There is a common set of cultural norms around writing that seem to purvey seemingly anyone who undertakes the activity. Many of these are counter-productive and can be downright exclusionary or even non-sensical. So, at the risk of future writing-related career opportunities I might otherwise be eligible for down the line, it’s time to examine some of the less-savory norms around writing. After all, the ugly truth is worth some sunlight.
First off, it seems that there is an omnipresent trend of wanting to procrastinate, though I have never personally dealt with it. Writers, as the common trope goes, seem to try to weasel their way out of actual writing at any opportunity they get. When they sit down, monitor on and cursor blinking, that suddenly makes it the perfect time to want to do a load of laundry, or some other errand that somehow requires immediate attention. Such avoidance is truly puzzling; most authors and writers would jump at the chance to have large blocks of dedicated time to write, so why not use it to actually write? Does nobody want to write anymore? Do they not have material or a topic that you would like to write about? Anecdotal as it may be, I personally want nothing more than to write whenever I get a few moments of free time. Working the night shift, I often come home late, and will write when I get home even before eating dinner. I have a lot of topics I want to cover and I take every chance I can get to do so.
Putting aside time efficiency, the issue could be one of avoidance. However, while that answer is correct, it doesn’t dig deep enough. Why the avoidance? Many writers seem to not have a plan about what they want to write about when they sit down to actually type. I personally sidestepped this issue during The Case Against Memes by having a pen-and-paper (I’m so analog!) bullet-point list of what I was going to discuss during my 500-word daily campaign. Does nobody plan these things, or does every real writer just wing it? This list was always written the night before during the research-and strategize portion of my night. Then I’d wake up the next morning and know exactly what I was going to write, and then it was just a matter of execution. While I like to think I’m a pretty clever guy, this isn’t exactly a groundbreaking strategy either.
“Spoken like someone isn’t married/doesn’t have kids/is a renter/can’t turn Super Saiyan” is a rebuttal I’ll eventually get. Life gets in the way, I understand that. However, if writing is your profession and you’re never quite able to find the time to sit down and actually write anything, then what is it that these writers are doing with their time? Assuming writing is their full-time profession, one would think that they would find time to prioritize the task. Imagine nearly any other line of work (cooks, carpenters, accountants, pilots, CEO’s) couldn’t find the time to do their jobs; society would be worse off, assuming these people stayed employed. Are those who make a living from their writing just that inefficient with their time? Laundry can be done nearly any point in time, so why pick your dedicated writing time to suddenly get the urge to do that? Serious gym goers let nothing-absolutely nothing– get in the way of their precious lifting time. Writers would be well-served to follow such a disciplined schedule.
Also, what constitutes a real writer? It’s a term that gets thrown around a lot in the community yet there exists no concrete answer to the question, with nearly everyone spouting their own opinion (each nearly as terrible as the previous one). Is it one that makes their living from blogging or writing books alone? Because if so then the number of real writers shrinks dramatically. Even big-names in the non-fiction world such as Simon Sinek, Brene Brown. Adam Grant and Jocko Willink often teach/consult/podcast to supplement their income. That roster of names I‘ve just listed are all highly accomplished writers and the thought that they aren’t real writers is utterly ridiculous. So, with the number of writers who use “Well, you aren’t a real writer” as a put-down, they themselves likely don’t meet this minimum financial threshold, so that can’t be it. Is a real writer one who has a published book? If so, that still shortens the list quite a bit, so that can’t be it either since the common career arc of a writer is to write columns, op-eds, blogs, short stories and other smaller works before launching a book. Or maybe the definition of real writer is one who writes for a prestigious publication full-time, like the New York Times, The New Yorker, Time Magazine or the like. I’ll admit, there may be a nugget of truth to that one, however the number of writers who use the “you’re not a real writer” as an insult is exponentially higher than the employment at all of these organizations. So, unless Stephen King, J.K. Rowling, or someone who has been publishing at the New York Times for over 20 years is using the put down “you’re not a real writer”, chances are the one bullying you isn’t a real writer either.
So that leads to the question: Why the culture of bullying and exclusion amongst writers? Writers already face enough rejection as it is; whether it be from editors, publishers, agents, book fair committees, and the like. So why do writers feel the need to treat one another so terribly? Is it a sense of powerlessness, akin to the bully with a terrible home life who torments their smaller classmates? The hobby/career of writing is already exclusionary and lonesome enough as it is, let’s not make it worse.
Yes, you read that previous sentence correctly, hobby. I look forward to getting more than my fair share of hate mail, using the term hobbyist to dismiss this article entirely without forming any actual counterarguments to my points. I also can’t wait to get the all-encompassing “you just don’t get it” responses from the so-called real writers as well. To that, I respond with a line from a cheery human resource manager from my past; “Help me understand”. Naturally, I’m not expecting an actual dialog beyond angry writers calling me naïve or an amateur. Similarly, I’m not expecting Readers Digest or The New York Times to call anytime soon to offer me a real writing job either. Make sure to drop a dislike and send some ad-hominems on your way out.
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