can’t keep pace with our ideas. And on bad days, no matter what you do, not a respectable or usable idea will make an appearance. However, try we must day after day to be prolific.

Let’s consider the bad days or those days when we suffer from what is better known as writer's block.

Writer’s block: On such days, no matter what you do, you just can’t be creative. Your creativity dries up and you’re frustrated and grumpy as you sit before your laptop or computer or face a window. Perhaps, you’re hurt and retreat into a corner since you can’t write as you usually do.

Here’s where you go wrong. Continue to write, no matter how difficult you find it and allow yourself the chance to pen whatever you can. Once it’s down on paper, it might just look different and perhaps good too!

Your spellings are atrocious: Well, it is sad that you can’t spell and perhaps your grammar isn’t your strong point either. Despite this, I would say that all is not lost. To develop confidence as a writer, all you need to do is to pen your thoughts or opinions and then use the computer’s spell check facility to check out your spellings.

Alternatively, you could ask a friend to run through your jottings and neaten it up so that no decent editor would turn up his nose at it.

You don’t know what to write about: This is perhaps the only problem that comes with an answer. If you know you want to write and are passionate about at least one subject, you’ve got your topic already. For instance, you love gardening and are an avid gardener. Why, you’ve got an article a week, at the very minimum, that could extend to a whole year!!

All you need to do is to turn a hobby into an area of expertise, which gives you a column in a newspaper or magazine. And, in fact, the lesser known it is, the more sought-after you will be for information regarding your hobby.

Or perhaps, you have gone through a life-battling experience and you want to tell everyone about it. What better way to do this than to put it down on paper? The best medium of expression is before you, so what’s holding you back?

There’s no novelty in your writings: Even if someone else has got to where you want to go, it’s no reason for you to abandon your story idea. By giving it a tweak here and a twist there, you will infuse a refreshing difference into your story or article and your readers will love your writings for the gentility they come with.

You can’t sustain your reader’s interest: It’s a common problem for newbie writers to begin well and then get stuck at a particular point in your article or story. Well, there is a way out of this one too: plan out the entire article or story before you begin writing by creating an outline, replete with introduction, middle and conclusion. Now, watch your story taking shape and rounding off nicely at the end to give a fine conclusion.

You ramble on and on, not knowing when to stop: When you start out in your writing career, it makes to take measured steps. So, you might think of writing that brilliant novel which will rake in the moolah, but think small. Perfect your craft by writing articles or short stories, and then move on to a larger format such as a novel.

You don’t have a quiet corner to yourself, so how can you write? If you can’t write at home amid distractions, take your writing pad or laptop and go out in the park and write. In fact, this is one profession that doesn’t demand a table and chair or office timings. Inspiration can strike you anytime, anywhere, and it is for you to pick up each idea that comes your way and use it in your writings.

What if your stories are not appreciated? None of the greatest writers ever began with the perfect piece of prose or poetry and won prizes for them. Rejection is part of every creative person’s life and this alone helps you get better and better.

So, see rejection in a positive light and get down to writing that first article, filler or story. Sure, it’s tough to get something decent out the first time, but it’s well worth a 100 percent try. Go out and do it now—in fact the faster you make your first attempt, the quicker you will be crowned with success.

Mithi Chinoy

Author information:

Mithi Chinoy is a former journalist, copywriter and copy editor, SEO writer and founding editor of http://www.mithichinoy.com. You can read more of her works here or contact her on mithic2@gmail.com.