I was trolling the internet the other day and I came across the longest Facebook status ever. It was 1800 words long. That is just silly. But what the guy was talking about was serious and there were some good nuggets of information in there for the aspiring writer, so much that I put together this truncated list from the article.
For many of us who slaving at the keyboard with the goal of becoming a writer full-time, there are some things that need to be done. Since this guy has already done it, it’s only fitting and wise to take advice from someone who has succeeded. So, in a nutshell, here is James Altucher’s list on what you need to do and how you need to think to write for a living, my edited, cliff notes version.
- Understand that you are a writer.
- Read a ton of stuff. Always be expanding your mind. It’s the wellspring of your writing.
- Be picky in what you read. Bad writing is contagious.
- Understand that self-publishing is not just ebooks.
- Blog regularly. It keeps your writing chops sharp.
- Write every day. I’ve talked about this before. As the old saying goes, writers write.
- Rewrite just as much if you can.
- Don’t try to make money writing articles. You’re better off blogging.
- Write a lot of books. Let those ideas out and write the book. Then write another. Then another.
Again, this is my truncated, edited cliff note version. Most of the stuff is the same. If you are interested in reading the whole article, click on the link below. It has a couple expletives so be forewarned.
James Altucher’s – How to Write for a Living
Let me know what you think in the comments below.
