Become a Writer….Today

Annette Young

I’m often asked how to become a writer and the answer is simple; dedication, commitment and passion. These are the key components but link those with a heightened sense of imagination, an ability to visualise and a great deal of enthusiasm and you are onto a winner.  If you really wish to become a writer, then you need to start thinking like one, allowing your life to change dramatically and also, by expanding your mindset so that you see a potential for stories in everything around you.

You can become a writer by thinking outside of the box, exploring opportunities, taking risks and by playing with the technical aspects of writing. It is only through a continued exploration of various writing genres and the practical application of your own creative skills that can make a difference to your writing future.

My writing journey began by reading voraciously (I was reading Agatha Christie novels at five years old) and although I didn’t know it at the time, even then I was trying to work out how a story was put together although to be honest, Enid Blyton was also a massive inspiration at that time. I loved her simplistic view of life and envied her characters that could explore exciting places and face hidden dangers because my own childhood was so restricted. She had the ability to be able to connect on the same level as a child and connecting with the reader is something all writers should aspire to do.  I also had a vague idea that I wanted to write exciting stories and I wanted to illustrate those stories too and as my two creative passions were writing and art, it made sense to me that I would use both..

To become a writer, you need to have a natural sense of curiosity, a need to be able to pick a successful work of creative writing apart, so that you can see just what the author has done and…why. Writing is a vast learning curve that never ends, especially not with publication. There are always better ways to write and to create but that is what makes it exciting and if you want to become a writer today, then get started.