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Are You Scared You’re Just A Mediocre Writer? Guess What — Wild Talent Isn’t Everything
There are lots of other things that will make you a successful writer
As I have said here before, I’m a long-time teacher of writing and editing. I now work as a writer of novels and children’s books (and Medium articles), and also as a freelance editor. By my calculations I’ve taught over 4000 students in around 30 years of professional courses, community workshops and online classes.
I’ve seen a lot of students who were mediocre writers when they enrolled. And quite a few who were very talented. The one thing I learned over all those years of teaching? Never try to predict who will succeed!
Writers who started out mediocre only stayed that way if they refused to learn. The guys who told me they didn’t need to learn grammar and punctuation because when their manuscript got accepted, the editor would do it for them? Cue manic laughter from me (when I got home).
But I had students who cried when they only got a Pass or a Credit. One that I will call Julie was a chronic crier. She came into class believing she was a really good writer, and then found out she wasn’t. It was awful for her. It would be for anyone with her dreams and passion. She could’ve curled up and gone away.
