Believing And Identifying As A Writer, And Why It Is Important.

Becoming A Writer

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Believing And Identifying As A Writer, And Why It Is Important.

Episode 4 of Becoming A Writer podcast.

Rubina G Gomes

Mar 06, 2024

Transcript

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Hello, my writer friends! Rubina here. For our fourth conversation, we are going to talk about believing and identifying as a writer, and why it is important.

One of the downfalls of my initial learning-about-writing phase was there was no end to how down and deep I was falling.

The more I learnt, the more I kept learning. The more I read, the more I kept reading. Learning is a lifetime pursuit, but when done with no finish line, there will be no end.

I became so obsessed with learning about how to write a crime fiction novel that I completely missed out on the most crucial fact. I had to become someone who writes.

The mindset and lifestyle that helped me complete childhood, school and college are not the mindset and lifestyle that will help me become a writer.

I have to change my thoughts, beliefs, and the way I live to live the best writing life I could possibly think in this moment.

I have to go deep instead of shallow. I will have to go against the usual flow of society, and that’s part of being in a creative career like writing. I must become a silent observer instead of a loud and instant reactor. I have to take care of my health (mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual) because that's an essential key to the whole writing game.

I have to act like the writer I want to become. I need to imagine what Ideal Writer Rubina would do now and try to replicate it. Slowly, in doing so, I will turn into her.

Over the years, I have understood that the real battle is not figuring out what to write and how to write.

The real battle is becoming and identifying yourself as a writer.

Have you ever had a tough time with a draft that doesn't seem to work out? Or do you have multiple projects starting but never reaching the end? Or do you feel so overwhelmed that you're not even beginning your project? Or finishing it but you are scared to death to share it with the public?

In some cases, it may be that you don't have enough writing techniques in your toolbox. But from what I have experienced in my writing life so far, it's more of a mindset problem. Or a lack thereof.

Reaching a mindset that helps you embrace yourself as a writer is essential. You may know all the skills and techniques that make good writing, but if you don't ease into your existence as a writer, you'll not reach your full potential. You'll continuously fight yourself with negative self-talk and take external validations too seriously. Then you'll be fighting your creations as well.

In short, as long as you don’t feel like a writer, you won’t write.

Once you win this battle, learning what to write and how to write it becomes a walk in the park.

To become the writer I am, there are two things I needed to do.

First, I had to accept I was already a writer. The fact that I have been blessed with this dream of becoming a writer in itself means I have it in me to become one, even if my experience and skills at the moment may say otherwise. My lack of skills or knowledge doesn’t mean I lack the potential to become a writer.

Of course, I had to put in the work. I had to figure out how I was comfortable expressing myself, which required exploration, excavation and experimentation. But first, I had to accept that I am a writer. I had to believe that with all my heart and never for a second doubt that belief.

Next, I had to prove to myself that I am a writer by casting votes in my favour through small wins.

This is a lesson I learnt from James Clear’s Atomic Habits.

I write as consistently as life allows me. It doesn’t matter how long or short it is. The word count doesn't matter, nor does the time. It doesn't even need to be finished in one session. I simply show myself that I am a writer by showing up and writing as much as sustainably possible. I forget the outcome; I just aim to be the writer I am.

Every time I write and publish an essay or add another page to my manuscript, I cast a vote for myself as a writer. This is building up my inner writer's trust in me to make her dream of becoming a writer real.

You will realise that becoming and identifying yourself as a writer has nothing to do with being accepted by the public.

It's about accepting yourself. Becoming a writer is more about having faith in the future image of yourself and trying to recreate it now.

Life is a long journey, so is the journey to becoming a writer.

Well, that's it for today. Next time we meet, we'll talk about facing our writing fears and why it's actually not as bad as it seems.

Until then, keep writing, my friend.