We have a lot of talented writers today, but, only a few know how to be a skilled writer and work towards honing their writing skills. This post is about how to move from a talented writer to skilled writer.
How important reading the writing of other writers can be. This morning I logged in on Facebook to read. Yes, there are these categories of Facebook groups and “peoples” timeline I visit every morning, or at least once daily to read and study.
When I logged in I got hit of a post from Ryan Biddulph where he shared some amazing thoughts via blogging. His thoughts as he shared below:
“You may be blogging for months and nothing *appears* to be happening.
You will be doing all the right things with all the right energy, and your income will seem to dry up completely. Bills will come in, and you will wonder how you will ever keep going, and what will pull you through.
In those moments, you panic and stop BEING the person, or you embrace the feelings, stay cool and relaxed, and keep BEING the person. I have been in this scenario many times over the years. Many successful bloggers forget what this feels like, or do not report this to their readership.
I know how fucking maddening this feeling is, but I also know that these experiences manifested for me, and for you, to help you clear deep fears around loss, so you can do from a clearer, purer, loving, more energized and brilliant space, and so you can trust yourself and something Infinite that Knows and Cares for You.
Traffic, comments, money, and anything outside of you does not mean anything. Really. It literally means nothing, until you choose to assign a meaning to it. You think all this stuff means something because of your silly little mind judges and adds meaning to stuff but it means nothing. When you fully accept this idea you will be unflappable, calm, cool and collected, in all your blogging duties.
Realizing that what doesn’t seem to be there doesn’t mean anything, anyway, you will begin to understand why I do what I do with my blog and my levels of prolific creativity.
You let go of everything. You tap into Everything.”
Ryan is a great guy and he’s good at what he does. Today’s post is not about Ryan or me – it is about you. Being talented in writing is a great thing. In some way, stories people struggle to write are easy for you to bring to reality. The vibe just comes off naturally with you.
This post is inspired by a post I read by my friend Mute Efe on an exclusive Facebook group. He is a Personal Leadership Coach and can help you become a better leader for yourself so you can meet the kind of result you want in life. Don’t hesitate to contact him as he is good at what he does.
Back to the ride.
I discovered that reading the writings of other people has been a source of inspiration on what to write or discuss. Like the topic I’m handling today, it is Mute inspired.
There are bills to pay, and you have the talent to write. But, talent is not enough. We are in the era of violent and massive transparency. The social media has become the virtual telescope that exposes our and what we do.
Social Media has become the weapon of mass revelation. Some writers harness the power to build their brand, and others don’t. It is becoming a door dies affair. The moment to increase your relevance and upgrade your life is today.
The money you make as a writer is not in the talent. Watch with care, you’ll discover that talented writers are everywhere. Truth be told, everybody has got one talent or the other. Whether writing, dancing, singing and acting.
“Only a minute percentage people are making money from their talent.” – Mute Efe
The money is not in your writing talent. The money is on your writing skills. How good are your writing skills? The writing skill is how you put the writing talent to use. An amazing stuff with this is the better your writing skill the more the money.
People are born with several talents, where skills are built. Writing skills are not inborn; the only thing that is inborn is your writing talent. Many of us have seen young people with talents: From age 3, 6 and even 9 years old.
You heard the 6-year-old boy sing and you voice loud – he has the talent to sing. Does having the talent to sing mean that he’s going to keep making money just having the talent alone? If your answer is yes, I don’t doubt your answering.
However, it is a big NO for me. Because knowing how to sing alone without building the skill of singing consistently isn’t going to earn him a Grammy Award. Now you get the point? Amazing!
Do you have the talent to write? YES.
Have you made writing a hobby? NO.
Have you fallen in love with writing? NO.
Now is the best time to move from being a talented writer to a skilled writer. The writing skill you’ll enjoy has to be learned and this is where the gap between not being productive is. A lot of talented writers don’t want to learn (and build) their writing skills.
It is deceiving to think that being a talented writer will automatically make the money you crave to roll in. Writing skill is the ability to write well, especially because you’ve learned and practiced it.
Quick question, as Mute asked: Will you take your child to someone who claims to be a talented doctor but never went to medical school?
I bet you won’t. It’s a no answer.
The illustration above is the exact reason you are not getting the money you should from your writing. You have the talent to write, no doubt, yet you need the writing skill.
During book writing:
- Plotting is a skill
- Outlining is a skill
- Storytelling is a skill
- Character development is a skill.
- … and a whole lot of other skills.
During book marketing:
- Copywriting is a writing skill
- Organizing sales letters is a skill
- … and a whole lot of other skills.
All the above-mentioned skills add to your writing talent to mint you money. People pay to those who they feel and have proved are worthy of their resources.
What speed are you running to acquire the right writing skills to enable you to become successful as you travel through your writing career? How many courses, books or audio programs have you engaged to enable you to market you and your brand?
You can keep buying books and reads articles by the big shacks in the writing industry. However, if you don’t deliberately put to practice what you learn you are never going to make a dime from your writing skills.
6 Tips to Move from Talented to Skilled Writer
Here are six distinct ways to move from being a talented writer to a skilled writer.
1. Find your Writing Talent: One of the traits of a great storyteller is the ability to dream vividly. Many writers can do this at will and some can do it while keeping up with a conversation. Did you enjoy writing when you were young? If you did when you were a child, it could be a sign that you were meant to write. Children know what they like and tend to know what they will do with their life even if they cannot express it. Find your writing talent, find your voice and let it blossom.
2. Discover the Necessary Skills to Learn: Developing your writing skills is a slow process. Work on your technique continuously and your work will attract readers. Take in readers critiques for they know best how well you are passing on your thoughts. You are human and you’ll keep learning directly or indirectly till the day you die. When you discover your writing talent there are other necessary things you need to do more. You need to learn the art of telling good stories, copywriting and more. Go for it and keep growing.
3. Expose your Writing Talent: Well-written content will help you to stand out from the thousands of low-quality articles that people stumble upon online. Luckily, exposing your writing skills is easier than you may think, and with a few simple tips and tricks, you can take your content from acceptable to enviable. Share your stuff on social media, open a blog, writing for local or international magazines. Of every content you put out, make sure people engage with your stuff.
4. Build your Writing Skills: Learning a lot is not enough. Taking massive action is what matters. Leadership is knowing that to move from Point A to Point B in your writing career, you need to acquire 1, 2, 3…10 skills. The more skills you acquire, the more chains you add to your chain of income. Check out Emeka Nobis, my friend, he’s doing great stuff with his writing on his blog.
5. Improve your Writing Skills: There are millions of blogs out there on every topic under the sun, with more being created every day. How do you make yours stand out in an endless sea of information? With so much competing for a reader’s attention, what do you have to do to gain a loyal following? Only through your content. Without writing engaging, helpful and unique content, you can never build a profitable blog. That’s why it’s so essential to becoming a good writer. Write every single day (either offline or online).
6. Grow your Grammar Skills: Readers hate writings that suck. Reading may be the number one way you can improve your grammar skills as a writer. You can choose to get a grammar manual. It is useful to have a thorough reference book nearby that you can consult when writing. And when you do this, don’t fail to check the basics. Practice, practice, and practice. Listen to others, proofread and write. Of everything you do, make sure you are growing.
Conclusion
I want to see you move from just being a talented writer to be a skilled writer. It is not just about writing what you like or the subject that impresses you. It is also about acquiring the necessary writing skills for you to build a profitable writing career.
Do you want to make money from your writing talent? Learn the required writing skill and keep building it.
