3. You don’t feel important.
1. You keep trying to tell made-up stories, but they aren’t helping you escape from your real world.
2. You have a lot going on right now, and making writing a priority just doesn’t seem possible.
3. You don’t feel important.
4. There are so many writers, and it doesn’t feel like you have anything worthwhile to add to what’s already being written.
Continue reading “12 Reasons Writing Doesn’t Feel Worth It Right Now (Even Though It Is)”
But just because you’re afraid doesn’t mean you won’t learn to do the things that scare you.
1. Getting something wrong. A name, a fact, a small mistake that has unbearable consequences.
2. Hurting someone’s feelings. Which is why it’s never a great idea to write about people you know without their consent.
3. Never being “good enough.” Whatever that means.
4. Sharing your work with other people.
Continue reading “10 Things You’ll Always Be Afraid Of As a Writer”
3. Actually writing like you said you were going to today.
1. Rereading something you wrote and almost maybe sort of … liking it.
2. Finally finding the “missing piece” your work-in-progress has been struggling without. (This is one of my favorite moments!)
3. Actually writing like you said you were going to today.
4. Writing more than you said you were going to today because you’re on a roll.
Continue reading “10 Small Moments That Will Remind You Writing Is Always Worth It”
4. Don’t just tell people what they should do. Show them how to do it, and why it matters.
1. Don’t tell your audience what they want to hear; tell them what they NEED to hear, and give them a reason to listen.
2. Speak from personal experience — but don’t make it all about you. Always make it about the person reading.
3. Don’t shy away from “real-world” issues. Fiction is a reflection of reality, and even escapism is going to have hard-hitting truths sprinkled throughout.
4. Don’t just tell people what they should do. Show them how to do it, and why it matters.
Continue reading “12 Tips for Writing Words That Change Your Readers’ Lives”
Part of learning is messing up.
1. Spelling things wrong. Be mindful and proofread, but one small error in most cases is easily fixable and isn’t going to ruin your entire career.
2. Writing too much or too little – being “too wordy” or not descriptive enough. This is something you learn as you go, through actually writing.
3. Breaking basic writing rules. Usually, you have to break them, learn how not to break them .. and THEN you get to break them all you want, but strategically.
4. Reaching out to the wrong people for help. You should always do your research and learn as much as you can about the proper way to do things, and sometimes you don’t reach out to the right people. That’s OK. Hopefully they can help refer you to the right people who can answer your questions.
Continue reading “10 Mistakes Writers Can’t Be Afraid to Make If They Want to Succeed”
There’s a lot going on. It’s hard to break out of a dark state of mind when everyone and everything around you is constantly feeding you reasons not to.
The Blank Page is a new weekly series on Novelty Revisions dedicated to any writer who is just beginning their journey or starting again after a long pause. Check back every Monday for more tips and inspiration.
People tell me all the time that they haven’t written “lately” because they “just haven’t felt like it.”
And I get it. I do. There’s a lot going on. It’s hard to break out of a dark state of mind when everyone and everything around you is constantly feeding you reasons not to.
But if you want to write — if you really do want to take your writing seriously and are struggling to find the motivation to make it happen — you first have to be honest with yourself and accept that a lack of motivation to write really isn’t a great excuse for not writing.
You can overcome that, though. We all can. It’s just going to take some work.
Continue reading “How to Get Motivated to Write | The Blank Page”
It’s not an exaggeration to say almost everyone believes they could one day write a book.
It’s not an exaggeration to say almost everyone believes they could one day write a book.
It’s not my job to crush your dreams. If you want to write a novel, I truly believe you can do it.
But the truth is, many who dream of becoming novelists will never make it past the first drafts of their first manuscripts.
Why? Because writing is … complicated.
Continue reading “Why Not Everyone Who Wants to Write a Novel Will Follow Through”
5. You’re rewatching that show AGAIN? Good for you!
1. You make plenty of time for “just thinking.” Usually in a quiet place. Alone.
2. You have the kind of commute that allows for plenty of sitting and scrolling through social media.
3. You’ve read so. Many. Writing. Books. SO MANY.
4. You still eat dinner at an actual table? With other people? Every night???
Continue reading “12 Signs You Actually Have More Time for Writing Than You Thought”
2. You did the best you could this time. You’re not a “failure.”
1. Hey. The world is pretty upside-down right now, yeah? It’s OK if that makes you feel not OK, which can make working toward your goals harder than usual.
2. You did the best you could this time. You’re not a “failure.”
3. It doesn’t have to be “all or nothing.” Focus on what you DID accomplish, no matter how small — it still counts!
4. Not meeting a goal doesn’t mean you’ve failed. It just means something you tried didn’t work out the way you planned — but there might be a way to do things differently next time.
Continue reading “10 Things to Remember if You Didn’t Meet All Your Writing Goals This Month”
5. You’re not just willing but passionate about learning and improving. You actively take an interest in leveling up your skills and performance.
1. You have clear and concise communication skills — you’re pleasant, but you get to the point.
2. You don’t JUST have ideas. You have goals. Plans. And the writing samples to prove it.
3. You lean on your strengths. You know what you’re already good at — you don’t need someone else to validate that for you.
4. You have strong ideas and aren’t afraid to run with them — even if writing them out isn’t necessarily your strongest skill yet.
Continue reading “10 Ways an Editor Knows You’re Going to Be a Successful Writer”
Meg Dowell Writes 
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