How does one become a writer?

You have the same case of self doubt that face most writers. If you want to succeed in becoming a writer it will take time, patience, effort, practice, self-discipline and motivation. It is not something that will happen overnight and can be extremely frustrating a lot of the time. The first thing is stop deleting what you have written, regardless of the quality of the writing. Sure we would all love to pen a best selling novel at the first attempt without needing to alter it in any way. It will never happen. Writing is my passion in life and up until about 18 months ago, I had never shared my work with anyone. Strange behaviour for someone wanting to become a writer, but I was consumed with self-doubt. I took the first steps to changing that by posting some work on my myspace blog and slowly started to build a readership which helped a great deal and my confidence grew. Since then I have used sites like this one as well as Helium.com, Associated Content, Constant Content, Triond, Hub Pages, Squidoo, Xomba and there are many others I plan to use in the future. As I say it takes time and lots of it, but continuing to write and to post work online is a start. I am also trying to break into paper magazines as well and have recently been approached by a local magazine about an article they want me to write for their next issue. A fire department wants to use one of my poems as part of one of their upcoming road safety campaigns. I tell you this to show that with continued effort things can start to happen. If you want to be a writer no-one will do it for you. Only you can achieve what you want and the level of success will be determined by how you apply yourself. As yet the financial rewards have not been great by any means, but I keep working at it and through that the writing improves. Sadly until you get beyond the process of deleting what you write, you will not achieve what you want to. Every word you write is a step towards becoming a writer. Continued practice will improve your style. Try to start with small steps by setting yourself targets you feel you can achieve. You could aim to respond to 10 discussions, or write two hundred words about something you did yesterday. From there you can build it up until you are setting yourself harder tasks, but that still feel can be reached. There are also a large number of writing forums online where you can speak to like minded individuals who may be able to offer support or guidance. I know on Helium.com they have started to run a mentoring scheme where you can work on one one with a more experienced writer who will give constructive criticism about your work and help you improve in the areas you need to improve in. I hope this was of some help to you. Matt

Education is very important in the are of writing, but then again look at the author Frank McCourt (Angela's Ashes and 'Tis). He is very educated, but only after he became an adult did he receive his education. His writing style is quite simplistic in terminology, but descriptive almost like a child. He is a wonderufl author who had a very hard life. And look at Maya Angelou. She describes in her book "I know why the caged bird sings" that she did not speak a word for nearly six years because she thought words had the power to kill. She also had a hard way with life and look at the knowledge she bestows upon us. And I think the answer to your question is: perseverance mixed with courage. How will you ever influence anyone or share your intelligence if you yourself doubt your words. What if McCourt or Angelou did this? I know their words have impacted my life and encouraged me to live through pain and doubt. Plus, try this. Write it down and leave it for awhile. When you come back to it later...and I mean like days/months and see how you feel. I know I have done this and thought to myself..."Wow, how inventive." and sometimes the crappy writing leads to good ideas. Good luck and believe in yourself.

You probably have a nasty case of perfectionism. Once you let go of that, and just write, then you will be able to work to your goal. Writing as a profession requires discipline. It goes far beyond the scribblings we do when we are in the mood for writing. Professional writers go about during their day with an actual schedule where they sit down and write. Editing is up to you. There is a saying that say, "Write in white heat; Edit in cold blood." When you first start writing, don't worry about anything but just getting your thoughts down. Then leave your work alone. When you are ready, go back to it and now you can edit it with a clear head. However if you feel you cannot edit your work, then feel free to get an editor. I would suggest not deleting any of your work at all. Keep your drafts, who knows you might be able to improve them later. Again, forget about getting it perfect. Just write.

A direct answer to your question on how does one become a writer is when he starts to write! The moment you start to write something about anything, you become a writer! To hone your writing skills, you need to have acquired some skills related to writing like correct spelling, punctuation, grammar, and other needed ingredients in writing. Good day!

i think it hapens to everyone i have had such experiences so many times,sometimes i will start writing and along the way the idea bank just runs dry and i have had som many book ideas like that that i have abandoned but i think with the right kind of training it becomes easier and once you understand how writing is you can get a good grip but i want you to now that evryone has something e/she wants to write about.You can check out this sites if it will be any use to you they have helped me a great deal 1.Dailywritings.com 2.poynteronline.com 3.writersweekly.com 4.zinester.com

One becomes a writer by first finishing school. Once the person has received education - almost everything is within reach. Good luck on your dream and goals!

Why would you delete what you write? Remember this, everyone is their own worse critic. You may never be happy with your work where as someone else may love it. I always edit my own writings. I don't feel comfortable letting someone else do it as they may mess up what I had in mind. Keep writing, you never know, you could write a best seller!

First visualise what you want to write then plana ccordingly which can make your work easier. No body is perfect and they can only become when they can overcome their fear. Good luck dear and all the best.