I’ve been writing on a platform called Medium for about six months.
Six months of writing about 2–3 pieces a week. I publish to my website and Facebook page on Mondays and Thursdays, so there are no less than two blogs a week.
I would love to write more but a full-time job, two kids, and other commitments make that difficult. I strive for quality over quantity and have amassed over 400 followers in my time on Medium.
I try to interact with my followers as much as possible — if you reach out and comment, you’re sure to get a reply. I appreciate more than I can say those that support my writing.
But I won’t ever be able to actually live off of my writing.
And that’s ok.
That’s not the point for me.
There are TWO secrets to successful writing:
1. Goals
2. Passion
GOALS
Ask yourself — what are you hoping to achieve?
Are you hoping to achieve international success and a book on the New York Times Bestseller list?
That’s an amazing goal! It’s absolutely obtainable through hard work and focus. Don’t think you can’t do it because YOU CAN.
This is not a goal of mine.
My goal is to increase my audience day after day, reach further around the world, and provide some advice/guidance/help to anyone that may benefit from the experiences I have had in life.
Putting it simply, I want to help mentor those that wish to be mentored.
Whether you are a 90-year-old man or a 20-year-old girl, I believe that some of my experiences can help you. I encourage you to check out my pieces.
For that person that has the goal of the NYT Bestseller list I offer one piece of advice. Set small goals that bring you one step closer to that ultimate goal. That way, you can still celebrate small successes and jump small hurdles on the journey.
PASSION
What are you passionate about?
There are thousands of writing prompts that you can find to provide some inspiration, and I strongly suggest reviewing these — they are a great tool!
You may be a gifted writer who can take any subject matter and spin a yarn or two that will entertain your audience.
But only with true passion can you truly captivate that audience.
When a piece is written with true passion you evoke a feeling in the reader that is palpable. The reader will suddenly feel their heart beating faster and their breath being more shallow as their eyes move over the words.
This is one of the reasons that I only put out 2–3 pieces per week. I need to feel passion about every piece. I need to be inspired by it.
Otherwise, it is a waste of my time.
This may not be the same for you! I am not saying that writing without passion is bad — I am simply saying that you will not be able to make the reader feel for your piece without it.
Passion changes everything.
In order to write successfully, YOU must decide what metrics you deem worthy to measure that success by.
These are simply the two that I have chosen.
Until next time........................................................XO-JGF