Are You a Writer?

By Nikki Wilson

One of the main comments I get when I tell people I'm a writer is this sentence: "I like to write, but I'm not a writer." I can't tell you how often I hear this. Too often. And it bugs me. Mostly because I used to make comments like that. I used to believe I wasn't a real writer unless I'd won awards or a publishing contract. But that's not true. Let me tell you a secret. I've been a writer since I was four years old! Yep! I'm that gifted. Would you like to see a letter I wrote to my grandma at the tender age of four? Here it is:

Yes, it's wonderful, I know. I actually remember writing this. I remember thinking that it looked like cursive and I took time to painstakingly write each "letter" very carefully. I even remember composing out loud what I thought I was writing. You may be wondering how this proves that I was a writer at age 4. Well it's easy. Even at that young age, I was in love with words and the idea of stringing letters together to make words, and stringing words together to make sentences. I loved writing, even if it made no sense to anyone else. I took pride in every stroke of my pen. I still love writing even though sometimes it probably doesn't make sense to anyone else but me. I still take pride in each word I put to paper. In fact, it makes me happy to write. This is what it takes to be a writer. You must love to write. That's it.

You may say there's more to it than that, and you're probably right. But if you love to write, and allow yourself to do so, everything else will come. Do you know how many authors have dislexia or learning disabilities, or the inability to spell? Me neither, but I'm guessing it's a lot. How many authors started out unable to grasp basic grammar rules, or unable to string together coherent sentences, or wrote stories that tell the reader what's happening but don't show the story? The truth is that most authors start out with those problems, in fact if you were to read a first draft of your favorite book, you would probably be shocked at the lack of writing skill. But they didn't let an awful first draft stop them. A writer is someone who writes despite their lack of knowledge. A writer is someone who writes because they can't stop words from coming into their head. A writer is someone who loves words.

If you like to write, you're a writer! If anyone questions you, just tell them Nikki said you are, so you are! So start stringing together letters, words, and sentences no matter how imperfect they are because you are a writer! So start writing!