Your Writing Matters

 

“Who am I to write about my thoughts or ideas? I’m not anybody special.”

 

I know of a lot of writers who have battled with these kinds of thoughts, or worse. Their belief is that because they are not popular, wealthy, important, educated, talented or a newsmaker, anything they write won’t have any value. Nobody will care about it, so what’s the point in even writing anything?

 

Anything that you want to write must be written because you are the person to write it. You feel compelled to write something, so write it. Take heed of your muse when you feel that call to write and start putting those words down.

 

You don’t need adoring fans or bestseller status in order to be a writer. Anybody at any age and at any stage of life can be a writer. Everybody has the right to write. Your writing matters because it is YOUR voice and YOUR ideas. You are allowed to share these things and write these things. You don’t need permission. You don’t need validation. All you need is your own confidence in yourself to write.

 

If you just want to write as a hobby, then by all means, go ahead and write as a hobby. Anybody can write as a hobby. There’s nothing wrong with this. You don’t need permission to write stories in your free time or dabble with a novel-in-progress. Go ahead and write to your heart’s content.

 

If, however, your goal is to seek publication of your work, that is fine too. My advice? Go for it! Take those steps to get published. You don’t need to be a famous writer to get published; you just need to be you.

 

When I first started out as a freelance writer, I was intimidated about sending queries to magazines. I was not a writer with many clips under my belt – unless you count the articles I wrote for my local paper. I wasn’t a bestselling author. I didn’t even have a website! (Then again, I got started with freelancing before websites were even in fashion!) I eventually realized that I had to get over this fear and self-doubt if I wanted to get published, I had to put myself out there. So that’s what I did.

 

That’s what you need to do, too. Don’t worry if you’re not published yet or if you’re not a bestselling author. You have to get your start somewhere! The best way to do it is to have faith in your ability to write and your dream of getting published. If you really want to get your work published, then write and submit!

 

Additionally, a lot of editors, as well as readers, are hungry for new voices. They WANT the kind of writing that is different and that stands out. Your writing voice and your writing style are unique, because they are yours. They are not copies of what everybody else has already written. That is your advantage.

 

Not only do you have the advantage of being a fresh, new voice in the writing world, but you also have your own ideas of things to write. And some of those ideas for things to write just might make your work stand out above the rest. Your creativity can help you get that article, short story or novel accepted for publication. What makes yours different is that it comes from YOU.

 

You have every right to write. No matter what happens with your writing or your life or your place in the world, your writing matters. Your writing is important because it’s about your thoughts, your ideas and your experiences. You don’t need to be “somebody special” to be a writer. You only need to be you. You can be a writer if you want to be a writer, but you need to make sure that you’re not just a writer, but also writing.