How can you be a good writer?
How can you write well?
How can you write better?
These are all questions that have similar answers.
Being good or better are all relative and subjective terms. Not really measurable. But to be a persistent writer, that’s measurable. I am trained to be a doctor. Thats my bread and butter profession and the reason I do what I do.
But being a writer, came like a second chance at discovering my own self.
If one thing I have learned about being a writer in these seven years is to keep writing. I am sometimes unable to follow my own advice. But I keep trying—That’s my number one superpower. I am persistent.
I may be slow as the proverbial tortoise, but I keep at it—That’s something that helps me in everything I do.
In 2021 I am failing miserably at completing many of the blogging challenges I have signed up for.
But I am still trying. Because that’s the reason, I am still able to write in this China-created Pandemic.
The three most important qualities that I feel are most important to continue being a good writer are
- Persistence
- Discipline
- Consistency
If procrastination is a bad habit, then I suffer from it—Thats where my first superpower helps.
I persist
How to be persistent in writing? I started blogging in 2014. Published my first book in 2017.
The journey from blogging, writing, vlogging, podcasting, painting, and teaching is exciting. Aside from my professional life as an ENT surgeon, the blogging world was a journey into self-discovery. Do you need to blog to write more.No.You need to write more to be a better writer? Write where you can, with what you have.
Even when you are successful as a writer, you need to do the work. Opportunities are everywhere. But the trick to being successful is not losing yourself in the throes of success and not despairing with failures.In times like these, when the world seems to be stuck in a bubble when you don’t know what’s going to happen next, you turn on your computer, and you decide to write.
Write about how you write.
You write about why you write.
You write about where you write.
It’s not just the final result of your writing efforts but the process of writing which is so important.
Your powers of observation, your life experience, your thoughts, hobbies, and all that you learned and keep learning will help you write better.Becoming better is a continuous process.You can always be a better writer by writing more and reading more. But until you persist at both these habits, you are neither here nor there.Your mind is your magic box. Your life comes pouring out through your words when you persist in writing them down.
The next part is being consistent.
Have a plan with your own learning, practicing, and just putting your work out there.
It’s scary being judged. I didn’t want to do that. I was happy with being a doctor. I didn’t really need to go down this dark, scary self-doubt-filled writing road. But I did it and continue doing it because it makes me come alive. It’s challenging making sense of words. Easier when I write nonfiction, than fiction. But I try. I am consistent with my practice of writing . Last year I published my nonfiction book on Childhood Obesity and two fiction books of my Krishna Mishra Mystery series.
It was a crazy adventure in a pandemic. But I thought, why not?Who is stopping me except myself?
I didn’t allow my self-doubt to stop me from pushing the boundary.I am trying to be consistent, and I am happy to tell you I finished 1000 blog posts on my blog.That’s where being consistent helped. I keep trying to read more and write more. I am competing with making my writing better, becoming more prolific.
Make a plan. Then follow it as best as you can.
This is where the third superpower that of discipline, comes into being.
I am disciplined enough to practice every day. I may not be able to publish on my blog daily. But I write every day, I edit my work in progress, I scribble on my diary, keeping track of my ideas, and I keep at it.
The discipline of practicing a craft that I love helps me write better.
The competition, remember, is not with anyone but with your own self. At one time, I wanted to write daily blogs, like Seth Godin. He writes daily, and I enjoy reading his daily newsletters. But if I try to do that, I could burn out.
That’s why I try to keep writing from a place of wonder and learning. If it stops feeling like fun and play, I take a step back. Life now has too many upsets. So writing needs to be a calm space. I think my three superpowers help me do just that.
Did I tell you my words have a new friend? Thats my paintbrush. I am falling in love with watercolor flowers, and I think it’s helping me write better.
I don’t know where this reading journey, writing painting, blogs, books, and art will take me. But if an adult playground looks like this, I am happy to play.
Keep the play alive in your writing. That’s the trick to be a good writer. It’s not just the grammar (that’s important),not the fancy words(unlikely to help) and definitely not self-important declarations.
At the end of the post, it’s about communication.
If I can help you understand what I am trying to say, my work is done. Being helpful to you, young kids, and young adults who want to start writing because it’s a beautiful way to keep a digital record of our times.It’s not easy, and it’s not always directly fruitful, but if you enjoy the process and feel good writing, that’s the compass that will help you walk the path.
Being a happy writer is one way of becoming a good writer.
Books to write well
On writing
Big Magic
Writing
Jeff Goins
Natalie Goldberg
Writing down the Bones
Bird by Bird
This is part of Blogchatter Half Marathon and the Create Cornerstone Content challenge.
