How to Become a Writer – The Tools for Developing a Writing Career

Many people, swayed by the explosion of writing online, have decided to join the boom and seek to become a professional writer. Many dig out half-finished manuscripts for the book they started, but never finished, whilst others seek to write for pay, as an extra income or full-time.

There are distinct differences between the various types of writing, but certain traits are essential for all budding freelance writers. Across the whole range of styles and types, freelance writers need a certain mentality when learning how to become a writer. They also need mental toughness, because freelance writing for a living is a tough vocation and is not for the faint hearted.

Many writers look to develop a writing career as a creative writer, whether through poetry or prose. Others look to write online or become technical or academic writers, and start scouring the freelance job boards, looking to become a writer by freelance writing with oDesk or Elance. These are a good way to learn the ropes, although you must be careful to avoid the clutches of the notorious article mills.

Of course, this article is aimed at people who wish to make a career out of writing in one form or another. There are many more who just love to write, and use Hubpages and other sites as a place to have a voice and share their views. I love them and believe that this keeps the rest of us pure, teaching us never to forget the art of writing for the sheer joy of it, rather than becoming fixated upon dollars and writing for pay. Writing for a hobby is a completely different thing and I hope to continue stumbling across passionate, powerful articles.

In addition, there is the world of marketing online and using article writing for Adsense and affiliate marketing. This article is not really aimed at this area, although there is an overlap; sales-writing experts, like Nelle Hoxie, or infohub masters, like Ryan Kett, also know how to use words and are talented writers. However, I am aiming at those who want to pursue freelance writing for a living as active income.

Whatever path you chose, there are three basic ways to self-improve and master the craft of the writer, because there is more to becoming a freelance writer than sitting down in front of a computer. What separates a writer from somebody throwing a few info-articles online is the ability to mould and shape language, using it as more than a mere tool for communication. A skilled writer can infuse even the most boring subject with life and generate emotion. This skill is self-explanatory for poets and fiction writers, but is even truer for academic and technical writers.

To a certain extent, some of this ability is inbuilt and some people are born writers, whereas others will find it tough to pick up the art. In the same way, some individuals have an innate and natural talent for music, painting, or sport. Even if you are blessed with natural talent, you still need to hone and practice your skills, in the same way that a top-golfer must spend hours every day practicing their swing until it becomes second nature. An artist must learn the basic techniques upon which they can build and add their own individualized twist. As an example, artists like Picasso, who consistently pushed the boundaries of art and broke rules, had to possess a thorough knowledge of the rules and basic techniques to start with. There are no shortcuts with the process of becoming a professional writer, as with any creative endeavor.

The first stage in developing a writing career is to write, at least a couple of hours every day. This seems very strange, but it is the foundation of becoming a freelance writer, and you should start writing about anything and everything. The brain needs constant exercise to become adept at writing, and constant practice will make writing into an instinctive talent, rather than one that you have to think about consciously.

Professional writers draw upon their sub-conscious as a way to create, and constant practice is the only way to develop this ability. Sometimes, I look back at my previous work and cannot even remember writing it; it is almost as if someone else wrote it. That is when you know that you have the ability to go into ‘The Zone.’

If you decided to go to the gym and work out, you would start with light exercises and slowly build up the intensity over time, developing a routine that suits you and brings results. The same applies for writing; the more you practice, the better you will become, especially if you constantly look back over your earlier work and apply a dose of healthy self-criticism.

Reading is crucial. Most budding writers already spend a lot of time reading, but developing a writing career involves taking this to the next level. If you are serious about becoming a writer, find books by your favorite authors and pick apart their style, making a mental list of what you like about them. You can carry this into their own work, and use it as the basis for your own distinctive style.

In the same way that musicians have influences, and learn from others, you can cherry-pick techniques from other writers and blend them together. If you add a healthy dose of your own individuality, then you are well on the way to becoming a writer. We all have our favorite genres of writing, but try to diversify and look at a broad array of styles and genres.

For example, you may decide that you want to be a technical writer and read some books and articles written by experts in the field. However, technical writers have to be able to use very few words very creatively, applying readability and emotion, despite strict word-limits. Reading creative authors like Hemingway, with his brutal, stripped down style, can be a great help to technical and academic writers. Likewise, creative writers can pick apart the style of travel writers and non-fiction authors, looking at how their powerful use of adjectives draws the reader in to the text.

This is one of the secrets to writing and, again, music is a good parallel; many rock guitarists grew up listening to jazz and blues, and many electronic acts listen to Mozart. Whilst we use the terms technical, academic, and creative to subdivide writing, in reality the boundaries are porous, and good writers consistently draw from various areas, blending the styles together.

For example, I worked with an academic writer who wrote a lot of good poetry in his spare time, and a lot of the rhythms and cadences crossed over into his academic writing, making his prose compelling and imbued with a hidden passion. Likewise, a creative writer who has the bad habit of using too many words and irrelevant adjectives can learn a lot from the tight discipline and word economy of a good technical or academic writer.

The only way that you are going to improve as a writer is by accepting criticism and acting upon it. The first weapon at your disposal is self-criticism, and you must learn to constantly seek to improve as you develop your writing career. As you build up a portfolio of writing, spend time going through your old work and looking at how you can improve it. For example, I look at many of the earlier articles that I wrote for the Experiment Resources site, and cringe; the overuse of commas and long sentences are just two of the problems. I will be going through those in the summer and refreshing them!

The other angle for criticism is from others; family and friends will always put a positive spin on things, seeking not to bruise your ego. This really does not help and encourages many people towards having a dream of becoming a writer when they really do not have the talent. Whilst I am not a fan of reality talent shows, there is a parallel with writing; some of the people on those shows are there because nobody stopped to tell them that they are, quite honestly, atrocious, and they suffer the indignity of looking foolish on international TV.

It is exactly the same with becoming a writer, and it is better to know early on that you are never going to get there than waste time. It is harsh, but receiving the death-blow to your writing ambitions early on, before you have written 40 000 words of trite crap, saves a lot of time and helps you to focus your efforts elsewhere, such as learning to paint or sculpt.

If you find a client, editor, or publisher who gives you harsh criticism, you can use this to improve so, rather than take it to heart, act upon it and your writing will change for the better. Many pro-writers and authors went through periods of rejection, but used that to spur them onwards and become better. My old schoolfriend, Joe Abercrombie, is one such example; he realized, after a few years, that his manuscript was crap, and tore it up. He rewrote it and is now a very successful fantasy author. You cannot afford to have a delicate ego if you wish to become a writer.

So, I hope that this article has given you a little insight into the world of becoming a writer, and helped you to decide if it is the way ahead for you. Writing really is no different from becoming a professional in any field, and you have to seek to improve and learn new skills. In addition to learning how to write, you have to learn other skills, such as marketing and developing a business website design, but this will come with time.

Sports professionals, artists, musicians, architects, and plumbers spend a long time mastering their trade. Becoming a writer is no different; you cannot suddenly wake up one morning and decide that you are a professional writer. You have to have the dedication, and spend a long time practicing and mastering your craft as part of developing a writing career.

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