4 Reasons Writers Need Each Other

by Linda Gilden @LindaGilden

Wait a minute! Isn’t writing a solitary career? Don’t you just get up, fix your coffee, splash a little water on your face, and go to work?

Yes, for sure those are important parts of being a writer. But for many of us, especially those with Socializer personalities, writing in an office all day with no other people around seems like a very lonely profession.

Writers need each other for a number of reasons.

• 1. We need to have friends whose daily schedule looks like ours. Some of us write with a structured schedule and some of write a while, nap a while, and write some more. It’s always good to know when you can’t sleep and finally resort to the computer to make good us of your time, you can usually find another writer who is having the same problem.

• 2. We need writer friends to brainstorm with. When we are stuck on our story line or can’t figure out how to make our nonfiction interesting and creative, it helps to spend a few minutes brainstorming with your writing group. Often they will see angles that you hadn’t thought about.

• 3. We learn from each other. We can learn from reading the writing of others and helping them critique their work to make it better. There is always another writer we perceive as better than we are and it is helpful to become familiar with their structure and style. Study it and figure out why you like that style and why it is successful. Don’t try to copy the style but work the elements you like into your own style.

• 4. We can encourage each other. Who knows the type of discouragement a writer can feel better than another writer. We all need cheerleaders. And if your head cheerleader is another writer, he or she knows just the kind of cheers you need. Cheering for a writer is not a one time, “You can do it! Rah, rah, rah.” It is an ongoing thing. Maybe God has called you to be a cheerleader as well as a writer friend. One time I was almost done with a manuscript and my doorbell rang. It was one of my best cheerleaders with a cone of ice cream. “I knew you were getting close to the end of your book and thought you might need a little treat.” She wouldn’t even come in the house. Just handed me an ice cream cone, gave me a hug, and was on her way. But what a “pick-me-up.” I smiled until I wrote the last word!

Whatever your circumstances, always remember your writer friends need you. Don’t let your friends down on that one.

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4 Reasons Writers Need Each Other, insight from author @LindaGilden on @EdieMelson (Click to Tweet)

Linda Gilden has coauthored 11 books with 5 different coauthors and has #12 and #13 coming out in 2022, adding a new co-author to the list. She loves every one of her coauthors and enjoys collaborating on interesting projects with them. She also has written many books on her own and realizes what a treasure and blessing a good co-author is.