Warning: This is a rant.
Almost every Twitter profile carries the word “writer” in the bio section. Why? Because it’s so easy being a writer. I assume the mental dialogue of such people runs something like this:
All you have to do is, well, write. How hard could it be, right?
Wrong.
While it seems pertinent to mention the years I’ve spent working on my writing, learning, perfecting and still not really being there, I won’t. What I will mention, however, is that a professional writer is someone for whom writing is not just the act of putting down words.
They will spend hours obsessing over whether “irregardless” is a proper word or not; but will always complete the client’s work well before the deadline and still manage to produce excellent work.
A professional writer does not simply stuff your articles with relevant keywords; they make sure your reader relates to the feeling behind their words.
Someone who strings words together is not a writer; someone who threads emotions, experiences and stories into those words is a writer.
A professional writer knows there is always room for improvement; an amateur thinks they produced a work of art each time they put a pen to paper or finger to keyboard or whatever.
I could go on and on but the effort to keep this “rant” civil is taking a lot of my energy right now.
I am angry. I’m angry because clients come out and say things like “Oh, but all you have to do is write 1500 words about the history of shoe-making. It should hardly take an hour,” because a “writer” told them they could do it.
I’m frustrated because clients say: “You charge too much. I know a writer who’ll do it for $10.”
My reaction to the above statement has changed while writing this post. It went from this
To this
Finally, to this:
If your definition of a “writer” is someone who spews words on paper (or a word processing program) with no real knowledge of what writing involves, well, be my guest and hire the wannabe who will write you an e-book for $10.
And so, I wait for the day clients will understand how they are damaging their business by hiring cheap amateurs.
PS. The GIFs helped improve my mood a lot.
PSS. If you think the use of animated GIFs is immature, you’re right.