A
Career in Creative Writing:
have you got what it
takes?
Find out if you have what it takes to have a career in
creative writing. (But don’t worry if you don’t have it yet,
because this website is all about helping you get it!)
I’ll tell you in a minute exactly what you need to have a
career in creative writing.
But first, know this:
People often think that you have to be published to be an
author, but that’s not true. Once you have written a piece of
fiction - long or short - you’re an author. Likewise you can
think of yourself as a writer as soon as you are writing.
And don’t say, or even think, “I’m trying to write a novel”.
That statement has the seeds of failure within it. Instead, say
and think, “I’m writing a novel”. (Or, of course, your
screenplay, or play etc)
The most important piece of advice I’d
give you is this: don’t wait for permission to become a
writer. Don’t wait for somebody else to tell you that it’s
okay to do this, or that you’re good enough or whatever.
Unfortunately our culture teaches us that we need to wait
for experts to tell us it’s okay to do
something, or that we need their endorsement before we can do
it. This is one of the basic premises of our school system, but
it’s also pervasive in our whole culture. I’ve even read posts
on writers’ forums that ask if it’s okay to start writing a
novel unless you've got a creative writing
graduate or even have a creative writing masters
degree!
Don’t fall into this trap. All you need as an education in
creative writing is a) fiction writing resources which are
freely available (such as this website) and b) down to your own
practice of your own fiction writing skills.
Fiction Writer's Mentor aims to give you all the fiction
writing techniques you will need.
Think of this website as a free creative writing class!
This website is also very much focussed on getting your
thoughts and beliefs to support you - to give you the
confidence you need to write. (See the pages on
EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique), and
Creativity in Writing).
I invite you to have a look at my page on
Creative Writing Tips for more suggestions on
this.
Now, having said all that, what do you need to have to launch a
career in creative writing?
You need:
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