ARE YOU A WRITER?

It’s pretty simple.

People always ask, what makes them a writer? A “real” writer? What justifies them claiming to be a writer? But it’s pretty simple.

You’re a writer if you write.

That’s it.

Ask yourself the question: Do I write? If yes, then I’m a writer.

Publishing sometimes happens but it’s rarely in a writer’s control. There are ways to make publishing more likely (hard work, good feedback, finishing what you start, etc.). But still, publishing — especially traditional publishing — is a difficult and often unlikely outcome. Also, what’s popular now doesn’t match up to what was popular before, or what will be popular in the future.

Hemingway wouldn’t be published now, and neither would Mark Twain. Think about it.

And no modern agent or editor would ever wade through Shakespeare’s convoluted messes.

Conversely, Walt Whitman wouldn’t have to self-publish these days. He would be traditionally published.

The current publishing universe is always dynamic, not static. So keep writing, finish your drafts, then revise, revise, revise, revise. Get good feedback, and start again.

Then, after you have a solid manuscript, submit all over — to journals and agents and editors — and collect those rejections slips proudly, print those rejection emails and put them in a file, then keep submitting until one of your submissions is successful.

After that, write some more. Write again. Keep going.