The worst advice I have received: “Stop writing.”
I got that advice from a best-selling author who wrote multiple books and a very successful blogger. I looked up to her and thought, “Only if I could have my blog be as impactful as hers one day,” followed by a sigh and then by following her advice.
Her intent was genuine, she shared what worked for her, and perhaps if I followed her exact footsteps, I would have had the same results. She meant well—that I know. The idea was not to stop writing because writing is bad, but she wanted me to take a step back, do the customer research that I can’t emphasize how much is important, set a strategy, and then, only then, I would start writing. I fully agree with her, and that’s the kind of advice I would give as well.
Little did I know that stopping the writing will bury my muse that comes with it. It will contain the spark that many could see straight through my eyes and my energy levels that could fill up the room. My spark, my energy are fueled by one thing, and one thing only, my passion. One of my many passions is writing. It’s the biggest one, among others. And that’s what you get when you work on your passion. You light up the room, and when you don’t, you dim your spirit.
Yes, I want my writing to be impactful, and yes, I want to build a blog that is helpful to as many people whom I could serve, and yes, I want to write a book, two, three… why even keep count? But, also, writing for me is therapeutic. It’s what flows my energy. It’s what makes time flies without even noticing.
“I can shake off everything as I write; my sorrows disappear, my courage is reborn.”
Anne Frank
More than ten years ago, when I started my very first blog, which is dead now, by the way, I wanted to join writers’ communities, and so one of them was called writers write. That’s what we do, and if it lights up your spirit, it’s so damn wrong to stop writing. Because writers write. Writers write when they are doing the research, when they are setting the strategy, and after they have had it all figured out (does anyone, though?).
Not all writing needs to be published, but the one fact is, writers write every step in the way. If writing is your passion, then start writing, and don’t you ever stop writing.
Writers write every day.
Photo by Green Chameleon on Unsplash