Focus on Thankfulness for the Gift of Writing

By Edie Melson, Social Media Director for Southern Writers Magazine

Despite news to the contrary, I believe this is the best time ever to be a writer. Writing for a living isn’t a get rich quick scheme, but it is possible to make a reasonable income. Becoming a professional writer takes hard work. But if we’re willing to learn the industry and the craft of writing, we can find success.

10 Ways to Increase Your Thankful Quotient about Writing

1. Stop Being a One Way Writer. Meaning it’s got to be one way or no way. Truthfully, it’s the writers who are flexible that remain thankful in this business.

2. Let Go of Expectations. This one word can derail us for months, or even years, if we let it. It’s fine to make plans, but we can’t hang our hope—or our thankfulness—on expectations. 

3. Learning to Roll with the Punches. Hard times will come in this business. We’ve got to pick ourselves up and get back to writing, no matter what happens.

4. Stop Looking Backward. If we dwell on the way things used to be in publishing, we’ll always be miserable. Instead we need to focus on the reasons to count our blessings now.

5. Quit Chasing Trends. It’s tempting to tailor what we’re writing to what’s currently popular with publishers. But that’s a dead end road. There’s always something new, and it’s just not possible to pull out a crystal ball and write to what’s going to be hot when it hit the market.

6. Don't Listen to the Negative Voices. There are two types of negative voices—the ones that live in your head and the ones belonging to those around us. Take constructive criticism, but don’t let the negative words bring you down.

7. Refuse to Give in to Fear. No matter how much we achieve as writers, we’re still fearful. The writers who keep their thankfulness are the ones who continue on in spite of the fear.

8. Reject Perfectionism. We want to strive for our very best. But we need to understand that perfection is out of our grasp. Aim high and always keep learning, but be willing accept the best you can do.

9. Write Regularly. I truly believe that if our purpose in life is writing, and we don't make time to write, we'll be miserable.

10. Don't Forget the Reason You Started Writing in the First Place. We can get so caught up in the chase, that we forget why we entered the race. For me, God made me a writer. I process life through words. When I hit hard times and good times, one of my first actions is to record it, process it, and cope with it through writing. When I return to that, no matter what else is going on, everything falls into place.

These are the ways I’ve found to rekindle the joy of writing. What would you add?