Myth # 1: Writing is Easy. Anybody Can Do it.

Many years ago, when I first began studying the literary craft, I heard someone tell a mutual friend: “Jack’s not doing anything. All he does is sit at his desk all day..”

Well, when our mutual friend told me this, I just sighed and rolled my eyes. He, and untold thousands of others, have no idea about the of level of work and commitment that’s involved—that is, if one wants to write at a professional level.

Writing is not easy. In fact, I once read an article where someone compared writing professionally to paving a mile of highway by yourself. Writing at a professional level requires study, practice and discipline.

Myth #2: Writers Are Lazy

No, professional writers are not lazy. If they were, they wouldn’t write much of anything worth publishing. Most folks understand work as physical labor (and it is). However, writing requires intense concentration and mental labor.

Outsiders can’t observe the gears grinding in the writer’s head, their innumerable frustrations, the nights of insomnia when their brains can’t let go of a work-in-progress, and the painful/disappointing rejections by agents and editors.

Lazy folks aren’t self-motivated, whereas successful writers are. No one stands over them saying, “Write! Write!”  

Myth # 3: Good Writing Requires Complexity and Adornment

Some people believe excellent prose must flow with long, complicated sentences adorned with multisyllable words and many figures of speech. Not true.

Every writer has his/her own literary style and voice. To communicate with today’s reading public (a general audience), simple is always best. The best writers know how to communicate in effective, yet simple, language.

Myth # 4: Writers Are Rich

Rich? Ah, if only that were true! Someone once told me that his wife said she was “going to write a book and get rich.” Since I didn’t know his wife, I don’t know if she was serious. However, many have the misconception that all writers are wealthy. The truth is, though a few are wealthy, most aren’t. Most writers have another job that supports them while they pursue their craft.

Myth # 5: Writers Are Expert Grammarians and Spellers

Think so? Tell that to William Faulkner. He had a “special gift” for misspelling words that his editors had to constantly correct.

Although we writers should seek excellence in grammar and spelling, we’re still human and so, we make mistakes. Among other things, we often consult reference books, such as stylebooks (The Chicago Manual of Style, The AP Stylebook, and the MLA Handbook), grammar books, dictionaries, and thesauruses.

A Final Word

I hope those who seek to write professionally will take these above-mentioned things to heart. Writing is neither easy nor a path to great riches. Well, maybe I’m wrong. Those who desire to write, who are called to write, do possess great wealth. Not in a monetary sense, but in a sense of joy and fulfillment. Why? Because we writers are doing what we were born to do on this earth.  We write, because that’s who we are and what we do. .