Why It’s OK to Feel Weird About Calling Yourself a Writer

Happy Monday!

Today, I wanted to talk about something that affects ALL writers, and that is the daunting task of actually calling ourselves a “writer”. Before I get into that though, I did want to do a little announcement that I have recently added a review policy to my blog! Lately, people have been reaching out to me to review their book or their client’s book, so I decided it was time to post my review policy for all to see. You can find it, if you are interested, on the top right corner of my blog along with my “About Me” and “My Writing” pages or right HERE.

Anyways, onto the actual blog post:

A common tip that writers tell other writers to succeed in writing is to actually call yourself a writer. Tell it to your friends, shout it to the sky, or add it to your Instagram bio. The point of it is to gain the confidence you should have in that title because if you are writing ANYTHING, you are a writer!

However, it can be a difficult task for some of us. The title is too heavy to bear on our shoulders and too flashy to wear in front of others without worrying about how it makes you look. One of the most crucial steps of being a writer though is finally being able to call yourself a writer. I agree with this, but I also think it is okay to take time in claiming that title. It is a lot. Especially if you have a life torrenting with other aspects that you are having trouble capturing.

It’s okay to swallow the word one letter at a time.

The last thing you want is to rush into it head on, only to look up and see the towering mountains above and the never-ending expanse of blue sky and think wow, I am so small. You aren’t, but it feels that way sometimes.

Here are some actionable, small steps to help you get closer to calling yourself a writer, but also to not make it a scary, winding road:

  • Keep Writing – Focus on your craft. Get better. Continue loving the art of storytelling.
  • Attend Writing Events – They don’t need to be workshops because you should definitely feel confident calling yourself a writer first, but readings are fun to go to. You can listen to other writers read their work and by listening to them, you can gain inspiration and admiration off of their courage!
  • Join the Online Writing Community – Whether you want to join the writing community through blogging, being active on Twitter, Instagram or FaceBook, or all the above, either one is an effective way to get more comfortable with the idea of calling yourself a writer. Being a part of a community with people who have gone through the same challenges as you will help you immensely!

Take your time. The world will wait.

That is all for this blog post, and I hope you enjoyed! Don’t forget to check out my last blog post, as well as my social media accounts linked down below. Thanks for reading 🙂

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3 thoughts on “Why It’s OK to Feel Weird About Calling Yourself a Writer

  1. This is so interesting, because as a fellow writer, I have very different views about calling myself a writer! 🙈 I started writing novels when I was eleven years old, and ever since, I have always considered myself a “writer”. I have always been someone who “writes”, and I’ve always said that I am a writer!

    However, when I spoke about my desire to become a published author, some people would confuse my “writer” title with “author”. To me, the main difference is that a writer is someone who writes, and an author is someone who writes books professionally. I have always been hesitant to call myself an “author”, even though I have technically written full novels and have I have technically published a short story. But I am a bit scared about attending writing events and joining an online community, because I feel so young and inexperienced!

    Great writing post! 😊

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I completely understand! I have been writing for a while, and I refer to myself as a writer, but when others ask me I can’t help but be awkward about it…still!
      When it comes to writing events and joining writing communities, I have decided to just jump in and call myself that anyways because I’ve realized everyone else there probably has gone through the same series of impostor syndrome as me!

      Thanks for the comment 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

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