I Hate Writers! So Why Am I One?

Imagine a fictional character named Alex Writer has just published The Best Novel Ever. They are making the media rounds promoting their book.

When I see Alex Writer on TV, read about them in a popular magazine, or hear them interviewed on a podcast, I perceive that writer through the lens of that venue.

Each venue has its own target audience, and within that audience exists the optimal consumer avatar. For example, the viewer of the popular show "Good Morning America" is 58.5 percent female, falling between the ages of 25 and 54.

The producers clearly keep this basic avatar in mind when choosing guests, particularly authors. It would not make sense to showcase young adult authors with an audience of senior citizens.

Podcasts like The 7am Novelist appeal to writers specifically. I represent their avatar?

Their guests represent a wide range of genres and audiences; however, most of the books shared are general fiction.

The interviewer often asks questions about ideation, motivation, and revision. The authors reveal enough to pique the listener's interest and make them want to read the book.

I hate these writers. I hate the interviewers. I hate the books they talk about.

Why do I hold this feeling toward the group of published writers I want to be a member of?

This conundrum has plagued me for many, many years.

The problem with breaking into an area of unfamiliarity is not knowing how you will measure up with the group. Clearly, there are levels of membership. And in the writing world, there may be more membership levels than we can fathom.

There are multiple genres. The main ones are fiction and nonfiction. Within those, there are sub-genres: romance, adventure, Western, historical fiction, magical realism, science fiction, fantasy, high fantasy, etc. Within each of those, there are multiple forms: flash fiction, short stories, long stories, novellas, novels, series, and more.

In fact, I just learned of a genre called "cozy mystery." According to Cozy-Mystery.com, “the crime-solver in a cozy mystery is usually a woman who is an amateur sleuth," and "The cozy mystery usually takes place in a small town or village." Violence and gore are kept to the minimum with a light and possibly comedic tone.

This brings me back to my initial statement, “I hate writers.”

Does it make sense to despise an entire group of people I hope to become a member of?

A couple of years ago, I joined the “Self-Coaching Society.” One exercise the group leader asked members to do was evaluate their beliefs. In this exercise, I realized my warped point of view. I hate writers. What does this belief stem from? I believe all writers are crazy. I don't want to be crazy. Therefore I don't want to be a writer.

Michelle May, M.D., has written about building habits that there's “A chain reaction we call TFAR: Your Thoughts lead to your Feelings, which lead to your Actions, which lead to your Results. Your results reinforce your initial thoughts, so they become self-fulfilling prophecies. After proving yourself right repeatedly, your thoughts become beliefs.”

The cycle can lead to both positive and negative habits.

I don't think that all writers are crazy; far from that. But there could be some tiny kernel of truth there that triggers a subconscious response leading to my actions or in-action.

Consider a computer system’s “if-then” statement. If this is true, then that is the result. In the binary language of computers, there can be no other result.

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But we, as humans, are not subject to the on-off electrical impulses that represent the zeros and ones of a computer's binary language.

Humans are incredibly complex, with perhaps an infinite number of beliefs prompting actions which prompt results.

In writing this essay, I realize I don't hate writers; I love writers. I admire their hard work, perseverance, grit, and resolve.

Becoming a writer is about more than generating words and content.

Becoming a writer requires the training of an Olympic athlete.

Every athlete gets to the games thanks to these three proclivities: support, coaching, and work.

Every athlete I have ever seen interviewed at the Olympic games talks about the support of friends and family on their journey toward success. Typically, their coach is by their side, and even at this level, the coach continues to guide and cajole the athlete as they participate in their sport.

The coach often has experience in the same sport. Still, in terms of very successful coaches, such as Béla Károlyi and Romanian gymnast Nadia Comăneci, I can never expect this man to spin and flip on the uneven parallel bars as the tiny athlete did herself in 1976.

A coach can stand back and analyze the game without the fear of winning or losing. This disconnect is the thing that makes successful coaches so successful.

In truth, I love writers.

My current writer self and my future as a writer benefit from fiercely studying and analyzing the practices and strategies of prominent authors. I dissect the moves and study the game to earn my way to the Olympics of publishing.

Like other competitors, I need to play this game at a local level, regionals, move on to states and nationals, and finally, the World Cup.

If writing can be conceived of as a worldwide sport, then I will learn the rules of the game, find support, put in the hard work, and keep competing until I win.

Try this:

As an artist/creative/maker, examine your feelings about the craftsmen already working in your art form. What makes them successful? What is their process?

Take the time to critically analyze their art-making processes.

Actively seek out support.

Find a coach with the foresight and perspective to see you where you are. Listen to their advice, and follow their instructions.

More than anything, do the work. All the work.

Then, throw your hat into the ring and fight for your admission to the esteemed realm of the working artist/creative/maker.

You’ve got this!