You need it all: the harsh truth about becoming a successful writer

Writer’s Block (Photo credit: thorinside)

Writing well is not enough.

Crafting a solid plot or a good read is not enough.

Working hard and hustling is not enough.

Luck is not enough.

There are thousands of people out there who can do each of those things above that will never find success as a writer. Talent is common. Writing well isn’t necessarily good storytelling and vice versa. Hard work can’t make up for a complete lack of ability. Most of all, luck isn’t everything.

You can be the best writer in the world but if you aren’t willing to work hard or put yourself out there, it’s not going to happen. If you’re a very hard worker but you can’t put words together into something readable, it’s not going to happen. If you can write the world’s most amazing metaphors but your prose is as dull as a shopping list, it’s not going to happen. If Oprah is your cousin but you can’t string sentences into something coherent, it’s not going to happen. You’re going to stall out again and again and never reach the place where you want to be.

In order to be successful as a writer you need to be a good writer, a good storyteller AND to work your butt off and, even still, you’ll probably need a bit of luck. There simply is no skating by on only one or two of those things. It will take all of the above for you to reach your goals.

Tough love, I know. But as much as you don’t want to hear it, the sooner you embrace this truth and act on it, the sooner you’ll start getting somewhere in your writing career.

Only then will you realize how much is truly enough to make your dream happen.