Ten Things Every Writer Needs

Engin Akyurt

This afternoon, I went to the first (Zoom) meeting of a virtual writing group sponsored by the college where I teach. This marks the third time I've joined one of these writing/work groups, and I always enjoy them. I meet people from other departments, we share ideas, struggles and laughter, and we get work done, too. 

Our first session was what you'd expect -- we introduced ourselves and shared a little bit about our projects and our reasons for joining the group. Along the way, the obstacles we face as writers became clear and, as we talked this afternoon, the universality of those obstacles was evident.

It got me thinking about what it is that we need as writers. Here, in no particular order, are ten of those things.

1. Time. Most writers would love endless stretches of time to write, but most of us have learned to make do with small chunks of time. Still, it's often the case that we fail to make time for our writing, putting it at the bottom of a very long list.
2. Ideas. Very few writers would complain that they have too few ideas. Most have too many ideas and not enough -- you guessed it -- time.
3. Motivation. Too many ideas + too little time = an overwhelmed writer who doesn't know where to start. It's much easier to curl up with a good book someone else has already written than it is to sift through the ideas and do the hard work of creating a book of one's own. And so we need...
4. Accountability, which is why I join these groups, as well as going to my monthly critique group and meeting with a writer friend who's my accountability partner.
5. Persistence. When we finally do sit down to write, it can be hard work. When we finally finish the article or book, we have to revise it. When we finally submit that manuscript, the person we send it to might not want it. At any point, giving up is easier than powering forward.
6. The company of other writers. No one understands #1 - #5 better than another writer, and no one commiserates better when the going gets tough.
7. Tough skin (so to speak). Necessary as a buffer against rejection and, sometimes, against our own self-criticism.
8. Determination to keep at it when
9. The desire to do the work fades and
10. Self-control eludes us.

Sometimes, the practical side of me starts adding up the hours I've spent in these meetings and floats the idea that if instead of going to meetings I spent the time writing, I'd get a lot done. While there's a certain logic to that, the trade-off is not that simple. Interacting with others, getting feedback for the work we've done (whether it's a pat on the back or a critique that sends us back to the beginning) and sharing the experience are all valuable parts of the writing process. And, often, the nudges that we get as a result of joining the discussion are exactly what we need to push us to the next level.

After the meeting today, I did something I've been meaning to do for weeks. I pulled out my nearly finished work-in-progress to see just how far I was from the end.

Four chapters. 

I know exactly what my writing goal is this week.

Writing may be a solitary pursuit, but successful writing is often a group effort.