The Worst Writing Advice I Ever Got
[image description: a yellow typewriter on a wood table surrounded by a coffee mug, book, notebook, and phone.]
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I’ve known I wanted to be a writer since I was 5 years old, so I’ve sought out writing advice from every source imaginable over the years. I’ve received a lot of helpful writing advice along the way, but I’ve also received some supremely bad writing advice too.
The worst part is that I didn’t know it was bad writing advice at the time. It sounded so logical! It seemed to make sense. Only later did I find out that while well-intended, this writing advice didn’t serve me.
The worst writing advice I’ve ever gotten is twofold: 1) just work hard and it’ll all work out, and 2) throw spaghetti at the wall and see what sticks.
You’ve probably heard this advice too. People love to toss it out for just about everything, not just writing.
Here’s why it’s such bad advice. It doesn’t matter how hard you work if you don’t know what you’re doing. It doesn’t matter how much spaghetti you throw at the wall if you don’t know where to aim.
Wouldn’t it be so much easier, joyful, and less stressful if you knew you were working hard on the tasks that would actually move you forward? Wouldn’t you feel better about throwing spaghetti at the wall if you knew you were throwing it in the place you actually wanted it to land?
Writing is hard enough on its own and rejection is a tough cookie to swallow no matter how far along you are in your career, so it makes sense to cut down on the difficulties where you can. As Bill Gates says, “work smarter, not harder.”
When it comes to learning how to write, you have a couple of options:
Go to college or grad school for writing, pray you learn some marketing and business savvy too while you’re in there, and rack up tens of thousands of dollars in student debt. And that’s assuming you want to learn what academic creative writing programs teach and that your application is accepted.
Spend years trying to figure it all out yourself. Cue frustration, hair-pulling, tears, and screaming into a pillow. Not to mention years spent floundering and the lost income from blowing opportunities because you don’t know how to find them, how to approach them, or have the skills to make the best of them.
OR you can enroll in a course from someone who’s done the work, has been writing professionally for decades, has experience doing the kind of writing you want to do, knows the creative side and the business side of the profession, and knows the ropes like a pro because she is a pro. And pay waaaaaayyyy less than college tuition to get the know-how.
No contest, right?
Don’t get me wrong. I went to college and studied English literature, which I don’t regret at all. However, I didn’t learn anything about freelancing and how to make money from my writing while I was there. All that I learned from Javacia Harris Bowser, founder of the writing group See Jane Write. I met her in 2011 when I was still in college and I quickly learned that there was a lot my private college tuition wasn’t paying for me to learn.
So when she released the See Jane Freelance e-course, I was all in! In this course, you will learn
journalism jargon so you can confidently speak like an industry professional
journalism ethics
why you should blog and how to get started
how to never run out of story ideas
how to find publications that pay
why writing for local media outlets could be your key to success
how to pitch like a pro
how to conduct research and interviews
how to network with other writers and why you should
why writers should think like an influencer
social media tips and tricks for writers
how to write clean, compelling copy that will make you an editor's favorite writer
how to turn your life into a story that sells
how to manage your money and your mindset
PLUS, you'll get access to exclusive interviews with editors and fellow writers discussing a variety of topics including:
how to write for your favorite websites
how to pitch to local and regional magazine editors
how to sell a story to a major national magazine
how to break into writing for trade publications
how to break into arts and culture writing
how to nail down your writing niche
how to supplement your income with copywriting
I rarely promote stuff because I only promote things I’ve done myself and that I genuinely believe in. That’s why I’m sharing See Jane Freelance with you. It’s the real deal!
If you’re reading to freelance and make actual US dollars for your writing, click this link to sign up. Plus, if you use code MANDY20, you’ll get 25% off. Full price is $297, so with the code, you’ll pay $222.75. You can make that back in one big freelance project or 2-3 smaller projects. It’s a one-time investment, but the knowledge will stay with you a lifetime and is priceless.
I know 2020 is a hard year, though I can unreservedly say that if it wasn’t for what I’ve learned from Javacia and See Jane Freelance, I wouldn’t be able to pay my bills this year. I was able to go from an unforeseen layoff at my day job to bouncing back in no time thanks to the skills I learned about how to freelance. I’m passionate about this course because it has changed my life (and is continuing to change my life!). Freelancing has opened a lot of doors for me and I hope it’ll do the same for you too.
If you sign up I’ll be here to support you every step of the way. I’ll answer your questions, cheer you on, and send opportunities your way when I come across them. There’s a reason writers form communities––no one should have to go at it alone. That’s why I’d love for you to join See Jane Freelance. Enrollment is open through December 1st.
