If you sit down in front of a blank screen and feel the need to write, then you are a writer. If you write even one word on the blank screen, you are still a writer. You can choose to agree or disagree on this but we are human and not everyone will be 100% on your side.
You are walking or driving and have an enlightening experience, good or bad, and think to yourself, “maybe I should write about this”. You fill the blank screen with words. The blank screen becomes a canvas. Painters and artists do this all the time. They see a plain, uninteresting space and resolve to fill this blank space with art. Writing is an art.
Writing involves your whole mental being. Whether it’s a research article, writing what echoes in your head at that particular moment or what you thought about writing at an earlier time. Your mind is involved. Once you trigger this muscle, the mind will demand some exercise. The craving to write will continue.
Writing or blogging may become a challenge as you begin, as you constantly wonder why you are doing it (sharing your views) in the first place. To become better here are a few tips to get you going:
Believe
Believe you can write and you are well on your way to being a good write. That one word is okay. As you progress, make it 200 which will become 300, 600, 1000 and soon 10000 words. 10000 words is a book. If you believe you can write you will. Don’t be afraid to click the publish button and expect the unexpected.
Write every day
Being better at writing requires practice. Writing everyday will exercise the mind (a muscle). The mind will then get accustomed to the idea of having to write every single day. If you write every day you become better at it. If you don’t write every day, you won’t know what your potential skill level is. It doesn’t matter if you write good stuff or bad stuff. Make it a habit to write every day.
Read a lot of stuff before you write
Words will not always come easy and reading makes it better. Reading will increase your flow of words and you will also learn new words as you progress. Reading is also a good motivator for writing. It doesn’t have to be a manual book. You could read blogs and articles online to get your writing motivation on.
Practice the 2-minute rule
The 2-minute rule overcomes procrastination and laziness by making it so easy to start taking action that you can’t say no to. Want to become a better writer, write one sentence (2 minutes) and within an hour you will still find yourself still writing. After the two minutes everything will start to flow and writing becomes less of a challenge. The urge to write more progresses. If it takes less than two minutes, do it now.
Do not expect everything to work out in the beginning and become a successful writer all in one night. Always remember overnight success takes five years to be achieved.
Writing is about freedom; do not chase the money in the pursuit of becoming a better writer/blogger.