How do I know I'm a writer?

For those who are starting out, or who are dabbling and experimenting with writing, there may be a reluctance to label themselves as writers. Are we only worthy of the label when someone else sees fit to publish our work? Or is it simply the case that a writer is someone who writes? What are the characteristics of a writer?

A writer is someone who writes:

Of course, the most essential characteristic of a writer is that a writer writes - the category and genre are irrelevant. You can not be a writer if you don't write something, much as you can't be a musician with music, or an artist without art.

A writer is someone who writes regularly:

Some believe that writing every day is the characteristic of a writer, but given that the average writer does not earn enough from their writing to pay the bills, which means most still have a day job, I would argue it is not always possible to write every day. However, I would say that a writer has to be committed to writing regularly, and how that is defined will depend on the other commitments in your life. This doesn't mean that writing is the first task that is removed when time pressure is tight, but rather, that you prioritise and set aside regular chunks of time to write, that are not interrupted short of a major catastrophe. My day job is rather stressful, and writing when I come home is difficult, so I have writing targets to achieve on the days I don't go out to work, and if I fall behind, I treat it as I would when I fall behind at my day job - I put in extra time to catch up. My target now is to get to a point where I can give up the day job.

A writer is compelled to write:

Sheila Bender said: "We write because something inside says we must and we can no longer ignore that voice. " I attended a writing course a few years ago, and the lecturer told us she wrote because she couldn't go without writing. It's stayed with me, and I think this is true for most writers. Irrespective of what the rest of the world thinks, the rejections, the set backs and frustrations, a writer feels an inner drive or compulsion to write, that can not be shaken. I know I'm at my happiest when writing, and when I'm not writing, it's usually not far from my mind. I've been writing since I was old enough to figure out that people made a living that way. Sinclair Lewis said: "It is impossible to discourage the real writers - they don't give a damn what you say, they're going to write."

A writer writes for others:

People may feel that only a published writer is successful, and there is some truth in that - having someone else publish your work provides a validation that gives you a right to the label. Some people only write for themselves, and I must admit, I find it hard to call this person a writer. However, many of those who write are working on being published, and for those who are 'waiting in the wings' I think there is justification for calling themselves writers.

I believe a writer is someone who is writing for an audience that goes beyond themselves.

A writer is committed to developing their skill:

I've written previously about ways of developing your writing. If you want to make it as a writer, you need to be committed to going back over your work, editing, rewriting and improving it. No piece is ever perfect in the first draft, but as you go back to it, there are always ways to improve it.

A writer is a reader:

I've written about this before, so won't repeat the blog here, but suffice to say, a writer has to read, widely and avidly, so that you can see how it's done, analyse and dissect what makes great writing. Stephen King famously said "if you don't have time to read, you don't have time to write." His daily schedule consists of writing in the morning, and reading in the afternoon, and this I try to imitate this in my own life. If I am writing a particular genre, I find it helpful to read something from that genre to get into the write frame of mind and style. If you're going to write for any publisher, magazines or books, you need to get a feel for what they publish. And you can only do this by reading their publications.

Others may disagree with me, and that is their right, but in my opinion while a writer has to be someone who writes, there are other characteristics that also intrinsic before we appropriate the label 'writer' for ourselves.